Paranormal Activity 3 opening sequence analysis (Schulman, 2011)
Genre:
- From the opening sequence of this film I can see a combination of two sub-genres these are paranormal which is relatively self-explanatory and home invasion due to the setting of the film in the location of a home a place known for safety.
- What this opening sequence does is show us the family the film is set around without getting in too much detail or action from the outset.
- Due to this film being part of one of the biggest horror franchises (Paranormal activity) making it not particularly unique, also the paranormal genre is a particularly popular sub-genre.
- This opening scene maintains the audiences expectations, it shows a slow and calm build up. One can tell from the peaceful nature of the film opening that it is foreshadowing taking place, we can tell something bad is going to happen. this is a particularly generic opening to a horror movie as it builds up throughout.
Film language: Camera
- A handheld camera is used to put yourself in the scene as the audience, it also makes it much more personal between the characters, it creates verisimilitude.
- Towards the end of the opening scene, it comes to slight panic after it seems they have been robbed, the camera (handheld throughout) is shown to be moving much faster showing a sense of urgency in the scene.
- The POV usage from the handycam is used as a way to get you into the story yourself, which is clever in a horror movie as it can make it seem more scary.
Film Language: Editing
- The shots in this scene are of a relatively long length making it seem again more realistic, it shows a smooth fluidity between each cut.
- Due to the actor permanently being in control of the camera, there is one particular moment in the scene where the actor is getting the camera in a rush and the screen goes blank, this is used as a way to promote a sense of realism.
Film Language: Mise-en-scene
- Character blocking is used in this scene with the Wife position painting on the ladder painting which is a piece of domestic work, showing a continuation to the stereotype of a women doing the domestic work.
- It is also used to create a sense of urgency, the second part of the scene when they find their house has been what they think has been broken into (paranormal creature?), the characters are rushing around.
Film language: sound
- Very little usage of sound is shown in this scene, apart from dialogue, this is used to show the relationship between these two characters, shown to be very happy with high prospect for their future.
Titles:
- There is only one usage of titles in this scene, it shows the location of the characters house and the date of the film, this is particularly ambiguous as it gives so little away at this point in the film, it gives the audience information about the couple.
Narrative:
- From this opening scene very little is given away to the audience, we get a small introduction to the family in question, I think the director does this so we can warm to the couple to create a more personal level, making what to come in the film more tragic.
- An enigma code can be noted from the second part of the scene, who did this to their house? it is left at the end of the scene on a particularly ambiguous note making the audience as questions like this.
- The scene has been organised in this particular order to show the audience the 'calm before the storm' through to a minor upset which is a use of foreshadowing.
- Tension is created with the use of camera in many ways in this scene, it is handycam throughout, yet when the scene becomes more urgent it can be told more due to the shakiness of the camera increasing.
Representation and ideology:
- A key factor that can be noticed from this opening scene is the fact that the lead women is pregnant, this gives to the audience a sense of innocence, like nothing bad can happen to her. Pregnant women are usually shown to be in safety, completely going against the Paranormal creation of havoc, showing binary opposition.
-In the second part of this scene we can notice the male takes a leading role in the drama, after they return to find the house not looking in a good state, he leads the wife showing the masculine role like he is protecting his wife and child. This conforms to the male stereotype of a strong man who protects his family.
Media audiences:
- From the opening scene little can be told for identifying the films target audience, yet due to the factor of it being a horror movie where the male protagonist is shown to be the lead with authority and conforming to the male stereotype you can come to the conclusion that this film would be targeting the male 16-25 range.
Institutional context:
- This film was produced by 'Blumhouse Productions' which primarily makes horror movies, some of the biggest were made here like Insidious in 2011.
-It was distributed by 'Paramount Pictures' which is known as one of the big 6 Hollywood film studios with films like Titanic from 1997 to their name.
-The two main characters are Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, they play a big part in this film being the couple facing the paranormal.
Titles:
- There is only one usage of titles in this scene, it shows the location of the characters house and the date of the film, this is particularly ambiguous as it gives so little away at this point in the film, it gives the audience information about the couple.
Narrative:
- From this opening scene very little is given away to the audience, we get a small introduction to the family in question, I think the director does this so we can warm to the couple to create a more personal level, making what to come in the film more tragic.
- An enigma code can be noted from the second part of the scene, who did this to their house? it is left at the end of the scene on a particularly ambiguous note making the audience as questions like this.
- The scene has been organised in this particular order to show the audience the 'calm before the storm' through to a minor upset which is a use of foreshadowing.
- Tension is created with the use of camera in many ways in this scene, it is handycam throughout, yet when the scene becomes more urgent it can be told more due to the shakiness of the camera increasing.
Representation and ideology:
- A key factor that can be noticed from this opening scene is the fact that the lead women is pregnant, this gives to the audience a sense of innocence, like nothing bad can happen to her. Pregnant women are usually shown to be in safety, completely going against the Paranormal creation of havoc, showing binary opposition.
-In the second part of this scene we can notice the male takes a leading role in the drama, after they return to find the house not looking in a good state, he leads the wife showing the masculine role like he is protecting his wife and child. This conforms to the male stereotype of a strong man who protects his family.
Media audiences:
- From the opening scene little can be told for identifying the films target audience, yet due to the factor of it being a horror movie where the male protagonist is shown to be the lead with authority and conforming to the male stereotype you can come to the conclusion that this film would be targeting the male 16-25 range.
Institutional context:
- This film was produced by 'Blumhouse Productions' which primarily makes horror movies, some of the biggest were made here like Insidious in 2011.
-It was distributed by 'Paramount Pictures' which is known as one of the big 6 Hollywood film studios with films like Titanic from 1997 to their name.
-The two main characters are Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, they play a big part in this film being the couple facing the paranormal.
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