La Haine Opening sequence

La Haine opening sequence starts off with a man standing in the street, from a long view/point of view shot we see the police armed up and standing in a row. This creates a feeling of unity and this perception of us VS. them. The dialogue 'you have guns, we only have stones' represents the protester as vulnerable and weak but also heroic for being alone, whilst presenting the police as vicious and in control. However, the mise-en-scene props used such as the shields also represent the police as cowardly.

The sequence continues with a montage of the police bolting their trucks with window protectors connoting that they are ready for a fight. However snippets are shown of peaceful protesters, connoting that the police are the problem and that they are the cause of the violence. The montage shows the difference in attitudes in the society being represented.  These shots visually prepare us for negativity and violence.

The non-diegetic Bob Marley music played throughout the scene is significant as it was specifically chosen due to Marley being a famous protester for white establishment. The lyrics of the song chosen represent the violence going on between the police and the protesters. The lyric 'could not recognise the faces standing over me, they were all dressed in uniform of brutality' dehumanises the police and represents them as more brutal, it removes the sympathy and respect for them by also making them seem more cowardly. 'How many rivers do we have to cross, before we can talk to the boss' this is significant as it is a comment on how many people have to suffer to violence and how many more fights and riots have to happen to French citizens before people start listening. This lyric also ties in with the start of the film when Hubert repeats 'so far, so good' suggesting that its just a matter of time before another riot takes place and another revolution begins.

The sequence carries on to show the peaceful protesters dancing whilst all the police are lined up and armed, the police then throw a bomb. This is a distinct contrast between both parties as it reinforces the idea that the police are the cause for all the violence and that everything is fine until they start something. It creates a sense of sympathy for the protesters making us want to support them and making them seem brave and heroic.

We then see a series of shots where the police are firing guns towards the protesters and bodies are  being dragged across the floor. This represents the police as the enemy and the instigator of the crimes. The fact that throughout the scenes you never really see the faces of the police makes the police seem more intimidating and inhumane.