What Inspired Me?

    Usually upon watching movies with my friends, especially in large groups, we find ourselves giggling and quietly chatting throughout the film. One specific occurrence, however, failed to follow that normalcy. That occurrence was when we all watched Murder on the Orient Express. Having had no previous interest in detective or mystery films, I was shocked to see just how enthralled my friends and, specifically I, were upon watching this film that sparked my interest in the detective/mystery genre. Starting with the very beginning of the film, viewers are immediately thrown into a world of well executed confusion. For example, viewers are first exposed to a close up image of a timer which quickly gives a rushed feeling and then of a close up of eggs which gives a feeling of fragility. This feeling of rush and fragility make viewers feel confused immediately which further advances the mysterious ideals of a detective/mystery film. Similarly, viewers prepare themselves for the setting to be train related (due to the title Murder on the Orient Express), so when the film opens with an establishing shot in a bustling area in Jerusalem, specifically in a place of religious importance, viewers cannot help but wonder what the importance of the initial location may be. Finally, the beginning of the film features a non-diegetic bell sound which works to further the feeling of rushing and consciousness of time that is typical of a mystery/detective film. Ultimately, all of the features in the opening of this film help to create a sense of confusion as none of the pieces seem to make sense. I truly enjoyed the confusion created in the beginning of this film because my lack of understanding only encouraged me to keep watching to find out more and figure out the mystery.
   In the opening of the movie Se7en, a similar use of close ups and confusion are implemented. For example, in the opening credits, viewers witness close ups of a razor blade gracing the hand of an unknown man, a close up of a frightening sketch, a close up of a journal, and close up clips of words in a book being blacked out. Personally, I feel that a good detective movie should be confusing yet related in the beginning so that viewers cannot help but keep watching to find out more. This movie encompasses that entire idea, as there are clear themes of writing and gore, yet we do not know what direction this movie is heading. On top of all of those factors, there is ominous non-diegetic music that gradually increases in an uncomfortable way playing as the random close up clips are shown. Ultimately, between the frightening music and the confusing yet dark close ups, viewers are not only anxious, but they are ready to move forward with the movie to figure out the connections.
   Through watching Murder on the Orient Express and Se7en, I became enlightened on how exciting it can be to view a movie whose pieces slowly fall together as opposed to predictable, cliche movies. Detective movies do not typically follow cliches, and thus can take a variety of turns. Such options of ambiguity excite me, and thus helped me chose detective/mystery as my genre for my AICE Media Studies film opening.