Textual Analysis

To learn techniques and gain ideas for my film, I watched and analysed a number of openings to related horror movies. This helped in ways of learning how to really emphasise the horror genre and how the opening engages the audience.


Texas chainsaw masacre
The establishing shot of Texas chainsaw massacre really gave us great ideas for my own horror film. We learnt many techniques of the camera in shots and movements. It starts off with old movie blurred lines and flashes of police. This is shown in black and white to represent it is older than the present. The flashing lights and flashing shots of bones, police tape, and blood really emphasise and create the suspense for the start of the movie. These are all very useful signifiers, signifying danger. The social contract is a ongoing change, playing with the language to use signs of codes and patterns in the images. A dark deep voiceover of a policeman talks over the images, they use the technique of not showing the speaker to emphasise the images behind. The narrative is clear this is the past by then shooting to a shot in colour of modern people. The codes and conventions are clear associating the first shots to the genre and showing this is going to relate and be likely to happen for the conventions.


White noise
The establishing shot of this film is created through writing speech. In pure silence the audience is attached by gaining an interest to what is being written. The suspense and fright of the genre is then immediately represented through quick jump cuts of video blur and the loud noise. The title then suddenly jumps into the video blurs creating a freight and fear to the horror film. This then represents the genre. The video cuts then carry on introducing character names through writing. Then with the video blurs still jump cutting a very long panning close up shot of a cd player is introduced this is a real stereotype to give you a strange assumption of what this linked to. The codes and conventions are very clear, the codes clearly associating with the genre. The video blurs are a clear signifier, signifying danger, suspense, freight, confusion etc. the movie represents its horror in a different way to the other two films, using writing speech to engage the audience and build up the suspense and interest.


The omen
The establishing of the omen, really attached you by the use of sound. Starting off with high, piano notes played to create a creepy and weird atmosphere. It automatically attaches the audience by then using a panning shot across the room, it keeps you engaged to find what ever this is at the end of the shot. The pace then gains and quicker shots are added using flickers and jump cuts. Many close ups are used to make you feel more in the scene and keeping your mind interested in whatever is happening. Once again the social contract plays through signs and codes, using words, letters etc. many signifiers are created through use of mis-en-scene, signifying that it is leading you to answers and creating suspense through the fast paced music. The setting is represented in many panning shots of the room and the character is represented in mainly close ups. The narrative is not clear to the opening of this horror movie which then I feel keeps you interested to keep watching to find out. The film also like the ‘Texas chainsaw massacre’ builds up its tension through sound which engages the audience to keep watching.


Watching the 3 openings really taught me how to create the suspense to a horror film, emphasise the narrative and genre, and engage the audience. Most techniques relate to the sound being used really building up the tension and creating suspense at time necessary. The shots of the camera and the camera movements keep the film moving and exciting, using things like jump cuts and panning movements really gets your mind involved and you become engaged and excited. It has been useful to learn these techniques and it will be very helpful in creating our own horror movie.