The camerawork in the opening sequence of 'Brick' hides information from the viewer through the use of extreme close-ups. This is seen with the second shot when the audience is shown a shot of the main character's face. This shot is followed by various shots of the dead girl. The use of extreme close-ups shows detail in one part of an object or character but also withholds information from the viewer. The audience begin to ask questions such as "What has happened to the girl?" and "Did he have anything to do with her death?" These questions encourage the audience to keep watching to find out the answers. The hair over the girl's face hides her identity and the audience do not see who she is until later on in the film. The audience can not see the boy's face because his hand covers the majority of his face as he covers it in shock. This keeps the audience 'in the dark' about who he is, creating a feeling of mystery for the audience.
The editing in the opening sequence of 'Brick' shows the audience that the first character that they see is shocked about the fact that he has found the girl dead. This is shown by the use of eyeline match editing.




The non diegetic soundtrack of 'Brick' starts off as quite a low-pitched, slow, quiet sound that sounds like music from Western America. The sound of bells starts at the beginning when the first shot appears. This gives the audience an idea that the film was set in the West parts of North America. It also tells the audience that a fight may have happened before the film started and the effects of the fight are seen by the audience when they see the long shot of the boy staring at the dead girl. The slow music enhances the atmosphere of shock and grief; the emotions that the boy is feeling.
The diegetic sound heard in the shots that take place at school in the opening sequence of 'Brick' was an example of a sound bridge. At the end of the shot where the girl's bracelets are seen, the audience hear a school bell ringing. This sound carries on into the next shot of the girl slipping the note into a locker. The sound of the school bell makes the audience feel more comfortable after the shots where they see that a murder has taken place. The audience feel comfortable because the shot setting is familiar to them because it was set in a school. The bell enhances the mood of being in a more comfortable and familiar area which is high in security and makes the audience wonder how the murder could have taken place. They then ask questions such as "What or who would have caused her death?" These questions would make them watch more of the film to find out the answers.
Brick analysis from LindsayB96
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