Video: Opening Shots Tell Us Everything

"Opening Shots Tell Us Everything" by Now You See It

Opening shots are underrated. I can almost guarantee that your favorite film has an opening shot that gives huge insight into the film's themes, character conflicts, or plot points.  Even though it may be forgotten by the time you’re done watching a movie for the first time, the opening shot of any movie is integral to introducing the audience to the world and/or characters they’re about to watch for a little while. Let's look at four in-depth examples to see just how revealing opening shots are.

Movie openings shown, in order of their appearance:

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Superbad (2007)
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
Jaws (1975)
Whiplash (2014)
Dan in Real Life (2007)
The Big Lebowski (1998)
The Matrix (1999)
Silver Linings Playbook(2012)
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Fargo (1996)
Forrest Gump (1994)
Raging Bull (1980)