Sound
In the opening sequence of the film, Brick, music with a very slow rhythm was used, along with a high pitch and low volume. This slow score helps to build a sense of sadness for the audience and allows the audience to emphasise with the character who is looking at the dead boy, obviously shocked and saddened by the experience. The slow pace of the score also gives the audience the impression that something isn't quite right in the scene, as the loud bells helps to put the audience on edge. This tension helps to show that something has gone wrong in the film and that the character has to try and resolve this issue.
The ambient sound in the opening sequence is also very effective. The trickling sound of the water at the gutter has a very low volume whereas the score is much louder in comparison, and overlaps it. The use of this ambient sound could show that the character has separated himself from the real world for a moment due to the shock of seeing this girl in such a state. This shows that there is some form of bond between the two characters as the male character is deeply effected by seeing her dead body, to the point where he is blocking out the real world.
Cinematography
Throughout the opening sequence the character's aren't fully revealed to the audience. A few examples of this are when the camera uses a soft focus on the boy's face. This soft focus stops the audience from seeing any of his features clearly, or getting a good look at his face. The camera then uses a focus pull towards the boy's face to get a better look at him but an extreme close up is used and he has his hand over his face. This means that the audience still can't see what he looks like and creates a sense of mystery, as it causes the audience to ask, who is he?
The opening also obscures the girls face from the audience helping to add to the sense of mystery and unknown, making the audience watch on to find out who these two people are. The audience are only shown the back of the girls head, or her hair is hiding her face, and an establishing shot of her body. This causes the audience to think for a second whether or not she is dead, and then makes them think who did kill her.
In the opening a master shot is used along with an establishing shot. This allows the audience to see the characters spacial relationship to one another. In the case of Brick's opening sequence there is a great distance between the two characters. The boy is on the far left of the screen staring at the body of the girl who is on the far right. The placement of these characters helps to show that there is some sort of divide between the two, and makes the audience suspicious of the boy who is staring at her is it makes it look like he was the one responsible for her death.
Editing
The titles in the opening sequence of the film use a white serif font on a black background which fade out to black. The use of these titles creates a very serious tone for this film, and shows the audience that this film is going to be grim. The fading of the text from white to a black background also represents the coming and going of characters in the film and sets a somber mood for the audience.
Very slow paced editing is also used. This creates a very serious tone for the audience and also helps to reflect the boy's emotions at the time. The slow editing helps to emphasise the impact of the girl's death and shows the gravity of the situation and also creates sadness for the audience. An example of this is the establishing shot at the beginning which lasts for a very long time. This allows the audience to see the body on the floor and the boy crouched over staring at her and see that it is a depressing scene.
Mise en Scene
The opening sequence is set in a sewage opening. The placement of this setting helps with the atmosphere as it is a very dirty and unsafe area to be in. It is also placed under a bridge which is a very out of the way location. This means that no one will be able to find the body and shows that the boy didn't just stumble upon it, he has a reason to be there and maybe has a part to play in the girl's death. With the setting being a gutter it represents how bad of a place the characters are in right now, as being stuck in a gutter usually means that someone's life is a mess, the use of having a sewage opening for the opening sequence foreshadows that by the end of the film the boy's life will be in ruins and that it's going to be a very tragic film.
The male character has a very closed body language. This shows how he has been effected by seeing the dead body in the water it has scared him and caused him to close up, as shown by him crouching down into a ball. This shows the audience that he is very vulnerable and that he is trying to shut himself away and hide from the situation. This also shows the audience how sad he is and hence shows some form of relationship between the two people.
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