BLK - P is for Psycho

What's happening in the opening sequence?

A young white male is standing over a sink in what appears to be a school bathroom. We tilt up his body, so that he looks superior due to the low angle shot. There is an assortment of items next to him, including a watch and a photo of another white male, who is younger than this one. These items are shown to the audience for a long time, so that they remember them, as they are obviously significant. The male is bandaging up a bleeding wound, which has bled into the sink, spiralling down the drain, which leads to the audience wondering what caused the bleeding. The door then opens leading to a white male, unrelated to the picture, entering the bathroom. The bandaged man tucks a gun into his belt, and then we are presented with an extreme close up of the man's eyes, which are lit from underneath so that he looks sinister and evil. We now know that this man is definitely the bad guy, and the scene fades to black, the silence shortly followed by two gun shots.


How is the narrative flow established?

The opening sequence progresses fairly fast, as it contains several shots that are simply cut to each other and there aren't any extended sequences. However, we don't get much information from the opening sequence, only the fact that the first character we see is the bad guy, and he kills people. The opening sequence is dedicated to showing this, so the information given to us is limited.

If I were directing this scene, what would I change?

I would move shot 4 to after shot 6, so there's a sort of montage effect of him bandaging his hand and the items being displayed. In addition, I would move shot 10 to after shot 7, because it doesn't make sense for the guy to put the gun in his belt, only to pull it out again a few seconds after. I would also move 8 to after 9. This means that the man turns his head in reaction to the boy appearing, rather than the sound of the opening door. Thus, when the man turns his head, the phrase "Bad move, kid," makes more sense, as he's said it right after the boy enters.