The Woman In Black Opening Scene

Media Coursework: Deconstruction of The Woman In Black Opening Scene

The Woman In Black is a supernatural horror released in 2012

Title

• The first scene fades out to a foggy background, suggesting mystery and secrecy
• Tension is created through the titles sequence by non diegetic strings playing rising scales and a constant high pitch hum
• The typography of the titles is black and uses a font which is clear to read. This make it easy to read however also makes it appear quite imposing to the audience
• 

  Between titles being shown there are close up shots of interactions that could be seen as of importance to a person, for example rings being exchanged and a veiled woman. These are almost behind the foggy background and are very pale grey appearing ghost like which is a convention of horror
• When the short clips are shown the non diegetic music is held on a chord for the duration of the clip, suggesting that these are memories to be held onto

Narrative/Enigmas

•  During the first half of the scene there is no narrative, only non diegetic music
• There are three girls who all appear like happy and normal young children, they appear innocent and this is shown by their pale dresses and by their playing with dolls
• The scene  appears to use equilibrium as the children appear happy and there are no evident dangers to them, however midway through this scene there is a change and we see disequilibrium when the girls drop their dolls and a dolls head is trodden on. This shows innocence being taken and foreshadows what will happen next
• The disequilibrium is concreted when the three girls jump out of a window. This is because suicide is seen as sinful and with no innocence.
• This also creates an enigma as we don't know why the girls suddenly changed and jumped from the window
• We hear a scream and 'my baby', again showing the disequilibrium and fixing an idea of death and supernatural powers which are both conventions of supernatural horror

 Sounds

• The first scene is accompanied by non diegetic music which sounds similar to a child's music box, however has undertones that sound creepy. This makes the music appear contrapuntal to the equilibrium in the scene
• When the toys are trodden on there is a diegetic crunching as they break
• When the three girls walk towards the window a drum beat quickens, suggesting a fastening heartbeat.
• The music also slowly crescendos however when the girls jump the music stops altogether
• When the children jump we hear a diegetic scream followed by a woman shouting 'my baby' followed by another scream which morphs into the music for the title sequence
• Non diegetic music plays during the title sequence with tension created using rising scales played by strings and a constant high pitched hum
• When a short clip between titles is shown, the music is held on a chord for the duration of the clip

Appropriateness for Genre

• The scene starts with a close up of a china tea set and children's dolls, suggesting innocence and vulnerability, a common convention of supernatural horror
• China dolls foreshadow and represent the children again showing fragility and vulnerability, a common convention of horror
• The scene is shown as from the Edwardian period through the clothes (long full dresses, ringlet in their hair) and decoration of the room (old fashioned style pram, wash stand), which is a common time period for horror to be set in
• A low angle shot of the children showing them looking in one direction together suggests supernatural happenings as they now appear superior where as previously they were vulnerable
• Tension is created by the non diegetic music both when the girls are playing by the undertones of the music box music and drum beat as well as during the title sequence by the rising scales by the strings