Scream Opening Scene

Scream Opening Scene

Use Of Camera: the scene starts off with a close up shot of the telephone, which shows the audience the main focus of the scene. The shot then pans upwards into a medium shot of the girl talking on the phone. The girl then hangs up the phone and it rings again making the camera go back to the close up shot of the phone, this creates tension as the audience are wondering who is calling. This is then followed by another medium shot showing the girls facial expressions which suggests that she is happy and comfortable with the situation. She then puts the phone back down and the camera shot cuts to a long shot of the house she is in. The house looks like it is big and in a remote location which is an indicator and connotation of the horror genre. The camera then pans down showing the swing swaying which creates tension and suspense. The camera cuts into a close up of the popcorn and then tracks to a medium of the girl however also in the shot the audience can see a set of knives which creates a sense of horror as knives represent death. The girl then lifts the knife out of its hold and wields it so the audience can see; this connotes danger which could be foreshadowing future events. The camera shot then changes to a tracking shot of the girl walking away, which shows she is innocent and is oblivious to what is going to happen.

Narrative: The scene starts with the phone ringing, she then picks up the phone and starts speaking, the audience are not sure who the person is on the other side. This causes tension as the voice sounds mysterious; this makes the audience wonder who the person is. Once the girl puts the phone down the mysterious caller rings again, which gives an ominous effect as we realise it's the same voice from earlier. The same pattern keeps happening and in the end the girl becomes seductive and starts to flirt with the guy who she believes is not a threat. The guy then rings back and he starts asking lots of questions, this alerts the audience as they know that he could be a threat as it’s of the horror genre. The couple start talking about scary movies, this is ironic, and as the film is a horror movie. The stream of questions make the audience feel tense and they start to feel concerned for the wellbeing of the girl. The man on the phone then confirms the audiences suspicions as he says "I want to know who I'm looking at" this immediately captures the girls attention and creates fear within the audience. This is the first moment in the scene where the girl realises that she is in potential danger and starts to panic.

Genre: The scene has many connotations of the horror genre such as, a large house in a remote location which is way too big for the occupier and also the way the director uses the theme 'fear of the unknown' which creates suspense and creates more fear as not even the audience knows what the threat is yet. Also the scene conforms to stereotypes of women being weak as she is seen to be helpless and it is inevitable that she will be killed. Also another stereotype is that women are stupid (bimbo) which seems to be the case in this scene. After many clues as to what could happen she stills stays the innocent venerable girl as she was at the beginning talking to a random man and giving him details. Only up until the man says and hints that he is looking at her. Also the scene features many other horror connotations for example in the shot where she was leaning over the counter which also prominently features a set of knives which connotes danger and also is main indicators that this is a horror movie.

Sound: The scene starts with some diegetic sound of the phone ringing; this brings the audience's attention to the phone as it becomes the main focus of the scene. The characters then start exchanging dialogue with the women using more of a seductive flirty voice where as the man is more mysterious and the audience are unsure of the intention of the call. Following this is more diegetic sound of the phone this creates suspense as the audience assume it’s the same mysterious voice as before. The shot then cuts to a outside shot where we hear more diegetic sound however it’s only the sounds of nature which express that she is in a remote location and that no one is around to help her if she’s in danger. This makes the scene more dramatic and increases the disturbing nature of what might happen. As the girl is leaning over the counter she pulls out a knife this creates more diegetic sound of the knife being removed from its hold, this chilling sound causes more tension and the audience have an indication of what might happen. When the women is near speaking to the man he says "I want to know who I’m looking at" at this point the scene introduces its first non diegetic sound which is a deep low sound to show the mood of the scene is changing, and that this mysterious man has intentions of more than just speaking on the phone. This part of the scene changes the mood and the audience become more involved with the plot.