About a boy analysis

About a Boy (2007)

Producing - Working Title Distribution - Universal

Budget - $30m

Box Office - $130m (World) $41m (USA)

Cinematic release in 51 separate countries

• Co-Directed by Chris and Paul Weitz

Production Companies

20 seconds

10 seconds

10 seconds

Idents

• 3 company idents in the centre of the shot
• Universal Studios, Studio Canal and Working Title

Titles

• 2 production company's titles, centre shot, white on black - connotes a professional film
• Font connotes that the film is a comedy

•  The producers of the film
• Does not obey rule of thirds, names are in the right third of the shot
• Audio bridge with diegetic sound

Opening Shot

•  Diegetic sound from the TV
•  Chris Tarrant Who Wants To Be A Millionaire - achieving verisimilitude
• medium shot

•  Large book denotes that the character reads books, this is stereotypically middle class
• The book juxtaposes with the opened can of RedBull and signifies the film will not be stereotypically middle class

• The title of the film does not have any upper-case lettering, this connotes that the film is targeted at youth. 

• Tracking shot

• The opening is using narrative enigma by not showing the face of the protagonist
• However, the opening is also showing a lot of the house giving the audience an idea of the class of the protagonist

• Each take ranges from 4-25 seconds in length
• No regularity in editing

•  Non-diagetic voice over
• Voice of the character on screen

• 34 total names used in the title sequence
• 8 scene set-ups in the title sequence

•  Establishing shot is a two shot with the protagonist and another character
• This denotes that these two characters will be connected later on in the film

• Ninth scene set-up of the opening
• Shot reverse shot

•  Breaks shot reverse shot pattern
• The house is a stereotypical middle class british house
• In contrast, the house is cluttered, which signifies and gives anchoragethat the film will not be the stereotypical middle class british film

• Master shot of the room
• Long shot

1st Shot

• Long shot 
• Cross fade transition from opening sequence to main body of the film

Running time of opening - 5:41

Length of idents - 40 seconds

Time between idents and opening shot - 5:01

Source: http://westgatefilms.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/about-boy-opening.html