One of the things Utopia use well is sound. The first sounds heard in the opening sequence are the diegetic noises of the coach station. The use of the tannoy announcements and people going about their own business suggests quite a natural environment where initially the audience would not expect any unusual behaviour or on-goings. By creating a natural and expected environment that opens with a child walking through the station, the creators are giving a sense of innocence and normality to the scene.
This quickly changes when the non-diegetic music is introduced which instantly creates tension and suggests to the audience that everything is not as it seems. The build up of different pitched sounds creates tension by slowly becoming more intense and focused as the assassin appears in shot. The music is used to oppose the innocent image of the child and is used to shock the audience as it makes them realise the situation could potentially be dangerous. The music/soundtrack keeps the audience in suspense throughout the scene.
As the assassin begins his speech into how "selfish" the act of having children is, the shot changes from a long shot to a tracking shot that begins to focus in on the assassin's face. The tracking shot is used for dramatic effect to highlight how shocking and disturbing the facts and ideas of the assassin are and how weak and vulnerable it makes the other characters in the scene.
The male dominance in the scene is also effective as it makes the woman and the child look vulnerable and shocked by the assassin and his ideology. The dominance of the assassin is also effective as it suggests he is rather powerful and ruthless, considering the nature of the scene, and that this is quite expected and quite typical of his personality and nature. The assassin is also seen as intimidating and quite scary which is effective as it relates back to the idea of the movement for sterilisation. This links together as it shows how both those involved and the act of making the population infertile is intimidating and uncomfortable to a lot off people.
The content of the introduction reflects the "Zeitgeist" as it links to the modern day concerns of the environment and atmosphere. This engages the audience as it something that is easy to relate to and mildly popular within society. This is also relevant as audiences are less shocked by these ideas and are more comfortable to engage in programmes that involve this.
Here is a link to the clip analysed above: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEeh-Hse38A
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