Walk On The Wild Side

Walk on the Wild Side directed by Edward Dmytryk, opens with a slow zoom into a black cats face - the cats eyes central in the shot. The importance of this could possibly be connoting mystery; an aspect iconic to the thriller genre. The use of low key lighting creates a lot of shadows in the pipework, with the cat cautiously slinking out of the darkness could be semiotic of a devious crime thriller. Binary Opposition is a common feature during thriller openings, the camerawork often positions the black cat against white backgrounds. This could connote that there is a wild side to places and people. The title of the film itself could reflect this; furthermore as the camera is tracking the cats journey it passes past and through a fence, symbolic of someone in the film not restricted by boundaries.

Throughout the sequence the camera is slowly tracking the cats journey. With the non diegetic drumbeat slowly increasing it helps to creates a slow pace to enhance tension; this aspect has been reinforced with the editing, fades have been used to further slow the pace of the opening down. As the cresendo takes hold, and the two cats fight; the edits quicken and the whole sequence is a rush, the two cats fighting could dennote a territorial motive for the plot later in the film.