'Jurassic Park' Opening Sequence Deconstruction

Point 1: Entrance

Camera Angles:

In this part of the scene there are close ups of the men's faces waiting to 

attend to the dinosaur when it arrives. We then see their point of view of the rustling tress in front of them, using a low angle shot. This shows the power and strength the dinosaur has and how weak and vulnerable the men are in comparison. We then see a medium shot zoom into a close up of the leader of the men, this shows where he is in comparison to the others and his emotions. He is central to the men showing he is command, however does show a degree of concern about the approaching dinosaur. 

Editing:

The editing used in this shot is mostly continuity editing as the events begin to unfold. However, there is also an eye-line match used to show exactly what all the men are looking at. There is then a jump cut to the dinosaur's point of view from inside the cage, and this continues using cutaways from the men to the dinosaur. 

Sound:

There is a lot of diegetic sound in this scene. Both the viewer and characters can hear the trees rustling, showing that something is approaching from within them. You also can hear birds and other wildlife indicating that they are not alone in this place, and there may be other threats from animals as well as the dinosaurs. As the forklift breaks it's way through the trees, you can hear the engine and tree branches snapping. The non-diegetic music is very low pitched and reasonably slow-paced at this point, which emphasises the creaking of the cage because it is interrupting the calm in the area. 

Mise-en-scene:

In this scene the trees show that this is taking place in a jungle area and also shows us it is quite isolated. The men are all wearing hard hats, apart from one, this shows that there is danger around and they need protection while they carry out their work. We also know that because of the large number of men, they must need power and strength as a whole while dealing with the arrival of the dinosaur. There is a lot of mist around in this part of the scene which adds mystery as we aren't given many details about the rest of the location, and it also makes the viewer focus on the dominant part of the shots, such as the trees and the men waiting. There is an obvious difference between the men and their leader as he is in a different uniform and doesn't seem to need as much protection, however, they all have guns or tasers showing they may have to use the weapons for defence and to keep everything under control. Finally this scene and the following points all take place at night, this adds mystery but also that something bad is likely to happen, because black can relate to death, which does occur later. 

Point 2: Putting the cage into place

Camera Angles:

In this part of the scene low angle shots are used to look at the cage being hoisted across from the forklift to platform, showing that it is important and also the power that is possesses. There is an establishing shot of the whole area, which allows us to see the cage's journey across the set and where the men are positioned. There is also a point of view shot from the dinosaur while they are in the cage, showing us how the men are perceived, and this is perhaps part of why the dinosaur becomes so restless. The dinosaur scares one of the men standing close by to the cage, and this is a reaction and close up shot of the man, this shows how dominant the dinosaur is. Finally, we see a close up of the leader in profile as he gives out orders. 

Editing:

In this part of the scene continuity editing is used to show the progression of events before the action happens. 

Sound:

There is lots of diegetic sound in this part of the scene. We hear the engine of the forklift as it transports the dinosaur. There is lots of shouting from the men as they help the forklift driver position the dinosaur into place. We then hear the dinosaur give a snarl, and this prompts the cage to rattle slightly and some of the men use tasers on her. There are footsteps as the men gather round the cage to slide it into position and the box squeaks as they do so. Once the box is in place a beeping sound can be heard to confirm it is locked into place, meanwhile the non diegetic sound, the music slowly begins to quicken and increases in pitch a little. 

Mise-en-scene:

The metal cage suggests that the dinosaur is very strong and the men need to contain it to avert a high risk of it hurting anybody. This is supported by the large metal gates of the enclosure they are trying to release the dinosaur into, once inside it seems there has to be a high level of security, especially since there are bright search lights all around and a watch tower to look over everything. This seems to be a routine operation for the men as they all know what to do, however when the dinosaur moves and causes the cage to rattle there is a slight degree of alarm among the men showing they are scared and possibly vulnerable to the creature they are dealing with. 

Point 3: Attack

Camera Angles:
There are close ups in this scene of the gatekeeper landing on the floor after being bitten by the dinosaur and this transfers into a medium shot as he is dragged further into the cage by the dinosaur. There is a high angle shot of the leader trying to rescue the man, but this shows their weakness and how small they are in comparison to the dinosaur's almighty strength. We see a further close up shot of the gatekeeper's hand as he grabs onto part of the ladder nearby. This shows his struggle for freedom and determination to escape the jaws of the dinosaur. Also there are medium shots used to show the men using tasers (and close ups of the actual tasers) to try and control the dinosaur as it attacks the gatekeeper, a medium shot is also used when he is dragged to the top of the cage by the dinosaur, causing more panic to the men. Finally there is an establishing shot of the cage area showing how the previously well organised men are now in a very chaotic situation as their leader is no longer putting all his attention into directing them. 

Editing: 
Continuity editing has been used throughout this part of the scene to show how the calm beginning has turned into chaos and panic. There are also jump cuts used to the tasers and to the gatekeeper screaming in pain, disorientating the viewer almost as if they were experiencing the same as the gatekeeper.

Sound:
The diegetic sound in this scene consists of the dinosaur snarling very loudly as it becomes even more distressed and angry with the men. We hear the scrape of metal as the cage is thrashed backwards by the dinosaur and also hear some of the men hit the floor as they are knocked backwards. There are multiple beeps from the gate alerting the viewer and men to the fact that the cage is no longer securely connected and they are all at risk from attack now. We also listen to the gatekeeper screaming in pain as the non-diegetic music becomes fast creating suspense and tension because we do not know if he will be able to escape yet. 

Mise-en-scene:
The strength the dinosaur seems to possess shows how vulnerable the men are and how they haven't thought thoroughly about if the connection system was strong enough to deal with dinosaurs. Also the panic shown through the gatekeeper's emotions tells us they are in pain and the dinosaur is showing no mercy. The mist in the scene once again hides some of the details about the location and causes us to focus on the cage, it also stops us seeing much of the dinosaur's movement within the cage, keeping the suspense up as we wonder if the gatekeeper will survive or not. 

Point 4: 'Shoot her'
Camera Angles:

There are many extreme close ups in this finale showing how extreme the situation is. There is an extreme close up of the dinosaur's eye, followed by an extreme close of the leader's eye. This shows the battle between them and how desperate the leader is to save the gatekeeper. We then see an extreme close up of the leader's mouth as he shouts 'Shoot her' showing yet again the desperation. This is followed by an extreme close up of the gatekeeper's hand as it begins to slip from the leader's grasp. 

Editing:
There are lots of jump cuts here especially when switching between the different extreme close ups of the eyes, the gatekeeper's hand and the tasers being frantically used in a last attempt to save the man from a horrible death. 

Sound:
The diegetic sounds in this finale are the sounds of the tasers being used frantically, and guns too to try and control the dinosaur. Also, we can hear the gatekeeper screaming in pain, while the leader shouts 'Shoot her' several times, this doesn't seem to work though. The non diegetic sound in this final scene are drums in the music showing how frantic it is and increases the tension. The music is fairly fast paced, but when the leader looses grip on the gatekeeper the music settles and slowly fades out. 

Mise-en-scene:
When the leader loses his grasp on the gate-keeper's hand, it almost shows how he has lost the battle between himself and the dinosaur. This could be foreshadowing a long running battle between humans and dinosaurs and how humans could be losing it. The guns and tasers used in this finale show how the men need to defend themselves and how they need protection. It shows the strength required to face the dinosaur and how dangerous their jobs are.