Analysing a film opening from the same genre as our opening

The film Insidious is a typical horror film that is based in a creepy house with un-nerving occurrences and of course a child that just makes everything twice as creepy and scary. conventions of a typical horror film opening are some sort of scary thing or person that leaves the audience wondering what/who they are and why they are doing what they are doing. In Insidious this happens as we see a sleeping child and we wonder where are his parents?, is he alone?, what is this demon type person and what is going to happen. these questions hook the viewer into watching on.

Firstly, camerawork is used very effectively and personally i think it makes the whole scene for various reasons. Such as the first real piece of camerawork we are shown is of a light and a 180 tilt is used and this disorientates the audience as they wonder what it is and just makes the viewer confused.

Additionally, the framing of the whole scene is close to the edges of the house and what this does is forces the viewer to see the whole scene allowing them to be vulnerable and open to various jump scares as well as the mise-en-scene with certain objects such as a teddy to be illuminated and so we are focused on that. But the main point about the framing and positioning of the camera is that when going round a corner you cannot see anything until you are fully around it and so this builds up a fright as they are un-controllably waiting for something to jump out. The first half of the whole scene is one continuous tracking shot and this creates anticipation as we are almost hunting or finding something or someone when in reality you wouldn't like to, this adds to the scary atmosphere created.

Finally, the close up of the demon at the end witch we associate with the main antagonist with snooping around a house. It is also holding the only light within the scene which again forces the audience to focus on it and controls what we see in the scene.

Editing is used cleverly in the opening as at first there is a lack of it and towards the second half there is lots that are visible. However, firstly the use on long edits and in this case the long single shot, it allows the film to flow and increase in pace even though long takes usually creates a slow pace. it also creates suspense as it is building up to something that will stop the movement. The lack of edits allows for the continuation of time to apply and so from the child's bedroom to where we see the evil dis-formed devils face is short and this shows us how much danger the child is in and how it is just waiting and creeping up. The establishing shot of the house has been edited so that the colours are inverted and this contrasts the viewers perception of the house and makes the majority of the scene dark and spooky. The titles also fade in and out and give off a misty, smokey residue which implies the idea of ghosts and paranormal.

To finish off, the use of the cross cutting to get around the house contrast with the fluid tracking shot before and cuts the house up as well as segregating rooms such as the babies room and the living room to show how vast and empty the house is and showing us possibly hiding places or where perhaps strange or scary occurrences could happen.


The red titles them selves have a big impact and effect on how we view the opening and this comes under mise-en-scene. the audience is focusing on the actual shots but is being distracted by the titles that fade in and out. The color also implies blood and therefore danger. additionally the way we only see them for a short amount of time and they appear out of nowhere with minimal sounding to back it up creates a spooky atmosphere along with the font as it is sharp and slightly rushed at the same time, has the implementation of ghosts and hiding in the dark type feel and this is how they communicate the horror genre. At the beginning we are shown a white orb which turns out to be a bedroom light and we are immediately proposing questions such as what is it as it contrast with the blank black background so we are drawn immediately to the things we are familiar with and are able to recognize such as the light and also the teddy on the floor is more illuminated that its surroundings so the audience latch onto those key props that stand out.

Even more so, the low key lighting of the scene creates lots of shadows as a result of there being no filler light. The effect this has is it leaves the audiences mind to play tricks as in the shadows lies the unknown! Finally when we are being shown the house with short snippets, the house is very bare and looks like what you would expect someone to move in or be moving out of and so we are getting the story line visually. The fact that the house is empty makes us feel alone and so when we see the shadow of a person or supernatural occurrences it makes it even more scary as you feel isolated.

last but not least, Sound is used cleverly as there is a lot of silence throughout  the clip and so to compensate for that the audience also remain quiet which creates a breathless atmosphere. This is most obvious kust before the main title and it creates false hope. However the faint high pitched sound, that you have to pay close attention to hear which is scary because the more you concentrate, if there is a jump scare, the more likely you are going to jump, shocks the audience and is off putting and puts the audience in an uncomfortable position. The surprise of seeing something with the light from the window so early on in the film is heightened by the screeching of violins to create more 'hype' around it. this carries on and there are sudden spikes in the opening during the cross cuts and because some of the scary things are hidden but they are shown by the use of these spikes and even if you didnt see them it makes yo uwonder where and what was it...