Analysing Opening Title Sequences
The Woman In Black
The opening sequence of The Woman In Black (2012) starts with three small victorian girls having a tea party. We gather that the girls are playing with their dolls in the attic which means that the girls actions at the end of the opening sequence, will only end in horrific consequences as they are at the top of the house. This opening title sequence does not stick to the typical horror conventions as it is filmed in the day time in bright lighting. This goes against the typical conventions of opening sequences as normally, horror is seen to be filmed during the night time as dark lighting creates a scary atmosphere. The innocent, playful feel of the sequence quickly changes when all three girls stop playing with their dolls, look to the same direction of the room and stand up. The girls begin to walk towards the window, without any argument which then changes the tone of the film as the audience start to feel uneasy. As the girls are walking towards the window they step on, and brake, they dolls/toys effectively 'killing' them. This then mirrors what happens to the children as they get 'broken' and are killed. There is minimum sound in this opening title sequence apart from a quiet soundtrack, almost sounding like a nursery rhyme tune and there is only one piece of speech when the girls eventually jump out the window and we hear a shriek exclaiming "my babies". The last shot is an over the shoulder shot of the woman we understand to be the "woman in black". Our group liked this opening title sequence as its inventive, we also liked the fact that it was simple as there is hardly any talking at all within the title sequence which creates the scary and unsettling atmosphere. (AL)
The last exorcism 2
The Last Exorcism 2 (2013) opening sequence fits in perfectly with Wes Craven's theory when he says that "the best horror happens in safe places" as this opening sequence takes place in a house. Our group found this opening sequence scary as the lighting and colours used are completely washed out and dim. During this sequence a couple are waking up and the woman leaves the bed to go into the bathroom. Someone then gets back into bed but the audience is led to believe that it is the woman who has got back into but then realise someone (or something) else has got into the bed. The man then is attacked by whatever is lying in his bed and runs into the bathroom to the safety of his girlfriend. When the couple leave the bathroom to investigate, there is a kitchen pot on the floor which is increasingly spinning faster and becoming much louder. By this sound becoming louder, we found it to make us feel more and more uncertain of what is going to happen as we feel that it builds the tension within the sequence. The couple creeps into the kitchen and the last shot of the sequence is a shot of the possessed, evil girl that has just attacked the man. As this girl is dressed in bloody clothes with a dirty face and messy hair, it leads us to understand that the girl is not human. (AL)
Last Exorcism 2 interview analysis
We liked the last exorcism 2 opening sequence and as this is a paranormal/exorcism film we decided to do our horror opening sequence on that as it is a popular sub-genre. (AL)
Insidious 2
Our group thought that the Insidious 2 (2013) opening title sequence was a great sequence as we mostly liked the music used in the title sequence. From hearing the music used in this open sequence, our group has decided to include music like this as we believe that it will make our opening title sequence much more effective. The non diegetic soundtrack at the beginning of the sequence fits with the shots of the family involved in the film as the beginning of the sequence is happy, but seems unsettling as you are unaware that the mood will soon change as you are waiting for the beginning of the 'horror' to start. The 'happy' scenes of the sequence are filmed in bright lighting during the day time,however the scary scenes are set in the night time, making the lighting darker and therefore more unsettling. Carol Clover states how "walls in houses which at first seem safe by keeping the killer out soon becomes prisons holding the victim in". This theory fits in with the opening sequence of Insidious 2 as they are prisoners in their own home because they cant get away from horror terrorising their household. (AL)
Nightmare On Elm Street (Remake)
Our group really liked the opening title sequence of the Nightmare On Elm Street Remake (2010) as we liked the style of editing (non-linear editing). As there isn't a specific storyline, but only clues of the storyline, which we think gives a sense of tension as you are uncertain of the film you are about to encounter. By using objects related to 'childhood' it indicates the central focus of the horror involved in the film. We liked the non-diegetic sound track as it doesn't fit with the usual horror theme of blood and gore, we also liked the way it used different shots without giving way the storyline of the film and how it also focused on the titles. The lighting is dark and mysterious apart from when the light shines on the object that is centered around childhood which could have connotations of being away of the innocence surrounding children, but the horror desperate to cover over that innocence with something dark. (AL,IP)
Inspiration
Initially we took our inspiration from The Ring as we thought that the idea of a Yuri could be original and very creepy. We therefore initially payed homage to The Ring by dressing Izzie in the similar clothes to Samara (dark,long hair and white baggy clothes). (AL)
Initially we took our inspiration from The Ring as we thought that the idea of a Yuri could be original and very creepy. We therefore initially payed homage to The Ring by dressing Izzie in the similar clothes to Samara (dark,long hair and white baggy clothes). (AL)
We also liked The Ring as we thought that the lighting used was effective as it was very washed out and drained, making this film scary as not the true colour is exposed, making it more creepy. (AL)