At the start of the movie, there is a pre title sequence. This could represent that the past has some part to play in the future in this film. The location is an orchestral theatre, this indicates that characters in this movie will be middle-class. The red and white titles then combine to signify the rivalry of good and evil. Red relates to blood, whereas white represents purity. The dark background and chunky font give this movie and identity of horror.
There is an establishing master shot so we can see all the theatre, and the caption screen gives us important information on where this scene is set. On this occasion, it is set in Maryland in the US. The low angle shot shows the control of the composer over the orchestra, this is otherwise known as a juxtaposition. Then a crane shot focusses upon the protagonist. The body language of the protagonist is concerning, as there is a slight tilt of the head. You could relate this to the way a predator looks at its prey. The dress of the audience is very formal as they are wearing suits and ties, which also indicates that they are of middle social class. The pillars of the house and the fact it is white makes the house stand out from the rest, which could signify that something is peculiar. There is an establishing master shot so we can see all of the dining room, and we get the impression that its quite an old and elegant house, in fact it feels more like we are in a London mansion, rather then a Maryland house. In the dining room scene, the word 'herd' can be recognised. This is victimous speech, and when Lector says 'I'd like to see you on my couch', this is a foreseeing of what could happen. After Special Agent Graham arrives there is a period of dialogue exchanged, concluding in Lector patting SA Graham's shoulder. This shows compassion and a bond that is going to be corroded soon. After the stabbing, there is a low angle shot looking up at Hannibal, showing his dominance and control in the situation. But this is lost, when a two shot shows that they are both as powerless as eachother. But, you could argue that Hannibal is still of higher rank and importance than SA Graham, as he collapses on to a table whereas SA Graham collapses on the floor, so Hannibal is still higher up. The non-diegetic sound of an orchestra builds up to a crescendo showing 'The Red Dragon' title.
The titles fade in which hooks the audience in, as its quite curious and mysterical. The classical music is synchronized to the edits and cuts, making it more seamless. The newspaper articles make the film more realistic, and it has been used to identify what has happened after the dinner table scene. The censoring of certain article words and images makes it look like the creator of the scrapbook has taken offense. On one page, there is an image of a young boy but you can not see his face as the creator of the scrapbook has scratched it off. This could portray that the creator cant bare to look at himself when he was younger because he has changed in a negative way, or it could just imply death. The images change with the tempo of the music, making it more seamless. There is an extreme close-up of the images in the scrapbook, so we can see the fibre of the image, which could indicate the creator pays attention to detail, like we learn later on in the film when Special Agent Graham realises all the killings that have occured have been carefully planned out in detail. Its clear that the person making the scrapbook admires Hannibal Lector, as he has cut out or scribbled words out that he doesnt want to see that involve Hannibal, and there are many images of him.
(The Red Dragon Trailer)
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