'28 Weeks Later' Analysis: Opening 2 Minutes

In the beginning of the film, we find a group of people hiding away in a secluded house. The secluded nature tells us that the people want to be far away from any other people and feel the need to be on their own in the safety of each other. We see that the group of people are highly reliant on each other to keep them safe as they are all in the same boat. Don (Robert Carlyle), obviously considered the leader of the group in the hideout and the protagonist of the film, is reluctant to let the child (Beans El-Balawi) into his hideout. This shows us that he is quite a paranoid and disinclined man and he lets these thoughts cloud his emotions and his overall judgement later in the opening scene. We see that his wife, Alice (Catherine McCormack), is the polar opposite. She protects the young boy, who she doesn't even know, without batting an eyelid. This shows her emotion driven mind - a contrast to Don's instinct driven mind. In both characters, their mindsets were their downfall, even in the first 2 minutes. Alice gets caught when barricading herself in a room to protect someone other than herself whilst Don leaves his loved ones and the destruction behind to protect himself. 

As well as learning the basics about the characters, we get a glimpse of what horrors lie in the rest of the film. It begins by showing us the fear people have about the virus and the paranoia that comes with it. It focuses on the virus' power and the lengths the characters will have to go to to survive against the frenzied people. We can see that the virus spreads extremely quickly after being bitten, turning people into deranged monsters almost instantaneously. It also shows us that it is a physically transmitted infection through a bite or a scratch and is not airborne, making it seem to be a more intense and graphic film as we imagine the struggles the people before have had to deal with and witness.

*added after feedback*

After learning all about shot types and effects of these, I am more prepared to start to fully analyse the opening by looking at the actual filming process. You have the establishing shots of the wooden house, and later the shots of the fields surrounding, to give us a sense of where the film is originally set. Once the havoc begins, the camera is quite shaky giving it more accurate and realistic footage as if it was someones point of view. I like this as it helps to reiterate the theme of danger and the situation they are in. 

This first shot, of Don leaving the house through the window, is one of my favourites in the opening scene. This is a high-angled shot showing him as weaker and showing the disease as being stronger than him. It does this by making him look smaller, whereas in the shots with the infected in, they are head on.

This second shot is also one of my favourites. The long shot of Alice being dragged away by the infected is very dramatic. The house almost seems to frame the window so we don't see anything else in the shot, making us focus on her more intently even though it's not a direct close-up.

The third shot I picked is this one whilst Don is running away. The way that it is a close-up of Don but also sort of a long shot of the people in the background make it quite interesting. We focus more closely on the close-up as you can see the fear and determination on his face, which further indicates the danger in the scene. I like the way the people in the background are still there yet blurred out. This makes the audience focus on Don and if he will get away rather than the infected. It helps people to realise who the protagonist is and who the rest of the film will focus on.

I really like this shot. It shows the only bond he has left, broken, as the infected take yet another person Don cares about. Again, the shaky nature helps us to see the havoc caused and the panic ensued by the infected but the close-up helps us to see the emotion and friendship in a time of danger and disease. The low-angle shows the power and strength in the bond but maybe also, the dominance of Don in the film.