genre post - sci-fi - star trek (2009)

Genre post on sci-fi

The film I will be reviewing is "star trek"

Trailer:

- Genre = sci-fi

- Released in 2009

- Studio is Paramount Pictures

- Written by J. J. Abrams

- Directed by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Gene Roddenberry

- Star cast are Chris Pine, Simon Pegg, Zachary Quinto

The opening scene 

Narrative

From the opening scene we can see two ships shooting at each other. The larger of the ships got a shot on the smaller ship which ended up damaging it heavily. The commander of the larger ship's assistant came on and said they wanted to meet the commander of the smaller ship. The commander then started heading towards a ship to go to the larger ship. The title of commander was then given to Kirk and so he became commander Kirk. His wife started going into labour and they were meant to evacuate the ship and put the ship into auto pilot to crash the ship into the other. Something bad happened which meant the autopilot couldn't work so he had to send his wife away and crash the ship with him inside.

He talked over the intercom to his wife as he had the baby. They named the baby Jim and as they did that Kirk crashed the ship and the scene ended. The assumed narrative could be following the life of Jim (Kirk's son). We can guess this as the baby was the focal point of the ending of the scene and we can guess that Kirk's legacy needs to live on with Jim. We can guess that the wife won't be the main character as she wasn't as much of a focal point as the baby.

Target audience

As this movie is in the genre of sci-fi we can expect the movie to be targeted to an audience that enjoys watching sci-fi movies. Star Trek is targeted to an audience of 12 year old and above. We can see this due to the lack of violence of swearing. This allows the movie to be marketed as a 12 and allow the studio to have a wider audience range meaning more profit can be earnt. The movie is targeted at 12+ year old sci-fi movie enthusiasts. We can see that the movie is targeted at sci-fi enthusiasts as the setting of the film is in space and has many features of the movie that aren't possible to have on earth at this point. This makes the movie a sci-fi movie which is what sci-fi enthusiasts would want to watch and it would be best to target them.

Characters

There are 4 main characters in this opening scene: Kirk, the wife, the original commander and the baby (Jim).

Kirk

We can guess that Kirk won't be in the movie physically as he has died from crashing the ship. We can assume that he may come back in flashback and memories from the wife and other people who knew kirk. we can assume that Kirk and the rest of the ship are the good guys in the narrative. We can see that he is trustworthy and has authority by his costume. Blue is a colour which connotes responsibility, authority and loyalty. His costume suggests that he is trustworthy and is able to have authority. We can see that as he was given the title of commander meaning the old commander thought he would have authority and would be responsible in leading the ship.

Old commander

We can guess that the old commander won't appear on screen physically again. We can guess as he was not as significant in the opening scene he is less likely to be on scene again in flashback or maybe not even on screen at all. We can see from the old commander's costume that he was also trustworthy and authoritarian. We can see this from the blue costume he wears. Blue is a colour which connotes authority, loyalty and responsibility. These are attributes of a good leader so it is no surprise why he was the leader of the ship.

The wife

We can guess that we will see the wife physically in the movie as we know she was alive at the end of the scene. We can see the love they (her and Kirk) had for each other by her emotions when she sees the ship blow up and she knows that Kirk is gone. We can see how she is a good person and has no evil inside her from her clothing. She is wearing white costume. White is a colour which connotes purity, innocence and goodness. Her wearing white connotes her being a good person who doesn't deserve to lose her husband so horrifically.

Jim (the baby)

We can guess that Jim will be the main character of the narrative as he is the focal point at the end of the scene. We can see that Jim is innocent and pure. This can be brought to when we next meet Jim. We can get this impression due to his costume. His cloth he is wrapped in is white. White is a colour which connotes innocence and purity as well as goodness. This can connote Jim will be a good person who is innocent and is like his dad.

Genre and tone

The genre of sci-fi and tones of sadness, power and sacrifice are explored in the opening scene to the movie. The conventions of the genre of sci-fi are shown in the opening scene. The convention of not being able to be done in the present day on earth is used as the whole scene is impossible in real life. This adds an element of excitement as the viewers get to go into an imaginary land where they don't have to worry about real world problems. Another convention of having futuristic props and beings. The alien who delivered Jim is a convention of sci-fi as aliens aren't real/ if they are then we haven't met them yet. The tone of sadness is shown by the fact that both the wife and Kirk are visibly sad by not being able to see each other again. When the ship blows up the wife is visibly super sad. The tone of sacrifice is shown as Kirk sacrifices himself for the greater good of the rest of the crew on the ship.

Camera use

The use of the close-up shot on the wife's face as the ship explodes shows her true feelings for Kirk. The close-up shot of the wife's face is of her with tears rolling down her face and a distraught look on her face. This connotes her having strong feelings towards Kirk and that she truly loved him.

The use of the tracking shot on the old commander walking down the halls can connote his importance and authority. The tracking shot is like someone is following the commander like his own "servant". This emphasises his authority and importance.

The use of the composition of Kirk in the ship connotes his importance and authority as the new commander. He is in the middle of the shots. This composition connotes importance and authority. Using this it shows Kirk has importance and authority.

Sound use 

The use of the pleonastic diegetic sound effect of the baby crying adds a bit of happiness and hope to this situation. The baby crying gives hope as it allows for Kirk's legacy to be carried on by Jim. Bringing life into this world is also a very happy moment and brings joy to the people around. Babies also make everyone happy. In the sad situation some happiness needed to be brought in.

Mise-en-scene use

The use of the setting of a spaceship inside space creates the right genre needed to make this a film loved by sci-fi fans. Space and spaceships are conventions of the genre of sci-fi and adding them to a movie makes the genre of the movie be sci-fi. This makes the audience range be people who like sci-fi movies and some other people.

Editing used

The use of the quick cuts from the wife to Kirk to the dashboard repeatedly builds up suspense and tension. Quick cuts in movies are used to build tension in the scene. Using the quick cuts creates tension in the scene. It makes the audience be on the edge of their seat waiting to see when Kirk will die and what will be said. The added timer on the dashboard help[s to emphasise the tensions by saying how long until the ship will hit and blow up.

Conclusion 

I believe that the opening scene was successful in engaging the audience by adding the right conventions and a gripping story. The opening scene did well in telling the story but not spoiling the whole narrative of the rest of the film. The use of the different tones got the audience feeling lots of different emotions and making them want to carry on watching the rest of the movie.