ALL - Sample Opening: Hell Night

Hell Night (Tom DeSimone, 1981) 

Budget : $2 500 000 

Box Office : Not Available

Slow opening with slow takes and no shot variations 

Scream at begining signifies horror genre  and there will be a girl (scream queen) in the film

Props include a motorbike, a banner, party items for example hats , balloons and alcohol 

Diegetic sound with bottles smashing, a trumpet and a motorbike

Characters are students at a University campus and are spread out over a huge area

The clothing and hair styles signify the time period the film is set in 

The colour red connotes the women is sexually available but also danger/blood

Lots of teenagers are drunk and taking drugs which means they are sinful and should be killed

Exposition gives us an insight into the characters and there intended archetypes

Binnary opposites with a geek and an extremely popular person

Non-diegetic sound with rock music in the background

ALL - Sample Opening: Slashers

Slashers (Maurice Devereaux, 2001) 

Budget : $165 000 

Box Office : Not Available 

Low budget film 
In the first eight seconds there is a stabbing 
The victim is a female because stereotypically they are weaker and more veunerable than men 
There are alot of intertextual references from the film Psycho 
The film is presented as a Japanese game show
There are American references as the main presenter is dressed up as the Statue of Liberty and the dancers are wearing American flag dresses 
There is so much gore in this film that in parts it is funny because it is so over the top 
Narrative enigma as we never find out who the villains are because they are all wearing masks 

ALL - Sample Opening: April Fools Day

April Fools Day (Fred Walton, 1986) 

Budget : $5 000 000 

Box Office : $12 500 000 

Remade in 2008

Set in the 80's as it is a home video 

The tape is worn and the quality isnt very good

The colours are faint and there are black lines on the screen 

The location is on a pier which signifies wealth and upper middle class 

The women are wearing denim and the men are wearing polo shirts which signifies the time period but also they are in an affluent area 

They are all sexually active signified through exposition 

There is a blonde girl (scream queen) and stereotypically she would die 

Transition to girl in basement shows time has passed 

Mid shot of a jack in a box

Close up of womens face shows emotion 

Flashback of when she got it as a present when she was younger 

Breaks stereotype as no-one dies in the opening scene

AN - Sample Opening: Toolbox Murders

Toolbox Murders (Dennis Donnelly, 1978)

Budget : $185 000 

Box  Office : Not Available 

Remake in 2004 (Toby Hooper) 

Banned in UK from 1982 - 2000 

Uneccessary opening with unknown character driving round with the credits appearing on screen 

Radio foreshadowing later events

Small cast in opening scene 

Genre clearly signified through strange non-diegetic music 

Sans serif font clashes with horror genre 

The colour red signifies danger and blood

Flashback of a car crash 

Anchorage added through the characters past 

Fosters car garage connotes time period 

Narrative enigma as we dont see the characters face 

Another flashback but this time of a funeral 

Character rips up flowers which connotes that the character could be on his way to kill someone 

Triangle signifies mental stateof mind

He could have been involved in the car crash or been close to the person who died

Drill symbolises horror 

Unfitting music could be our oppositional reading 

RS - Sample Opening: Saw

Saw (James Wan, 2004) 

Budget : $12 000 000 

US Box Office : $55 000 000 

UK Box Office : £6 600 000 

Seven Film Franchise 

Serif font signifies horror 

No establishing shot just straight into the action 

Camera slowly tracks in 

Limited locations in the film 

Low key actors  and no-one dies in the opening scene

No teenagers in the film they are all adults

First character could be either the antagonist or protagonist 

Narrative enigma with the background voice 

Non-diegetic sound 

Characters are very vunerable in the dark 

There clothing shows how recent the film was made  

Anchorage added through exposition 

Both men have American accents 

Binnary opposites - One character is scruffy/working class but the other is well dressed/upper middle classand is a doctor 

Props include gun, blood, torn clothes and a voice recorder 

There is no killer with a knife but just a creepy voice and the characters inflict pain on themselves 

ALL - Sample Opening: 5ive Girls

5ive Girls ( Warren P Sonoda, 2006) 

Budget : $ 3 000 000 

Box Office : Not Available

Fence infront of school signifies it has very strict rules

Religious connotations (Catholic)

Old school building 

Bright light signifies purity 

Non-diegetic music adds tension 

Cross breaks which foreshadows events that are about to happen 

Lighting changes along with the music which becomes faster and sharper 

Girl wearing short skirt, long socks, white shirt and she has blonde hair

School girl is alone in a classroom signifies she is going to be killed 

Catholic school but girl draws the devil on a peice of paper

Close up of hand  on girls shoulder signifies they might be in a relationship 

Door slams and the girl is trapped 

Fire which signifies danger and the devil is reflected in girls eyes 

Everything turns normal again but the girl isnt there anymore 

SP - Sample Opening: Bride of Chucky

Bride of Chucky (Ronny Yu, 1998) 

Budget : $25 000 000

US Box Office : $32 000 000

UK Box Office : £526 000

White text with a black background signifies a serious film and may also connote good and evil
The American flag signifies the location but also the pride Americans have
It is windy, raining, there is thunder and lightning and it is set at night are stereotypical features of a horror film
Establishing, panning shot and dutch angle signifies something is wrong
Information on the sign adds anchorage and exposition
The flashing and shadows connote thunder and lightning but it also adds tension
There is an evidence locker and things are moving inside it which signifies that someone is coming or has gone past
The mask and chainsaw etc are intertextual references
Close up of hand signifies the opening of the evidence locker but also danger
The low angle / long shot is a POV which signifies the man is being followed and probably killed