Analysis of codes and conventions

I am analysing the codes and conventions of the thriller, Se7en.

During the opening sequence there are a lot of jittery jump shots. This is a technical code and is used to create a feeling of intensity. The audience doesn’t want to look away in case they miss something. The fast paced shots create a sense of panic, which there is a lot of in a thriller (technical convention).  This sense of panic is also revealed through a verbal code of white messy/scattered handwriting against a black background. These specific colours have been used because they are the complete opposite of each other and create a contrast. The white handwriting is meant to stand out to the audience and the fact that it is scattered suggests the writer was in some sort of rush or panic. It also creates mystery as the audience begins to wonder who the writer is and why their handwriting is like this. Mystery is a big convention in a thriller so this has been represented through these codes.

At the end of the opening sequence a singer sings ‘I want to be closer to God’. This is a symbolic code. It can be perceived in many ways but to me it seems as the person wants to die and be closer to God. Throughout the sequence we see a person with a razor (which is closely associated with suicide) cutting their fingers. This is clearly self harming which gives me the idea that the person wants to die. The mention of God brings a religious tone which is contradictory to the things going on in the sequence; images of people being murdered, blood splatters and self harming. This suggests something about the narrative. Is the film going to be about a battle between God and Satan? The mention of a battle brings to mind the convention of there always being a battle between the good and bad in a thriller. This is what the narrative is built on so it is very important.

Throughout the sequence the setting isn’t revealed, the person remains anonymous and it isn’t made clear what they are doing. This once again adds mystery but also implies the film is a thriller because in thrillers the most important things are left unrevealed. The audience isn’t aware of the most important thing, who a person is, so they will continue to watch the film to find out who it is. This is common in thrillers as the whole idea is to thrill the audience; to give them something they didn’t see coming.

The opening sequence uses many conventions of a thriller; dark lighting, violence, extreme close ups, use of a filter, grainy film, fast paced music, etc.