Portfolio Project Blog: Research #2

Hello again! Okay so great news, I've finally decided on which concept I want to go with! The main characters in my film opening will be good guys (even though they're all going to be women) trying to avenge those that were victims of wrongdoings! I am so excited that I have reached this conclusion because now I can progress forward in the production process of my film opening. Since I have narrowed it down to one general theme, I have done even more digging and I have discovered another movie to research that is perfect for me to use as an example of a film production that embodies what my film opening's concept truly is.

THE EQUALIZER (2014)

The Equalizer (2014) directed by Antoine Fuqua 

Tada! The Equalizer! There is an Equalizer one and an Equalizer 2 so we will be discussing both because why not! The more research the better! But first, we will be going into depth on the first equalizer movie. Let's get into it.

At the beginning of the equalizer Denzel Washington's character, Robert McCall, is shown living a normal life. He is starting off his morning in a clean, tidy house. He's shaving, making breakfast, getting dressed and going to work like most people do on any given weekday. Nothing screams out of the ordinary with this character and that's the whole point, he's supposed to appear normal.

I like this element of the opening because if you know the plot of the movie you're watching and that it's apart of the action/thriller genre, you would probably be expecting the opening scene to be high energy, action-packed, and fast-paced but the beginning was nothing of a sort. The juxtaposition between what the viewer is most likely expecting from the beginning and what the director chose to do is brilliant in my opinion. 

When we took notes in class on what makes a good film opening and some of the most crucial things we discussed were:

1. Make the audience care enough emotionally, intellectually, and aesthetically enough to watch your film. Make watching your film worth their time.

2. Don't give away all of the answers in the beginning because most viewers want to work for the answer. You have to keep some things about the plot, character, conflict, etc. a mystery and reveal it later on in the film. Give them 2+2, not 4.

3. Use what you know and draw from it. Some of the best stories are created by just being authentic and honest.

This film did a good job of utilizing these key elements because as the viewer I was compelled to stay and watch the rest of the movie because I wanted to know who this seemingly ordinary character was, what made him want to give up being a vigilante and live a normal life, what/ who makes him resort back to the crime-fighting life, and so many other questions that are eventually answered throughout the duration of the movie. Denzel Washington's character is essentially a mystery to the viewer because we are not given much information about him in the exposition besides he keeps his house neat and he works in a warehouse. Since most people are inquisitive, they feel the need to solve the mystery even if they don't realize it cognitively.

THE EQUALIZER 2 (2018)

The Equalizer 2 (2018) Directed by Antoine Fuqua

Now let's talk about the Equalizer 2! Since most film watchers watch movies in chronological order, the director started the movie off differently than he did in the first Equalizer. Fuqua decided that he was going to introduce McCall's character as a continuation of where he left off in the last movie. Instead of showing him living a normal life like the first movie opening, he decided to show McCall doing what he does best, defeating corrupt individuals with corrupt motives.

On a train on its way to Turkey, McCall fights against a man who has kidnapped his daughter with the intention of hurting his ex-wife emotionally. McCall, as always, is calm and collected while confronting this man which makes the scene even more exhilarating because the audience knows what McCall is capable of and what's about to occur while the bad guys are clueless. Dramatic irony is one of my favorite things to experience as a movie watcher because it makes the moment in the scene more personal for me and I feel like the director is purposefully including me in the story.

This film opening is definitely a drastic shift compared to the first Equalizer's opening because of how McCall's character was introduced to the viewer, the pacing of the scene, and this opening served a different purpose than the first one. The first opening had the job of simply introducing us to McCall and his simplistic lifestyle while this opening was supposed to show McCall in action and doing what he's good at.

Some things that I took away from both film openings was that sometimes going in the total opposite direction of what the audience expects is what works the best. Since Fuqua was the director of both films, he knew his target audience well enough that he was able to occupy their attention and have them come back for the sequel. The sequel's opening was filled with anticipation because the viewer knew that McCall was going to defeat this criminal one way or another and he did. Seeing him outsmart them with his wit is such a cool experience because it makes you feel like your there alongside him. Either way, as long as I can create a film opening that is captivating enough to keep the audience engaged, I've done my job!

                                       The Equalizer VS. My film opening

Even though the Equalizer series is exactly the same concept that I want my film opening to be, there are a plethora of differences between my opening and the Equalizer both one and two. 

For instance, I am not going to go the same route the director went in The Equalizer, I will be filming mine in a different style. I want to introduce all of the characters but the way that I am going to do it is by having the leader of the vigilante group narrate the introduction of everyone in the group. I want to go this direction because there are so many creative ways I can introduce these characters through the narration, visuals, and shot types & angles, without revealing too much to the audience. I want the characters to be almost like a puzzle that the viewer has to solve but the only way they can do that is if they finish watching the movie (insert evil genius laugh MUAH-HA HA! okay moving on). 

Something that is going to be an obvious difference between my film opening and this film is the fact that my characters are all going to be women (I'm thinking of having 3 actresses in my opening maybe more, we'll see) and Denzel Washington's character is a man who fights crime solo hence the name "The Equalizer" not "The Equalizers". I want to have at least three actresses in my opening because the film would essentially be all about female empowerment and unity amongst women so having a female crime-fighting group solidifies this concept. This is also why I believed it was imperative for me to research Charlie's Angels and Ocean's 8 as stated in my previous blog entry.

In both The Equalizer and The Equalizer 2, someone in McCall's life had something unjust happen to them and he felt obligated to fight on their behalf. He would seek vengeance on those who hurt the ones he cared for and that is why he decided to return back to his fugitive hunting life. In the first Equalizer, a prostitute named Teri forms a friendly relationship with McCall and after she doesn't show up for her routine late-night dessert stop at the local diner, McCall finds out that she had been severely beaten by the Russian pimp that "owns" her. This is the answer to the big question that most of the audience is wondering, who/what caused McCall to return to his previous life.

Teri and McCall in the first Equalizer 

In the second Equalizer, his close friend and colleague, Susan Plummer, was murdered by thugs and he is determined to eliminate those who killed her. His motivation to avenge victims is what drives him as a vigilante and that's what the audience is shown throughout these films.

McCall in the Equalizer 2 after finding out about the death of his friend

In my film opening, I want the narration to include something along the lines of "We lost our leader because of bad guys and we want to avenge her death by continuing her legacy." When I'm in the scriptwriting process of revision and editing, I will make adjustments to this quote but this is the gist of what the narration will include. This will be the vigilantes in my film opening's motivation for avenging victims.

That is all I have for today's blog! I am so excited to continue updating you guys on the creative process as I am discovering new things through my research and exploring new ideas and concepts. Hopefully, by letting you guys into my mind and explaining my thought process you guys can see the final product and understand how I came up with certain concepts and why I made the creative decisions I did. Until next time, I'll see you in the next blog!

Sources:

Wloszczyna, Susan. “The Equalizer Movie Review & Film Summary (2014): Roger Ebert.” RogerEbert.com, 26 Sept. 2014, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-equalizer-2014.

“The Equalizer.” IMDb, IMDb.com, 24 Sept. 2014, www.imdb.com/title/tt0455944/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_3.

“The Equalizer 2.” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt3766354/mediaviewer/rm1404716288.