Analysis of Credit Sequence

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwmCXWiq_mE - Link of the Credit Sequence for The Talented Mr. Ripley

In order to gain my knowledge of what creates an effective and great credit sequence I decided to analyse the opening to Anthony Minghella's film - The Talented Mr. Ripley. 'The Talented Mr. Ripley is a Thriller and Crime film which was release in 1999. I am initially interested in this particular films credit sequence as I feel it sets the mood out perfectly for the remainder of the film as well as, at the same time, creating a sense of an edginess and troubled nature for the main character and portraying it to the audience which makes them uneasy and in doubt of what is going to happen. I thought it would be helpful to look at what this Thriller film sequence contained because it would assist us when doing our own opening sequence by adding elements into the credit sequence to portray a deeper more disturbing Thriller genre. 

The credits also give an insight to what the film might possibly contain as the picture below, taken from the opening scene suggest:                                            

The Opening Credit sequence involves, as shown, black strips falling down onto the screen and the identity of the main character being revealed. These edited in black strips shows the real identity of this character is hidden, therefore the character may be isolated as they don't want to show their true character, which is a popular attribute of a credit sequence as a lot of Thriller Openings are based on the isolation of the character. Additionally the techniques such as arousing peoples superstitions was commonly used by Alfred Hitchcock.

However as the credit sequence carries on, the revelation of the character become clearer but only as the black strips are becoming more frequent, therefore giving an indication that his true  personality will be identified throughout the film. As the black strips reveal that character the camera revolves around him giving the impression that he is not free and feels isolated in himself.


Throughout the Opening Sequence the credits appear until the black strip that exposes the identity of the character catches up with them. The order of the credits are as followed: The production company, The distribution company, The director, The main actors and actresses, The Title and then the additional actors and actresses. The credits are presented on a black screen and the font in a white colour which stands out and is also in an old typewriters font, which I think is a classic and effective font to use.. However, the font, is not implying great threat because it allows the main focus to then be appointed onto 'Mr.Ripley'. The additional characters therefore are shown less important as they are superimposed on the first scene, when we see the character playing the piano and the credit music 'Destined to the Dark' being sung by a women.  All these credits last on the screen for 3 seconds, whereas the main title lasts double that time.

The Main Title of the film is superimposed onto the clip of him behind and is done effectively to show the different personalities and traits of the character by just showing how to present him. 'The, Mr. and Ripley' is all written in a bold white font whereas 'Talented' is written in an orange after a series of words to describe him are all being suggested to fit into the title.

This example of editing could possibly be useful in our opening. I believe that the font and the way it was presented on a black screen was effective and that of a revelation was a creative way to start a Thriller.