Taken Opening Sequence Analysis

The first scene of the film is a flashback scene, in which we see the protagonists daughter at her 5th birthday. From this scene we can gain a lot of knowledge about the film, the emphasis on the number 5 from the camera is used to show the daughters vulnerability, and also we hear some slow paced edgy music playing in the background which hints at some sort of disturbance which could go on to affect the girl later in life, the fact that the soundtrack doesn't fit with the theme of celebration that we are seeing on screen was no doubt done on purpose and it will help to immediately engage the audience and get them questioning it, there are also plenty of jump cuts used which also help to represent the distorted feeling that this flashback scene gives, these are often used within thrillers to disorder the plot.

The clip then cuts to a close up of Liam Neeson, who plays the main protagonist, sat in a dark room with bleak surroundings on his own, looking like he is contemplating. This gives us enough information to realise that he is the girls dad and the fact he is on his own surrounded by darkness not only foreshadows sinister events that await him, but also the fact that he clearly misses spending time with his daughter. We can also tell from his plain clothes and car that he doesn't have much money and is possibly poor.

During the scene in which we see the protagonist arrive at his daughters party the diegetic sound in the background is very harmonious and contrasts what we would expect from typical thriller films. We also see the protagonist has taken more pride in his appearance for his daughters birthday which could show us that he values what she thinks of him a lot.

As the opening continues we then get an insight into the characters alternative life, when he is with his friends, and we learn that their jobs are of a violent and dangerous nature. The contrast between day and night in the opening is also effective as the fact he acts like a normal person in the day and only does his dangerous jobs at night shows to us he is hiding this part of his life from his family, and the fact he is shown to be more relaxed and at home at night also shows that this is the thrill seeking life that he desires. At the end of the opening, we also see the protagonist involved in a fight scene whilst he is working as a bodyguard protecting a music star from getting stabbed by a man dressed in black, this helps to not only suddenly increase the pace of the action which will no doubt keep the audience occupied but also continue to allow the characters backgrounds to develop, as we realise that the main protagonist is excellent in combat situations.