Texual Analysis of an Opening: Scream (1996)

The company Dimension Films associates this film with the genre of horror as the company is well known for producing and distributing successful horror films.

The colour of the title dissolves from red to white, displaying innocence. This innocence is overpowered as the text returns to its original colour and flashes of red appear, connoting blood, death, and anguish. This is supported by the non-diegetic crashing and screaming. The font has rigid edges, almost as if it’s been sliced by a knife – an object that depicts the horror genre. A heartbeat is heard, allowing the text to ‘breathe’ and present a form of anticipation and anxiety. The slash marks within the frame foreshadow the method of murder within the film and identify the film as a slasher horror. A blank screen is then used to indicate the start of the opening sequence.

As the telephone rings, match-on-action is used, showing the character answer the phone – shot with a medium closeup. The closeup of the telephone displays its importance within the film, as the main element of a slasher film is being contacted by strangers. The camera is positioned behind a vase as if the audience is not supposed to be there, allowing them to get a hidden inside look at what’s happening. The secrecy adds to the anticipation. The sound of the telephone ringing is a non-diegetic sound effect. This, as well as the dialogue, is used to drive the narrative as the main element of this slasher film is the mysterious phone call. Another example of this non-diegetic sound is the dog’s barking. It is known that dogs bark when they see someone unfamiliar, informing the audience that there is a trespasser on the victim’s property. The popping of popcorn is diegetic to present the character’s normality. When the character picks up the telephone again, an eye-match-shot is used. Here the telephone is positioned in the left third of the frame, illustrating that something is wrong in this setting.

As an establishing, the camera pans down, revealing the isolating setting. As part of the mise en scene, the pan leads down to the swing’s brisk movement, exhibiting that someone has been on this swing just recently. This is an enigma code. Her suburban home is in the form of detached housing, allowing itself to be isolated. This is typical of a horror as victims are often placed in a setting where help and the assistance of others are not available to them.

The victim has blonde hair, connoting a bemused personality, while her blue eyes connote innocence. Her makeup is made to look quite natural; however, her lips still seem to stand out as if she's wearing lipstick. This, therefore, sexualises the character. Her clothing is modest as she wears a cream coloured, non-low-cut sweater. The victim is captured with a medium shot, slightly from a high angle displaying the male’s gaze as the female’s breasts are in the centre of the frame. This is ironic as she is dressed very modestly.

The camera tracks the female in her kitchen with a long shot duration, really calling attention to the knives on the counter. The knives are positioned in the right third of the frame in focus. The noticeable sound effect of the sharp knife being taken out of its holder allows the iconography to stand out in the frame, showing its significance. Tracking shots are continuous, allowing the audience to follow the character and be included in her situation. There are no cuts in this tracking shot to ensure the audience that they have not missed out on any action and are fully engaging with the narrative. Intertextuality is present within this phone call as the male talks to her about scary movies and babysitters, which is ironic as she is dressed like a typical one. She challenges the stereotypical traits of a female as she claims that horror films don’t scare her. This challenge is counteracted by the flirting that follows after this conversation. Her flirting identifies her as an object to men. The mid shot of the victim locking the door hints the fear she feels when on the phone to the mysterious man. She knows that something isn’t right and therefore doesn’t feel secure. When she looks outside onto the patio the lighting has a cold undertone, implying that this is the area of death. A closeup is then used when she locks her back door, putting the focus on this action and displaying the importance of security within the home. There is a shallow to deep focus on the picture of a creepy house when she leaves her living room, depicting the horror genre. When the popcorn is about to pop, a tilted frame is used to illustrate the lack of control that the female holds. It also magnifies a disruption in the equilibrium.

A dramatic, climactic sound effect is used when the antagonist calls the victim ‘blondie’, indicating that he is watching her and alerting the audience of a disruption within the narrative. This effect is also heard when the antagonist recites the name of the female’s boyfriend. Right after this sound there is silence, telling the audience to pay attention and really understand the dialogue. Eerie music continues in the background, playing diminished chords on a piano. As time goes on the tracking shots get quicker. From here the tracking speeds up and the female is surrounded by the windows in her house, pressuring the audience to mentally jump out the windows just to get away from the fear. The speed suggests that something is going to happen and therefore builds suspense and tension. The tracking shot then displays three glass doors in her hallway. This isn’t a good thing in a horror film as the victim's whereabouts are seen by the public, making her an easy target. The glass door is constantly featured in different shots, particularly framed in the left third. This brings attention to the door and foreshadows a disturbance in this area of the house. This is suspenseful as the audience figure out what’s so significant about this door. A slow arc shot follows but remains at this door. There is a shallow depth of focus on the victim, drawing attention to the motion sensor light outside in the garden. This makes it clear that there is a trespasser on her property, making the audience feel anxious as they know this information but the female does not, and they are forced to watch the action in the reflection of the door.

There is an exterior shot of the female inside behind the front door bars, almost as if she is caged. This subverts the understanding that safety is in your home. This cutaway reveals the time of night in its mise en scene, fulfilling the audience expectation of a slasher horror as dreadful events occur at night. A glimpse of her front yard is shot from her POV behind the door, including the audience as they see what she sees and is able to empathise with the victim. The shot-reverse-shot of the door and herself gives the audience the thought that there is someone at the door watching her.