Ridley Scott presents an nail biting, intense modern epic ‘Gladiator’, Where a Roman general (Russell Crowe) is betrayed and his family murdered by an emperor's corrupt son, he comes to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge.

 

The first key frame within the opening sequence establishes the setting. This is because, an aerial shot is taken and we can see from the first few seconds that the location is a battle field. The narration is omniscient because the camera allows us to see other parts of the battlefield as the opening sequence plays. In addition, we can hear swelling orchestral strings in the scene, this is known as score. The effect of it is it creates an emotional feeling for the audience. Furthermore, the combination of the score and the movement of the camera make the audience feel as if they are in the battle feel themselves. Moreover, we can hear horse`s hooves, the use of sound effect hear creates a sense of reality.

 

In the second key frame, of the opening sequence we can learn someone with very high authority Maximas; (the general) meets the troops. I know this because; when Maximas is walking troops start to kneel down, which shows that he is well respected and has a very high status. Furthermore, when he is in the scene and walking the orchestral strings become lower and this is known as a sound motif, which may suggest he is vital in the film seeing as, he has his own theme.

 

The third key frame, of the opening sequence is the winding of the catapult. You can hear the catapult turn in this scene so the sound is diegetic; this is because both the audience and the characters in the scene can hear this sound the effect of this is it makes the audience feel as if they are also in the scene.

 

Moving on, the next scene in the key frame of the opening scene is where Maximus meets other officers. We know the people Maximus talks to are high ranked officers because they are wearing uniform slightly different to normal soldiers in the background. However, we can clearly distinguish that Maximus is much superior to everyone on the battlefield from his appearance. This is because, he is wearing a rich layer of wool over his military uniform, which no other members have on the battlefield. This implies he is unique to everyone as well as superior. Diegetic sound is presented in this scene because we can hear dialogue that both the audience and characters can hear. For example, Maximus interrupts an officer “it is acceptable agree.” In addition, from this we can learn Maximum is in charge because not only does he interrupt the other officer but also forces him to agree.

 

The next scene in the key frame of the opening scene is the messenger returning beheaded. In this scene the camera shots are taken from a wide range of views such as a crane shot and a long shot, yet the audience can clearly hear the horses hooves, therefore sound perspective is used hear and the sound effect of the hooves can be heard clearly.

 

In the sixth scene of the opening sequence is the Germanic leader calling for support from his troops. When, the Germanic leader calls for support the camera goes from Maximus`s base to the Germanic leaders spot. Whilst, this happens the sound (Germanic leader shouting) stays the same in both scene, and this technique is called a sound bridge.

 

The seventh scene in the opening sequence is an officer reacting to the Germanic leader. Diegetic sound is used here because, the officer says “People should know when they`re conquered” which is dialogue that both the audience and the characters can hear. Furthermore, this phrase used by the officer raises enigma codes such as why is he so confident? Should the leader of the roman army, Maximus be saying this? This may foreshadow future conflict between Maximus and this officer.

 

The eighth scene in the opening sequence is where Maximus looks at a dog and the dog whimpers. Here, shot reverse is used because first Maximus looks stares at the dog then it shows the dog looking back at Maximus and whimpers. The sound effect here gives the audiences the scene a sense of realism. Moreover, ambient sound is used in the background such as you can hear things burn in the background and the effect of this is that it makes the audience feel as if they are in the battle field themselves.

 

Lastly, the ninth scene is where Maximas is on a horse and orders the officers. Diegetic sound is used because dialogue is used; Maximus states “On my command unleash hell”. The use of the possessive adjective “MY” suggests he has authority and control over what happens. In addition, when he says this low angle shot is used in order to portray him as the leader or the one with the most power in the scene.