Film Opening Analysis

Identify the film and it's genre.
The film I have chosen to analyse is Up. It is an animated, adventure-comedy film.

Identify where the film takes place and the time scale.
The film takes place in a North American city and covers a very broad time scale. The opening begins by showing us Carl at the age of eight and by the end of the opening sequence, 70 years have passed. Judging by the documentary at the start of the film, the time is likely to be sometime during the 1950s.

Summarise what happens in the sequence in chronological order.
How significant to the story is the story telling in the order of events?
The film starts with a documentary themed around the 1950s and we are introduced to the film's main character Carl. Carl is watching the documentary about an explorer named Charles Muntz and his expedition to Paradise Falls, an exotic region in South America. After the documentary, the comedy genre is reinforced by Carl's imagination, and how he pretends that he is an adventurer crossing the Grand Canyon when he is really just jumping over a crack in the pavement. Then we are introduced to a new character, Ellie, who is another avid fan of the adventurer Charles Muntz. The two children become fast friends due to their desire for adventure and after some more slapstick comedy a montage of their married life begins. The effective use of mise-en-scene shows us how close the two are, and despite all of the bad occurrences the two remain together. However, Ellie falls ill and passes away, leaving Carl with an old adventure book from their childhood. The opening of the film sets the scene for Carl's adventure to Paradise Falls.

Do the events link together or are they distinct, unconnected events?
The events are linked, starting from the first time Carl and Ellie meet and ending after Ellie's death. The events make us feel very attached to the characters as the montage makes them seem like a real couple with their own special forms of interaction such as the crossing of the heart gesture.Therefore Ellie's death at the end of the montage makes the audience question what comes next, as we have no idea what Carl is going to do without her anymore.

What characters are introduced and what are their roles in the play? How do we find this information out?

• Charles Muntz - Explorer and adventurer, Muntz acts as a role model for Carl. Although we do not actually see him in person, he is used to provide character development for Carl and Ellie.
• Carl - A fun-loving child with an active imagination and a fondness of adventure. He shares his desire for excitement with his friend and eventual wife, Ellie.
• Ellie - An excitable, energetic and eccentric tomboy with an unrivaled passion for adventurous antics.

We find this information out through the documentary at the start of the film and the events leading on from it, specifically the events in the abandoned house and the montage of Carl and Ellie's married life.

How much story information is revealed and how is it revealed? What is deliberately withheld?
The opening contains no information about the story of the film. However it does give us a lot of important insight into Carl's background as the purpose of the opening is to provide character development and to inform the audience about Carl's life before the events of the film. Knowing about Carl's past makes us wonder how his life will play out after the loss of his wife. Information about the main plot is withheld to us, but we can predict that Carl's adventures will take him to Paradise Falls from the information provided to us in the opening.

What does the audience need to know at the start of your film?
The purpose of the opening is to provide a backstory for Carl and to hint towards the main plot of the film. Therefore the opening intends to provide us with the following information:

• Story: How Carl and Ellie meet - Specifically, their shared interest in the explorer, Muntz. We are also shown a variety of key objects such as the "My Adventure Book", which appears throughout the film.
• Genre - The genres of comedy and adventure must be connoted and are done so through the documentary and during the credits.
• Clues towards the plot - The opening provides development to the main plot of the film and intends to 'hook' the audience with an unexpected event at the end of the opening. There is little information about the film's main plot, but it does give a number of clues such as the Adventure Book and Carl and Ellie's desire to travel to Paradise Falls.
• Credits - Important for institutional purposes.