Textual AnalysisThe Woman in Black and Scream

The woman in black opening sequence

The first shot the audience is introduced to is an unseen character gracefully pouring the imaginary tea from a children’s toy china teapot in to a toy tea cup through the use of a close up this suggests to the audience that it is a young girl as she is elegant with her actions, this is stereotypical for a young girl. The Young girls are conforming to traditional stereotypes by being represented as vulnerable and usually play the victims, which is conventional to a horror film, for example mama which also uses young females. This indicates to the audience children are an important role in the film. The tea set is shown to have a bird printed on it, which symbolizes the innocence of the children and also foreshadows the girls later jumping out of the window as if like a flying bird. The blue bird on the teapot has a symbolic meaning of happiness, which juxtaposes the following shots.

The non-diegetic sound of a children’s music box which adds a calm yet spooky feeling to the scene. This could also represent the famous olden time children’s toy ‘a jack in the box’ where something jumps out to foreshadow the children later jumping out of the window, this brings the feeling of wickedness to the film, that there is something or someone wicked. This music starts at a quiet sound and gradually gets louder as the children walk toward the window to jump out. This is to create suspense and emphasise the death of the children. This is effective because it makes the audience feel sympathy for their deaths and apprehensive about the further deaths that could occur. The key light in this shot is the tea sets surface as it is glossy from the reflecting light. The back light is darker and blurred to allow the audience to focus on the props being used and they are an important element in the opening scene. Using only the key and back lights produces a sharp contrast of dark and light areas on the screen as shadows are formed. These shadows symbolise the woman in black as she is the shadow throughout the film.

The cut to another close up shot of the girl giving the old, ragged doll an imaginary drink this indicates to the audience the possible time period of the film which is the Victorian era where dolls were very popular with young English girls. The two close ups used create an enigma within the audience so there is a selective focus. Porcelain dolls are also conventional to many horror films as young girl’s toys such as ‘Annabelle’, ‘the poltergeist’ and ‘Chucky’. The close up is also used to show the face of the doll, that is doesn’t look happy but looks sad to connote the children’s deaths and how their families will be feeling .furthermore the dolls eyes look as if they have seen something dark, deadly and frightening as they are completely black, this connotes the woman in black and tells the audience that someone evil is behind this. The white and black colours of the doll also suggest the theory of binary oppositions between the evil ‘woman in black’ and the innocent children. Moreover the director deliberately uses porcelain dolls to suggest they are extremely fragile which also symbolises how the young children are fragile .There is a sound bridge of the same nursery rhyme of a non-diegetic sound from a children’s music box to reinforce the idea of a playroom this is effective because it tells the audience something is going to happen to the children in that room which creates an enigma code and keeps the audience on edge, making them want to watch more.

The use of this long shot allows the audience to focus on the location which is an attic and can now identify the characters. Further on the time period being represented through the use of the antique items. Moreover the audience can also focus on the three young girls as they are primary images in this shot. The director wants the audience to be able to see the elegant pink and white dresses worn by the young girls as they are stereotypical to the Victorian era which connotes the purity of children. Furthermore the lighting continues to be dark in the background and the characters faces highlighted to emphasise their innocence and purity. This contrasts with the evil forces that are the reason for the dark shadows which is the theory of binary oppositions between the supernatural and normal, bringing a sense of mystery to the scene. This portrays that the evil forces will be the reason for the later deaths in the film. This is effective because innocence and evil are typical conventions of horror films, also the fact nothing paranormal is seen yet but there is suspicion something is there creates the theme of psychological horror. Keeping the audience focused on what the evil is.

The transition to a close up shot is to make the audience focus on the characters facial expressions. The audience can identify the girls are happily playing with each other with big smiles. This demonstrates the equilibrium theory as this is the moment when the girls are happy and it’s quite calm. This contrasts with the long shot where the girl’s facial expressions immediately drop from happy to fearful and stunned as they all turn to face the wall as if something is there.

However the audience cannot see this to create suspicion and imagine what the children could be looking at to make them seem so unhappy. The further use of the non-diegetic music takes away the innocence of the tea party as it’s very dark and mysterious; this creates tension amongst the audience. The key light is used in the close up image to highlight the girl’s faces and emphasise how their facial expressions are happy which creates a cheerful atmosphere within the audience. However in the long shot the back light counteracts the atmosphere in the other image to portray the sudden change in emotion, the lighting is now dark and gloomy to indicate something deadly has entered the play room. Dark and gloomy backgrounds are conventional to horror films. This is effective because it also changes the emotion with in the audience so that they are more scared. At this point the audience is introduced to the three windows which creates suspicion as there are three girls. The camera angle also seems as if it is from someone else’s point of view and they are looking towards the window, to tell them to go to it. This is a further indication of the enigma where the director is planting clues as to what the twist may be at the end of the scene.

 

This low angled wide shot is so the audience can see clearly the next action that is about to happen. The simultaneous head turns suggest paranormal activity within the film, as the camera angle is from the point of view of an unknown matter, looking at the children. This is effective because it creates a sense of mystery as the audience don’t know from whose point of view it is from or what the evil is. There is a further sound bridge of the same nursery rhyme to portray innocence vs. evil, however now it is faster paced and more dramatic to highlight the change in emotion and the big tragic event getting closer and closer. The fast paced music could also connote the girls falling out of the window quickly, this puts emphasis on the sadness of their deaths. The music gradually getting faster is a typical convention of a horror film when a victim is about to be murdered an example of this is in the opening sequence of ‘Scream’. The use of the sepia edit effect gives an old fashioned feel to the scene, so the audience are aware of the date the film is set. This further creates a gloomy atmosphere as the colours appear dull as oppose to bright. I would use this edit in my opening sequence to conform to the genre, in order to create the dark and gloomy atmosphere.

The specific wide shot of the window adds suspense as it grabs the audience’s attention when they see what the girls are looking at, this makes them apprehensive about what could happen next. Moreover this reinforces the several deaths that occur throughout the film making death inevitable and the girls are about to encounter their deaths. The fact there are three windows next to each other suggests the director is trying to give away clues to the audience to make them want to watch more, which is effective because it allows the audience to interact with this scene as they are sat guessing what will happen next. This foreshadows the three girls jumping out of the window portraying how young children are the victims in this society. The slight zoom draws the audience and the characters towards the window. This is so the audience can interact with the film to make it seem more realistic, dramatic and tense. The intense brightness of the light symbolises the girls approaching their deaths and going up to heaven, suggesting this is a religious society. Furthermore indicating the innocence and purity of the girls which contrasts with the dark and gloomy room connoting the theory of binary oppositions. This demonstrates the theory of binary oppositions, that the evil is inside and the good is outside. This could infer to the audience that the supernatural occurrences take place inside a house which is conventional to a horror film. This is effective because the audience will be frightened as these are realistic events, creating a tense atmosphere.

This close up is used to show the young girl stepping on the doll she dropped on the floor and represent death to innocence. The characters lack of care towards their toys alerts the audience that they are behaving out of character, as a few seconds back they were taking delicate care of them. Diegetic music is used as the teapot and dolls break apart, as this is the first diegetic sound used it suggests that it is an important one. The crushing of the doll could symbolise the girls falling to their deaths and how the supernatural force that killed them doesn’t care, like the girl doesn’t care she is stepping on her doll and crushing it. The use of the colours is effective because it is a black shoe crushing the doll. This indicates the dark forces that killed the girls and will continue to occur. This also demonstrates the disequilibrium as it is a disruption in the film. This shot also suggests how girls can be weak and vulnerable, therefore easily controlled, this keeps the atmosphere tense as the audience know something is going to happen but can’t do anything about it.

In this longshot the girls facial expressions are serious and seem controlled, which contracts from the close up shown earlier of their sweet and warm smiles; this informs the audience that something wrong is happening. Their dresses are pastel colours which usually symbolise the purity, victim and innocence of the girls. This makes the audience question what will happen once the window is opened. The zoom in on the wide shot keeps the audience intrigued to watch on. Moreover as the girls are facing with their backs to the camera suggests how they are defenseless and weak and unable to turn back due to the figure in the corner that they were looking at in the previous shot. The girls are blocking the brightness from the window which symbolises how their lives are coming to an end due to the lack of light and increase in the dark forces.

After the buildup of the music, it gives the audience a short moment to acknowledge what has just occurred and think about why it happened. The room is now isolated and lonely to connote how the woman in black is lonely as uses this anger against the children. On the right hand side of a frame a dark figure is shown. This is significant because the figure is perhaps the antagonist of what just happened and probably for throughout the film. Also as this is the last shot, the figure is the last image the audience see so they know that it is the force in control of the children. The fact it is a black figure connotes death which is conventional for a horror film and is effective because it contrasts with the brightness of the window, that connotes innocence and the girls that have gone up to heaven. The only dialogue in this scene is the last sound heard is a non-diegetic sound of a loud scream followed by a possible motherly figure saying ‘my babies’. This is to emphasise the tragedy of the deaths and the ones that follow. This is effective because it makes the audience sympathise for their deaths. The scream is also a stereotypical theme of a horror film to represent the distraught feelings from the other characters that are unseen. The room is now shown to be empty reinforcing that the children are gone and not coming back and the only thing left behind is darkness and evil.

In my opening sequence I will conform to the genre by using dark dull colours for costumes, lighting and background which will make it effective because it makes the scene more dramatic. I would also show empty, spacious areas to connote how the main girl in my opening sequence feels lonely after her best friend died and is betrayed by her parents.

Scream opening sequence

The opening sequence of Scream begins with the title of the film stretched vertically across the screen in white, bold, capital letters and as it bounces together it produces a bang then, a non-diegetic sound of a ringing phone followed by a faint screaming noise. This is significant because the sound of the scream and the text relate as they both connote someone dying, instilling fear from the beginning within the audience. This then quickly changes to be sanserif and red with a black background. This implies to the audience death and horror as the colour red represents blood and it makes the title stand out, which immediately suggests the main emotion of the film is fear and horror. Also the quick change from white to red implies the innocent people getting killed quickly. Moreover the title starts to flash between white and red to show the theory of binary oppositions between innocence and evil or life and death, this is effective because it tells the audience the innocent people will be fighting for their lives. This creates social interaction within the audience through the use of the gratification theory. There is a second non-diegetic sound of a telephone heard in the background which is a very significant prop in the film as it is very repetitive throughout the film, this creates anxiety every time a phone rings in the film from this point on wards. Moreover it creates a sense of mystery for the audience and foreshadows the mystery killer. A scream is also heard to represent the fear of an innocent person which is conventional to a horror film, keeping the audience apprehensive. The use of the red and white colours gives me inspiration for my production so I can immediately instill fear to the audience.

The second shot starts off as a sound bridge that has been carried on from the previous shot, which consists of a diegetic sound of a telephone, this is to represent the buildup of suspense throughout the film. As it is the first object you see in the film it further connotes the importance of this prop throughout so that the audience can focus on who the mystery killer might be possibly through the voice. It is also a close up shot and tells the audience it’s not going to be an ordinary phone call, which already brings a tense atmosphere to the audience. It generates an enigma code as it prompts the audience to figure out who the person ringing the phone is, further creating social interaction through the use of the gratification theory as the audience want to discuss who it might be and what’s going to happen next. As well as that another theory used is the hypodermic needle theory through the significant use of the ringing telephone. This is because it allows the audience to relate to the fear of the phone ringing because phones are used in everyday life, injecting ideas into the audience that you never know whose calling their telephone.

This shot is a pan up to a female character with a slow zoom to another close up this creates intensity and makes the audience aware the character doesn’t know who the person on the other line is through the use of facial expressions. As it is a woman picking up a phone to someone she doesn’t know suggest she will be a vulnerable character in the film and is a stereo type of a typical blonde woman. The use of the close up is also used to show how the characters facial expressions change throughout the phone call as she starts to realise the other person on the phone is calling to harass her. At first she acts flirtatious, ditzy and plays along with the caller’s game which is a typical convention of a woman in a horror film. Films such as ‘I know what you did last summer’ can relate to this. The background lighting is specifically quite bright to connote her emotions being happy at this time. The black phone has dark connotations to portray the evilness of the killer which contrasts with the victim’s fair face to represent her innocence and purity.

           

The next shot is another close up, however the composition of the shoot is in a place where you can see behind the character and outside the window. This creates anxiety as it looks like someone or something will appear in the door window. Also as it is dark outside and it is a conventional aspect of a horror film. The character also appears to have their back to the window which could suggest someone will jump out behind them as it is a common scene in a typical horror film. This links to the film ‘the woman in black’ when the ghost woman suddenly appears behind the window demonstrating how this feature is used in many horror films because it entertains people in the way they want to which is a use of the gratification theory. This also gives me an inspiration for my production as when people go to see a horror film they are looking for a sense of fright which further brings forward the audience theory that the target audience for scream is people looking for an adrenaline rush of scariness.

The next shot is a pan down from a tree to a wide shot of outside the house. The tree is a convenient shot as later on in the scene the female victim is hung from one of its branches by the killer. The director has used this shot as an opportunity to inject ideas into the audience which is a clear use of the hypodermic needle theory, this is to foreshadow the later event of deaths. Other films have used trees as a sign of death such as ‘the conjuring’ and can be effective because it is a common trope of ghost stories so the audience can guess what’s coming. The pan down is to show a clear shot of the swing that appears to be slightly swinging forwards and backwards. This brings the theme of supernatural to the film. This is effective because it also creates the theme of mystery, that someone must be by the house-possibly the caller- this is to keep the audience guessing and make them want to watch more. The white house contrasts with the dark lighting in the background to portray the theory of binary oppositions between the innocence of the victim and the evilness of the killer. The natural sounds of outside create tension as the killer is not seen or heard.

The next shot is a close up of a lit up cooker this is so the audience can see the victim is about to make popcorn. This is significant as popcorn is a typical snack for a film suggesting that something thrilling is about to happen. The camera pans up into a medium shot, meanwhile the phone rings for the third time and the victim is seen moving away from the popcorn to answer the call. This suggests bad things will begin to occur as she is leaving the cooker unattended, which is the start of the disequilibrium. This is followed by next shot which consists of the victim still on the phone being playful, not knowing that the killer is on the phone. The fact the victim is playing with a knife whilst on the phone to the killer creates the idea of irony because she is later killed by him with a knife. The director has cleverly used this to foreshadow the later events. Which is effective because it gives away clues to the audience to create a sense of fear as they may know she will be killed.

The camera follows the female back to the living room where the call continues meanwhile the camera has several jump cuts between the character and the popcorn and each time the popcorn is bigger and bigger. This is to build tension of the big event that is about to take place. The popcorn symbolises the heat rising between the victim and the caller as she stats to realise he is playing with her mind. The reflection of light on the foil of the popcorn connotes the shiny surface of the knife the victims are later stabbed by, to instill to the audience a horrifying event is about to happen. The fact that the victim has now switched to a white phone contrasts with the previous black phone, as this is now cordless to portray the innocent trying to run away. As the colour white usually represents innocence and the colour black usually represents death and horror.

The black phone portrays the killer trying to catch the victim. This is conventional to a horror film and is used to have a fast paced event to suggest how quickly the deaths occur. The whole of the opening sequence is compelling to the audience so they can immediately gain interest and are apprehensive about whats going to happen next. This aggressively keeps the audinece guessing, which is a common convention in many horror films such as ‘the gift’. Making this horror film effective becayse it makes the audience want to watch more.