FP: Opening sequence analysis

Scream opening  sequence analysis (Craven, 1996)

Genre:

-This film is part of the ‘Slasher’ sub-genre, which is said to have had its peak in the 1970’s and 80’s.
 
-Immediately it becomes clear that ‘Scream’ is a typical slasher film due to the fact that it features  several of the defining slasher conventions. For example, straight away we are introduced to a ‘vulnerable’ female character, alone in an isolated location.

-An enigma code is created when the phone rings several times, and she speaks with an anonymous male (antagonist) character. This character seems harmless at first but throughout the opening sequence it gradually becomes apparent that he poses a threat and may possibly be psychologically impaired.

-The fact there are many conventions of thriller present at the beginning of this film means that the audience’s expectations are suitably fulfilled quite early on, and the film is very similar to what they were likely to have expected it to be.

Film Language:

-There is abundant usage of close up shots to effectively convey the female character’s facial expression and what she is feeling at different points during the sequence. However mid shots are also used very often to show her surroundings and emphasise the fact that she is alone (except for the antagonist, whose presence is suggested through dialogue and not visually expressed).
 
-The connotations of a young woman on her own in an isolated location are that she is significantly unable to defend herself against an attacker, and this puts her at a higher risk of being harmed. In terms of editing, long takes are often used. This helps to create a sort of ‘Calm before the storm/false sense of security’, feel to the scene, because it creates a slow pace which suggests safety and a lack of action, when in fact the danger is introduced quite suddenly.
 
-During the chase/hiding scenes, a faster cutting rate is used to increase the pace of the sequence and give it more energy and excitement.
 
-Throughout the entire sequence, one of the most noticeable features of mise-en-scene is that the lighting is used in such a way that many shadows are created in the background and at times they appear to be moving. This creates the sense that there is someone else (an antagonist) present in the scene, that is yet to be identified and that the protagonist is unaware of. This is an effective way of generating a lot of fear in the audience due to the theory of ‘fear of the unknown’.
 
-Also, one of the props used is a very large knife, also a convention of slasher films. However, in this case the use of a knife is contradictory because it is first wielded by the vulnerable protagonist, in self defence. Nevertheless, it introduces the fact that knives will be a prevalent feature and important part of the film.

-In the beginning of the sequence, the dialogue between the antagonist and protagonist is quite playful and harmless (again contributing to the false sense of security) so the audience are lead to feel safe, but the mood quickly changes when the male character mentions that he can see the girl, despite the fact that until now they have only spoken on the phone and we are under the impression that the male character is elsewhere.

-However this suggests that he is actually present in this scene and poses an immediate threat. Once the female character knows this, she begins to show signs of fear and panic such as shaky movements (especially in the hands) and running around nervously and at times without purpose.

- As for sound, there is generally very little background noise (to emphasise the fact that she is alone), except for the popping of the popcorn which helps to build tension and make the scene very stressful at its climax.

- Other loud sounds include the smashing of a glass door which is shocking and makes the viewer jump.

-There is some music used when the girl begins to panic, that is quite low and ominous, with a minor key. This has connotations of fear and imminent danger.

Narrative:

-During this opening, a young (approx 18 year old) female character, who is home alone at night, receives a phone call from an anonymous caller, who she quickly disregards as a ‘wrong number’ situation.

-However, this male character keeps calling, and expresses an interest in her. They discuss harmless and playful topics for several minutes before the conversation takes a turn for the worse and it becomes apparent that this male character has sinister intentions for the girl and is in fact present at her home.

-She threatens him with the imminent arrival of her boyfriend, only to discover that the antagonist has the boyfriend tied up and injured. The antagonist then proceeds to torture the girl with irrelevant questions, resulting in the death of her boyfriend. Then, following a short chase scene around the house, the girl is dragged away and killed.

- Her parents then return home to find that she is missing.   

-This theme of a lone (and often vulnerable) protagonist, being brutally killed by a psychotic male killer for no apparent reason, is fairly typical of slasher films. Also, this setting of suburban, middle class USA is very conventional of horror films because it is relatable for a large proportion of audiences and increases the fear factor.

- In this sequence, tension is created very effectively through the use of many techniques, including sound (e.g popcorn popping), and dialogue. An enigma code is created when it becomes apparent that the antagonist can see the young woman. The audience want to know how this is possible.

Representation and ideology:

-In this particular opening, one of the social groups that are represented is middle class, white youth people, particularly females. In this case, the stereotype that young women are vulnerable and unable to protect themselves is reinforced, because the young female protagonist is killed so early on in the film.

-Also, when the girl lies about having a boyfriend when speaking to the male character on the phone, is evident of the ideology that adultery is considered less of a 'big deal' nowadays than in the past.  

Media Audiences:

-It is very likely that the target audience for this film is middle class people aged 14-25. This is because it is set today (or was set during the time when the film was released) and aimed to frighten people that were very similar to the characters affected in the film.
 
-This was done by creating an environment that much of the audience would be familiar with, and then introducing a character or situation that destroys this ‘ideal’ environment.

-Because of my situation as a young male, in a relatively similar situation to several characters in the film, I find that I am able to put myself in the position of many of the film’s characters, quite easily, and understand why it is frightening.

Institutional context:

- Scream was produced by Woods Entertainment, and distributed by Dimension Films, the company behind several other horror franchises such as ‘Halloween’ and ‘Scary Movie’.

- At the time of the release of ‘Scream’, ‘Dimension films’ was owned by the Walt Disney Corporation, suggesting that this film had the potential to be an industrial film. However, having a budget of only $15 million, we can assume that is was somewhat independent.

- Despite the relatively small budget, the film featured several A-list actors, such as Courtney Cox and Drew Barrymore.