Opening Scene Analysis



Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
 

 

This is the opening scene from 'Nightmare on Elm Street' which introduces to the audience the villain and the idea of linking the characters nightmares with real life.
This opening scene will be similar to the our opening two minutes as our film also includes a character who goes into a dream and has to escape from a villain who is trying to kill her. Therefore, we will use similar techniques used in the opening scene of Nightmare on Elm  Street.

 

Titles

This title gradually flickers into focus to represent that something is not right because it is a horror film. The connotations of red, like blood and danger, also cause the audience fear before the film has even begun.

 

These titles have odd, crooked looking fonts, also to represent that it is a horror film as it does not look right. The font also looks childish as nightmares are something that you suffer with when you are young.

 



 

Mise en Scene



 

To show that the equipment in the background of the scene is the main focus it has the most lighting the frame on it. The reason why the background is the main focus of the scene is because contraptions and weapons are associated with horror films and death and so it makes the opening scene even scarier.

 

 

Although the villain is only briefly shown as he runs past, the audience gets a clear view of his jumper, which has distinctive red and green stripes. This infers to the audience that each time this jumper/colours is seen, he is getting closer or someone could be going to die.

 

 

The nightie the girl is wearing shows many things to the audience. Firstly, the fact that she is wearing nightwear links to the nightmares in the film. What also shows that her nightmares are becoming real life is that fact that the nightie is ripped, as though the villain has slashed it. Finally, in contrast to the bright jumper worn by her killer, the girl is wearing white, which shows the audience her innocence.

 

Cinematography

 

Using an extreme close up of the girl, intensifies her fear.

 

 

In contrast, an extreme close up is used of the villain to show what she is afraid. The fact that the frame only shows his eye and is very dark causes fear for the viewer, as it is a mystery as to who the villain is and what he looks like.

 

 

At this point in the opening scene, the camera is zooming into the girl from behind in order to represent that something/someone, is getting closer, which builds tension for the audience.

 

Iconography

 

A common feature in horror films is low lighting, which causes darkness and casts shadows. In this scene, the shadows on the girls back are to represent the slash of four blades from the villain's glove. This, along with the darkness of the frame creates mystery and tension, as to what is in front of her. 

 

 

Another use of iconography in the opening scene of the film is the cross which the girl takes off the wall in order to protect her. This is used in the film as crosses are associated with religion, which aims for all good and to fight against the devil. The fact that she tries to protect herself, even when she is awake, shows her fear.

 

Sound

 

Throughout the opening scene, in order to constantly remind the audience that the villain is there, his laughter or heavy breathing can be heard. What is uses to show he is getting closer is the sound the blades on his glove.

 

The sound of the blades ripping material represents it ripping through clothing and flesh.

 









 

The high pitched sound of the villain dragging his glove against metal represents the screams of his victims.

 

Another effect of sound that is used to create fear for the reader is the non-diegetic, low pitched music through the scene, which suddenly increases in pitch when the villain gets closer or something is about to happen. This creates fear for the audience as it shows the abnormality of the situation as the two pitches don't fit together and therefore, the who scene just doesn't appear right.

 

Characters

The main female character in the film fits the stereotypical, female character, as she is young, has light hair and clothing and always seems to make the wrong decision. The facts that she is young and blonde represents her innocence as she tries to escape from the villain. The fact that she always seems to choose the wrong way to get away from her killer foreshadows her death, as her clueless behaviour will be as predictable to the killer as it is to the audience.

The only other key character in the opening scene is the villain, Freddy Krueger. His character is shown as one to be feared as he has a gruesome appearance, like his gory looking skin and the bladed glove he uses on his victims. As well as this, the high pitched, incidental music, heavy breathing and evil laughing also creates fear for the audience. Furthermore, the fact that he always seems to appear very suddenly out of the darkest part of the frame creates mystery and tension as to when he will appear next and frighten the audience by making them jump when they least expect the villain to appear.

The female’s parents appear briefly in the opening scene and are very stereotypical. Her mother is presented as caring but disciplining, as she questions her about her dream and reminds her to cut her fingernails. Her father on the other hand is a typical horny man, which is shown by how desperate he is to get his wife back to bed and he has no interest in his daughter’s bad dream. The fact that they are a stereotypical family creates a normality surrounding the girl’s situation, which will make the audience feel like the storyline could happen to them in real life, making the whole film scarier to watch.