EDITING: OPPOSITES

Opposites in editing was originally something I noticed during my Spielberg study. It involves editing between opposing movements for a smoother and connected transition.

In Jurassic Park, the T-rex bursts through the front door after the lawyer closes the stall door: opposites of opening and closing. It’s a smooth inverted match action to connect the two shots.

More editing of opening/closing in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Another example from a Spielberg movie:

A new opposite of falling and rising: after Indy falls down out of frame, Willie rises up into frame.

The last example is from Lawrence of Arabia. I was introduced to this shot in college as a match cut. In addition to a match cut, i think this shot could also be classified in the same “editing with opposites“ concept. The light exits frame when blown out and rises in the next cut, similar to the The Temple of Doom example above.