Dirty Harry- Nine shoot analysis
Shot 1- In shoot one you see an weapon. This is the first shoot and instantly sets the tone for the film. The identity of the shooter is covered and this engages the audience and starts a narrative. Weapons and fire/explosions are genre conventions. The blue sky indicates that the setting is an idyllic location- in action movies the setting is either an luxurious location or a busy it is always set in well-known city.
The shot is tilted up this makes the audience feel inferior to whoever is behind the gun.
Shot 2- In this shot the audience see the camera capped to illustrate a gun being aimed. The audience gain an idea of who the victim is. The actor on shot is an attractive female (generic convention of action movies) she is swimming and the only person shows she is swimming leisurely this tells the audience that she people in this film are wealthy (convention of action movies). The camera is tilted is down from a upwards position. This shows that the actor on shot is powerless to the shooter.
Shot 3- The main actor of the film is given a whole shot to himself. His name is the first title credit. This shows that he is well known and a popular actor. His costume is strong and his glasses show that he is cool and also symbolises authority. The actor is central in the shoot and the audience instantly looks at him.
Shot 4- The title 'Dirty Harry' is shown next, the dirty is shown in a different colour to the rest of the writing on the opening credits. The shot behind the credit, the two people in shot looking at the woman shows that they are police.
Shot 5-This shot is tilted up and show the actors on building construction. This shows them in a dangerous situation (a common convention). The tilt makes the character look strong and powerful and makes the audience feel weaker than the character.
Shot 6- This shoot is a crane sets the setting as the shot is looking down at a busy heaving city (convention of action movie). The shoot also shows the main actor this shows his character is in charge. His body positioned is powerful and implies that he is powerful.
Shot 7- This shot is tilted down and shows the crime scene the scene shows that the vitim was wealthy and had a lot to have a private pool seeing a view of a busy city. The credit on top is to the head of music- music is an important element to action movies as it helps create pace, intensity and dramatic impact.
Shot 8- The next shot is a bullet shell (weapons are convention of action) this shows that weapons are heavily used in this film
Shot 9-The producer and director Don Siegel is shown next as the main actor is driving. This is a long credit and the producer is often shown last in a title sequence. The background of the shot is a luxurious shore view. the blue water could symbolise that the character brings peace in his area.
The font used is bold and clear to see. All writing is in capitals and this shows that its powerful. The orange and yellow used is strong and the colours are often related to danger and this adds to the action theme. The writing dramatically makes the theme
