Task 6: Analysing Two Film Title Sequences

Around the World in Eighty Days (1956)

The title sequence for this film uses animation. They have used things such as bicycles, clocks and hot air balloons, objects that will later be in the film. The animations also give the audience a sense of adventure as we see things from different countries e.g. the bull which we would associate with Spain. Therefore we can assume that this is an adventure fiction film. The colours used include red, yellow and blue, all of which are bright colours. This tells us that this film will be light-hearted. This is supported by the happy-sounding orchestral music played in a major key as it makes you feel like something good is going to happen, it relaxes you. A horror or thriller film would want to do the exact opposite.

The actual title credits are integrated into the animation. For example, animated faces on the hot air balloon have title credits put next to them. We are not introduced to any characters straight away, but again there are hints about the storyline being adventure-based due to the animations.

Beetlejuice (1988)

This type of title sequence is titles over moving images. A birds eye view of the town in which "Beetlejuice" is set is shown, introducing us to the location. The orchestral music used in this title sequence is played in a minor key at a fast pace, which gives us an anxious feeling. This implies that a part of this film's genre is horror. Title credits flash up in a large font, making them really stand out.

No obvious storyline or plot is set up, however, throughout the title sequence, the camera is constantly moving through the town until  the end when it focuses on a house. Therefore, we can assume that the film's plot will have something to do with this house. Apart from this, we do not meet any characters and therefore cannot understand much about the storyline.