Sound of Music

The main aim of all title sequences no matter what genre they are is to establish a number of things such as; genre, who the characters are and their narrative drive.

The title sequence for the sound of music (directed by Robert Wise in 1965) is what I will be analysing to see how well mise en scene, sound and costumes are used to establish certain aspects of the film such as genre and the main characters.
The establishing shot is an image of mountains. This is significant as usually the main aim of an establishing shot in a title sequence is to give an indication that this is the location where key parts of the film will take place. The Camera angles in this title sequence are mainly aerial shots of the mountains and Austria creating a carefree feeling for the viewer. Representing how Maria feels while she is up on the mountains singing, away from rules and regulations. There is then a close up of Maria showing that she is the main character and also to show how happy she is whilst there. The camera then tracks Maria as she runs along the mountain and around nature making you instantly warm to her as you feel like you are part of her journey- a main feature in title sequences as you want to be able to connect with the main character.

As the sound of music is a musical the music is a big part of the film and in the title sequence a lot of different types of non Digetic music is featured to show this. Maria starts singing the theme tune for the film using the lyrics of the song to give narrative expectations about the film. Such as “ill sing once more” in referral to captain von trapp who later on in the film refuses to sing because it reminds him of his late wife but in the end learns to sing once again thanks to Maria. However she stops singing when she hears the church bells chiming and runs off in panic again giving narrative expectations towards other parts in the film that similar events may occur with music, the church and main characters running away. This helps create suspense and intrigue as your just getting to know Maria and then she runs away making the audience wonder where and why she has gone- always the aim in a title sequence as you feel compelled to carry on watching.

The main credits are displayed in hand written swirly font in an orangey yellow colour which is a happy and cheerful colour indicating the genre of film that the sound of music is. All the main character are listed with Julie Andrews name first as she is the most famous actor in this film- this is key in a title sequence as it makes the film more appealing to the audience and also shows that she is the main character. The sound department is then displayed next as they are very important part of a musical film.
The same font is the used to indicate the place and historical period by stating that is “Salzburg, Austria in the last golden days of the thirties.” The last comment creates intrigue for the audience all of which is the main purpose of a title sequence as it makes them want to carry on watching the film.

Mise en scene is also very important in establishing where the film is set and who the main character of the film is. As Maria- the main character is seen on her own in the mountains. With a number of different shots churches showing that she must be religious or a member of the church. It is shown that Maria is a nun in her costume as she wears very plain and dull coloured clothes with her hair cut short. However her nun’s headdress is not shown until the end as she has taken it off making it seem like she doesn’t take being a nun seriously and may not enjoy being one.