Gone Baby Gone Film Opening

Title: Gone Baby Gone
Release: 2007
Director: Ben Affleck
Studio: The Ladd Company
Box Office: $34, 209, 788
Critical Acclaim: Boston Society of Film Critics Award, National Board of Review Award, Satellite Award etc.

Narrative: 
The main character's job is to find missing people so it is likely that he is a policeman. The film is set in a rundown city, the houses are shabby which indicates that the characters in the film living in this neighbourhood may not have that much money. There is graffiti on the streets and shots of gang members included in the opening scene which gives connotations of danger and a high crime rate. The policeman is holding a picture of a young girl and showing people it to see if they recognise her. This along with the original idea that the characters job is to find missing people, tells the audience that the little girl in the photo has gone missing and the policemen are looking to try and find her. Despite the neighbourhood being fairly rundown, the film still expresses to the audience the importance of family life and being together. This again backs up the idea of the little girl going missing and her family being worried about her.

Camera Shots and Angles:

• The establishing shot is of a city house. The house is fairly shabby and in a street of houses similar to it. This shot immediately represents the location of the film and gives some connotations of the narrative due to stereotypical ideas of he type of people that would live in poor city houses. It tells the audience that the types of people living in these houses may be of a low class.
• The long shot of a middle aged/elderly man stood outside an old/poorly cared for house with an American flag in the background gives the audience an even wider idea on the location of the film.
• The long shot of a sign in a shop window saying "Free Bread" backs up the idea that the film is set in a city where the characters are not very wealthy. The sign proves the characters in this area are poor as they can't even afford to buy their own food.
• The medium group shot of a group of boys gives connotations of them being in a 'gang'. Gangs are often stereotyped with big and slightly less wealthy cities. 
• The close up shot of the young girl smiling helps to back up the narrative and mood of the film and the ideas centered around the importance of family life. 
• The introducing shots are very emotional, they create a mood within the audience that backs up the mood associated with the narrative.
• The opening shot fades in from a black screen.
• The track shot of the main character walking through the city and seeing all these different families together experiencing different things. The shot is used to show his movements and the idea that he is connecting with all these people and its like a community. 

Sound:

• The non diegetic music played over the top of the film  is dramatic and slow. This creates tension as the audience want to find out more about what's going to happen. The slow speed of the music gives connotations of a sad story line and potentially a serious and maybe hard going narrative. The sound along with the slow shots makes it clear to see the emotion of the film. 
• The voice over sound is key in showing the audience the emotion of the film and giving them an insight into what it's about. The sound track is more emotional as the audience feels like the main character is actually speaking directly to them. The voice over explains the importance of family and the place that you live. It then leads into talking about missing people and gives the audience a precise explanation to the narrative of the film. The voice over makes the audience immediately feel sorry for the missing girl and for her family, it draws them into the films plot line
• The silence up until the voice over cuts in creates drama and makes the audience curious. It also creates a slightly eerie feel as if you are watching knowing something bad is going to happen. The idea of it being silent indicates to the audience that something is wrong because they feel uneasy. . 

Mis en Scene:

• The costumes the characters are wearing are cheaply branded items of clothing. The gang of boys are all wearing tracksuits and backwards caps, this connotes the social group of 'gangs' and stereotypical city teenagers who cause trouble.
• The woman in one of the first shots is wearing unbuttoned jeans and a top showing her stomach. Her stomach is tattooed. This costume shows her as being quite rebellious and not really caring what others think. The unbuttoned jeans and the fact that she is showing off a lot of her body could be interpreted as her being slightly promiscuous and irresponsible. This fits in with the idea that the character lives in an un-classy and 'common' neighbourhood.

-The atmosphere of the clip as a whole is very serious and sinister. It starts off showing families being happy together but then later it turns slightly harsher and everyone looks very unhappy and worried. 

-The lighting in the clip is very dim to connote the solemn narrative.  

-The typography appears in plain white text at the bottom of the screen. They are of a fairly simple style and shape, I think this simple text has been used because the voice over already represents much of the narrative of the film and therefore the titles don't need to be too elaborate.