*Continuity Project*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDcvHxYZSUg

*Sound-Image Blog*

The scene I chose to analyze is the opening scene of the movie Troy. I really like this movie, and always remember this scene in particular. The scene begins with a long shot of Achilles (Brad Pitt) riding in on his horse, through the Greek soldiers. It is daytime so there is good lighting, but the armor of the soldiers contrasts that by being very dark. Every soldier is raising their spears up and down as Achilles passes them, and I never noticed this before but the sound we hear is of the spears hitting their shields, but if you look closer, they aren't doing that. But then again, it could just be meant to sound like the top of the spears hitting each other . There is a cut to a medium close up of Achilles' face, and then a quick cut to the gigantic soldier he is about to fight. The relationship of the King and Achilles becomes known in the next shot of the king scolding him for being late. Achilles turns around as if he's leaving and the camera cuts to a shot of the old man trying to persuade Achilles to fight. The camera is facing Achilles' profile as he is facing his Greek soldiers straight on. This is an important shot because he is looking his soldiers in the eyes and decides he will fight for them, which shows the type of soldier he truly is, which we don't get to see until a little later on in the film. He pulls out his spear and sticks it in the ground. As he walks towards the soldier he is going to fight, we hear the sound of his sharp sword as he pulls it out. There is silence between the two armies, until the huge soldier turns around towards his soldiers and starts yelling to get them hyped up. They all start yelling, which sounds more like a roar. The next shot is a moving one of Achilles beginning to jog towards his opponent. The camera keeps cutting back and forth between the bodies of Achilles and the enormous soldier. The camera is behind the soldier as he throws the spear towards Achilles, and then cuts to behind Achilles as the spear hits through his shield. In my opinion, the best part of the entire movie comes in the next few shots. Achilles gains speed, and just as he is getting to the soldier, time slows down and we watch the man pulling out his sword, but not in time. Achilles jumps in the air and stabs him between the neck and shoulder. I think what makes this shot so appealing is the combination/relationship of image and sound. The slow motion of Achilles jumping, and the sound of the sharp knife piercing through the soldiers skin work really well together and make a bigger effect on the action itself. The cutting in this scene are obvious, but they aren't balky. I think they flow pretty smoothly. The feel of this movie is intense and action-packed with all of it's fighting scenes, and I think the director, Wolfgang Petersen, did a great job in setting up the way the rest of the movie will be just in this opening scene. Here's a link to this opening scene! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJ8S8_O0OYM