YES. pretty much what I said, except with a budget on words.
I agree, dull opening scenes are a killer. That has me reaching for the remote quicker than anything else. Kubrick said something like "The opening frames of a film should grab the audience, immediately" and I've never forgotten that. If you can't be arsed to wow me right off the bat, why should I wait for things to improve?
There are genres I avoid: pretentious indie movies and found footage horror.
Found footage horror is lazy, lame and unscary, sending a message that you don't need film-making craft to do horror, just shaky cam and a few things moving about. Thanks, Wair Bitch Project
