Analysis of Film Openings: Pulp Fiction

This still image immediately sets what the genre of the
rest of the film is going to be - it also tells us a lot
about each of the characters which are seen.

There is only a single still image in this opening from which the audience can gauge the genre of the film. This picture contains two people holding guns, which immediately connote crime and violence. Because they are clearly in a shop or a restaurant, they are probably committing organised crime, which means the film is most likely to be a part of the gangster genre. Additionally to this, the director credit of the film tells us that it was made by Quentin Tarantino. His name has become associated with films which show crime in a humourous way, which again tells the audience that the film is going to be part of the crime genre, because of the types of film associated with it's director.

The only two characters seen in this opening are the man and the women holding the guns in the still image. However, from this one still, we can still determine a lot about the types of characters they are. As I have already mentioned, the guns connote that they are criminals, and the fact that one of them is female means they are not the stereotypical criminals which are often seen in crime films. However, by having one of the criminals as a woman, it shows that they are more advanced with their plans that the majority of people doing the same things as them, which tells the audience that the rest of the characters later in the film could be use disguises or other methods in order to cover up what they are about to do. Additionally, there seems to be no power imbalance between the male and the female, whereas usually between two characters of a differing sex, the male will take the lead and the female will hide behind him. Here, the female is in the foreground, which connotes to the audience that the rest of the film will also defy previous movie stereotypes in the same way.

The Pulp Fiction logo fades out slowly behind the rest
of the titles in order to connote tension within the
film.

The atmosphere of the opening is one of tension and excitement. This comes about from the way that the Pulp Fiction title fades out very slowly, remaining on the screen for almost a minute. This connotes that the film is self referential, as by having the title remain on screen for so long, it makes the audience think more deeply into the meaning of the individual words.



This idea of deep thinking is completely contrasted by the sound which accompanies it - this mish-mash of styles is a theme which can be seen throughout Tarantino's work. The non-diegetic music in this opening is the only sound which can be heard. This music is upbeat and sounds like it has been influenced by Asian music - this would not usually be associated with a crime film. However, because it is so quick, it connotes the thrilling, petrifying emotions which must have been running through the minds of the criminals as they drew their guns in the first picture which is seen. Additionally, it connotes that they are going to get away with their crime, because if they were then to be caught after the robbery, the music would be a lot slower and more reflective in order to connote emotions of regret instead of emotions of pride and joy.

The colours within the main title of the film
tell the audience a lot about the themes which
are going to be the basis for the rest of it

The themes which are seen within this opening seem to be ones based around organised crime and violence, yet seen through a humorous viewpoint. The colours of red and yellow on the 'Pulp Fiction' title connote violence and riches, which are essentially the two themes which make up a crime film - it tells the audience that the film is going to be based on the idea of violence in order to earn money.

The style of the windows and the outfit of the male
both connote that the film is going to be set
in America.

The setting of this film is established as being in America in the first picture, with the blinds on the windows being iconography which is significant of the American diner setting, which is being held up by the two criminals. This setting of somewhere in America is made more specific by the short-sleeved shirt which is being worn by the male character. Short sleeves are usually used to connote warm weather, which means that the film is probably going to be set in the summer, or in a warm weather state in the south or west of the country. The time period which it is set in is revealed by the titles.

It is unusual for a film to specifically list its supporting
cast in the opening titles, especially in a rolling
credit style like the one which is shown here.

The simplistic white text on a black background gives the film
a time period of somewhere in the 1960s or 70s

The titles are the most important part of this opening clip in my opinion, as they establish everything about the film which wasn't answered by the image which starts the opening sequence off. The use of white titles on a plain black background was popular in filmmaking until the 1960s/70s, when it became popular to have a  series of still, or even moving, images behind the titles. Because this film (despite being made in 1994) has this dated fashion of title, it connotes to the audience that the film is set decades before the year in which it was released. Additionally to this, the titles reveal huge name actors such as John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson, yet also list a huge supporting cast. Compared to the other film openings I have studied, this is unusual, as the supporting cast usually don't have their names included within the
opening. This could suggest that the film was independently produced as opposed to the mainstream films which I have studied, or could connote that the director doesn't see certain actors as being more important in the film than others. A final use of the titles for significance is, as I've mentioned already, the contrasting yellow and red colours of the 'Pulp Fiction' title. The colour yellow connotes riches and the colour red connotes violence - the combination of violence in the pursuit of riches is the key theme of a gangster movie, so this tells the audience a lot about the genre and the content of the film, before it has even begun.

Studying this film opening has shown me how important it can be to completely break the mould with uses of titles in order to signify certain things, such as the setting and the themes of the film. Whilst I am unlikely to use a white title on a black background for my film, as it would be hard to present it as stylistically as it has been presented here, the type of font and colour of titles which I use will carry huge significance towards the setting, themes and atmosphere about what the rest of the movie would have if I was to make the whole thing.