Strangers On A Train Opening Sequence Analysis

 

 

Analysis of the Opening Sequence to 'Strangers On A Train'.

 

 

                'Strangers On A Train' is a psychological thriller directed by Alfred Hitchcock. When analysing the opening sequence, the first thing I noticed was the non-diegetic music. The non-diegetic music is quite jazz based and is not the stereotypical thriller music that is expected. The music is quite upbeat and could contrast with the movie genre as the stereotypical thriller non-diegetic music is to be mysterious and quite dark, to fit with the genre. The non-diegetic music sounds like waiting music that would be played on repeat in a waiting area, maybe for a train, relating back to the name of the movie. One of the first things shown is an animation of a man, dressed in black with a shadow across his face. This could be the 'villain' or disliked character. A man dressed in white then appears from the other side. He could be the innocent character.
               The characters walk towards each other and the background forms into a train, signifying that these two are the strangers on the train and the story is based around their meeting on the train. The red colour of the titles and names could suggest that their will be death or violence. The lines that cross to form train tracks, again relating back to the title, could show conflict or a misunderstanding. The camera then becomes the train and goes into the tunnel but not out the other side, maybe suggesting that there is no way out for the two men. The man in white smokes a cigarette and leaves his lighter on the table, maybe signifying that it is an important prop in the storyline. A train then enters the screen, again showing that the train is a key element in the storyline. The camera zooms into one of the windows, showing the man dressed in white leave the lighter on the table and walk away and the man in black pick up the lighter. This could show a deal made or maybe just a mistake.
                  The white man walks into the screen to meet a woman dressed in white. This could symbolise that they are together and are a couple and both innocent. The man in black enters, blending in with the rest of the screen and as the man in white walks away the woman in white falls and is replaced by a gravestone, symbolising her death, maybe due to the man in the black. The last shot is another train, again reinforcing the idea that the main aspect is the meeting on the train.