No Country for Old Men

The title sequence that I chose to look at was ‘No Country for Old Men’, made by Joel and Ethan Coen, a crime thriller, which was released on January 18th January 2008. The opening sequence consists of a police talking about his job and family, this plays as added background sound as the image shown is of a desert landscape. Within the title sequence, the only title that shown was at the very beginning of the movie, this showed the company that made the movie and cut straight into the landscape shot, no titles were shown.

The reason I liked this title sequence is because it is simple and effective as it goes straight into the movie. The voiceover is a subtle way of introducing the violent nature of the movie without giving too much away, this also helps viewers to get an insight into one the characters mind set. This also will make the audience feel sympathy for him, as he is a police officer, a sheriff just like his father. The camera shots used such as establishing shot to show the landscape gives the audience a chance to see where the characters are. The accent of the man talking suggests that he is from the country. As the sequence goes, the sheriff is seen putting a man in the back of his police car so we then suspect that something is going to happen involving the man being arrested.

The title sequence for ‘No Country for Old Men’ is effective and doesn’t put viewers off, as some movies have long over extended title sequences that might cause viewers to lose interest. In the opening along with the voiceover there is an instrumental, it is orchestral but doesn’t over power the voiceover as it is the most significant part of the opening.