No
Country for Old Men: Opening Analysis
We then see the first two characters of the film,
which are walking towards a police car. This is a generic signifier of
thrillers, and indicates trouble because the man in the handcuffs has obviously
committed a crime and could be dangerous. We see a close-up of a weapon called
a captive bolt pistol. It is a mysterious shot as the audience are unlikely to
know what it is, making them ask questions and continue to watch as they want
to find out what it is. The fact that it
is a close-up and the weapon is the focal point of the shot shows that it is an object of significance, and we should
remember it being there.
Once the criminal and the police officer have got
into the car, there is an interesting medium close up (and two shot) that can
say things about the characters we have been introduced to. The lighting on the
police officer is very bright; as if he is in the sunshine- a very positive
representation of this character is given, showing that he is a good person.
The criminal sitting in the back of the car- and on the left of the screen- is
unlike this. He sits in the shadows, with no light on his face. He is also
behind bars, symbolising that the danger he causes, as he has to remain separated
from the man in the front. As we cannot see this man’s face, he is very
mysterious, and the darkness is negative, so he is presented as quite an evil
character. This shot therefore juxtaposes two characters just through lighting
and props in just a few seconds. As the car begins to drive away, there is
another establishing shot- this time of the road ahead of them. It shows the
road to quite far into the distance, with no other cars on it. It establishes that there is no one around to
witness what is soon to happen, or what has just happened.
When at the police station, there is a shot that
shows the officer having a conversation on the phone about what has happened.
The criminal sits in the shadows at a distance again, but begins to walk
towards the officer- who is closer to the camera. His face is slightly out of
shot, so his identity is still obscured. This shot also shows dramatic irony,
as the viewer knows that the villain is about to attack a man, who is unaware
of this. This is a good way of building tension in thrillers because the victim
seems helpless, and the villain has complete power.
When the criminal- Anton Chigurh- starts to
strangle the officer, there is a long sequence showing the two of them
struggling on the floor. Some of the shots are from floor angle, which is very
chaotic as you cannot see exactly what is happening. We also see things from a
bird’s-eye-view, and shows Chigurh’s face clearly for the first time, which is
very dramatic as it happens when we see him murdering someone. It is also very
uncomfortable as the camera seems to gradually closer to his face, and that is
the opposite of what the viewer wants. It is also eerie as Chigurh appears to
be almost smiling, like he is enjoying killing the man. The sequence ends with
a close-up of Chigurh’s face, which is also unnerving because he acts quite
calm for someone who has just committed a murder.
He remains relaxed in the next scene when he goes
to clean his hands in the sink, as if he has killed many times before. We cut
away to the feet of the dead man where we see skid marks along the floor,
reminding us of the struggle that just took place. The opening then ends on
another close up on the captive bolt pistol, reinforcing the idea that it is a
significant prop, and also showing that Chigurh is free to go out and kill
more.
This clip shows most of the opening of the film.
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