Film Opening Continuity Analysis: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

The first shot from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's stone is a shot focusing on a street sign with the name of the location on it and an owl perched on top, which gives information about the setting of the scene immediately. The shot then pans to the right and the owl flies from the direction of the street light on which it was sitting, which is an example of matching the action.

The audience then see a figure of a wizard walking in the distance in a long shot, which then goes into a mid long shot of him walking with trees surrounding him, showing that he is in the same place as he was before with regards to the objects surrounding him.

We then see a cat multiple times. The cat does not move, staying on the corner of the street as the wizard, again in the same position for a number of shots as he takes out a lighter-like object, clicks out the street lights, despite the camera moving around him as he does it. When he turns to his right, in the next shot, he is facing the same direction as he just turned.

In order to emphasise the fact that Professor McGonagall turned from a cat into a human, there is the use of shadows. We only see the figure's shadow as she makes the transition and we also see that she has walked forwards. This is then established by the fact that she walks into the shot from the same place as she was before.

Professor McGonagall then walks over the the wizard - Professor Dumbledore - and stands to his left. Throughout the next shots, she is continually on the left side of him and the objects in the background pass, showing that they are moving. The 180 degree rule is followed as, although during their conversation, the camera goes from one side of them to the other, it is continually showing their faces instead of going behind them, which would be confusing for the audience during their conversation.

Only when a light appears in front of the two does the camera show them from behind in a mid shot. Both characters turn around, which is shown in this shot by the fact that McGonagall is now on the right side of Dumbledore, as opposed to the right as she was in the shots before.

There is then a low angle mid close up, which shows either McGonagall's or Dumbledore's point of view and enables the audience to take in the new character, Hagrid, as well as showing that he is taller than the other two. The action is again matched when he swings his leg off the bike and, in the next shot, his leg is in the same position in the air as it was at the end of the shot before.