Opening Sequence analysis of Halloween- Miss Georgiou

How does the opening sequence of the film Halloween inform the audience of conventions of a thriller film.

The purpose of an opening sequence is to establish the overall mood and visual character of a film the codes and conventions used with in the opening should make it easily recognisable to its genre. It is also used to introduce the audience to some of the following elements;  Characters, locations, narrative, plot, themes and visual style. The opening sequence of a film should grab the viewers attention form the very first frame it should either have you jumping from your seat of clinging to it, the opening sequence is a part of the film that the audience should remember fondly. By watching the opening sequence the audience has a taste of what is to come throughput the rest of the film. Character introduction usually takes place within the first couple of minutes if the film.
In the film 'Halloween' there is an enigma in the opening sequence. This gives the audience a feeling of uncertainty and as the film carries on slowly but surely, the enigma is being established. For example we do not know who the antagonist is but we later see it was actually the eight year old boy who kills his older sister as the film unravels we learn why he would commit such an act. Overall the purpose of an opening sequence is to introduce what the film is going to be about. Different directors will chose to plan out their opening sequences differently however if the opening sequence has made an impact on the majority of the audience and they are interested in watching the rest of the film then the director knows he has completed his first task of drawing in the audience.

The majority of the opening is filmed through the use of a point-of-view shot. This is very affective as we are seeing the opening throughout the eyes of a criminal, this builds tension and suspense as it is quite bizarre; usually in thrillers we see the scene through the eyes of the victim, this adheres from the stereotypical conventions of thriller films.  As a result of using a point of view shot it poses an enigma from the audience leaving them to question who this person is. This enigma creates fear for the audience as we are looking through the eyes of a crazed maniac. The point of view shot looks up at the bedroom which foreshadows the events that will take place there. This is a key moment in creating tension for the audience as they are left to question what will happen next adding to the suspense factor that this shot has created.The point of view shot is intended to represent the subjective view of the unknown killer. The camera lens is placed at eye level of the boy Michel who's point of view we are seeing. This is so we can see exactly what he sees. POV gives the audience an emotional attachment to the young boy as he is the antagonist we feel a sense of fear where as if we were seeing from the view of the victim this would create sympathy. Through the point of view we see the unidentified villain stab a young woman. The POV is later identified to Michel a six year old boys. Through the point of view shot we can see we can see the surroundings around the house which is conventional to thriller films as it is set in a relatable location to the audience this has the effect of playing with the psychological element of the move. In your own house you are supposed to feel safe and out of harms way this relates to he audience as they may question if they are safe in their own house.

In the opening sequence editing is also used, a jump cut is used to transition from the surroundings of the house to the knife. This implicates that this knife has particular significance that will later be revealed through the opening. This builds suspense as the audience are made aware there is a weapon involved yet we have not discovered who is holding the weapon so it may be in the hands of someone that plans to kill with it. After planting this seed in the audiences head it builds suspense as the audience are left questioning what the knife will actually be used for. By focusing on the knife as an individual element it creates suspense effectively which will have the audience feeling on edge anticipating when t will be used. A common technique that is  during the opening sequence's of thriller films primarily as the audience will have to keep watching if they want to find out what happens. Further it is also conventional as knives are common weapons to be used in thrillers as the victim is usually killed with some sort of knife. This panics the audience as being stabbed is a slow and painful way to die. This has the audience feeling sympathetic towards the victims which builds a relationship between the audience and the characters. This makes the audience engaged and more interesting for the audience to watch this adds to the thrill element.

The first convention that is identifiable in the opening sequence is sound. Sound is conventional in all thrillers as it has the power to create any kind of mood possible, it is also able to make the audience feel a certain way. In the opening sequence of Halloween we first hear the non dietetic sound track this plays at the beginning and then again at the end of the opening sequence. The soundtrack creates and eerie atmosphere which builds suspense for the audience, it also engages the audience from the first sound they hear which is conventional for any film. The sound is loud which is put at the beginning of the sequence on purpose. This non dietetic sounds misleads the audience to think nothing more that just an ordinary Halloween night. Although the music creates suspense it fits in with the Halloween theme therefore the audience may not realise that the music has a hidden meaning that something bad is about to happen. This high pitched sound would also have made the audience jump as the sounds sounds like a shriek which may foreshadow the shriek of the female victim as she is being stabbed.

The opening sequence is identifiable as a thriller due to it codes and conventions. The thriller codes and conventions are recognisable as soon as the thriller starts. Stereotypically it is set in a suburban area which is conventional as most thrillers are set in relatable settings. There is also stereotypically a female victim which is conventional as females in thriller films are always presented as weaker and inferior to the males in the scene. In most thriller movies it is always the female that is killed off first this conforms to the typical triller representation of women. This relates to the Halloween opening sequence as the first person to die Is a female victim. For the audience this conveys that she was weaker and unable to defend herself from the anonymous killer. This is a typical convention of the thriller genre as women are always seen weaker than men and are unable to defend themselves which is why they end up being killed first. This is because they are portrayed as being vulnerable and in need of protection. This representation dates back to the early era of when thriller films were made, the most sexist time this convention has stuck throughout. The female victim is usually killed in the most graphic way especially  which relates to this opening sequence as she was stabbed several times and the point of view shot used wee can see her dead body lying on the floor. The female character is also conventional to the thriller genre as she helps create suspense and puts the audience on edge especially when the audience are aware that the killer has a knife and know what it is going to be used for yet the girl is oblivious until it is to late to save herself. It is also typical of thriller films as the young girl was so preoccupied with her boyfriend she was unaware of the murderer on the loose this causes the audience to become annoyed with her as they are frustrated with how oblivious she is which builds up tension further.

The antagonist is the main character and the fact that we see him looking through the window outside of the house makes the audience immediately suspicious of him. All throughout the opening sequence the character is creepy and keeping his identity hidden just makes the audience wonder what or why he is hiding. This is conventional of a thriller film as there is always an antagonist who does not want to be revealed this makes the audience question the antagonists motives. We are not introduced to the antagonist until the end of the sequence however there is the point of view shot from his perspective throughout the opening sequence. This creates an enigma as we don't see who's point of view the audience is looking though and have no personal attachment to the antagonist, the audience are unaware of what this character is going to do. After the character has been revealed it is a shock to the audience as it turns out to be just a child presumably the brother of the victim which leaves the audience with great shock. As the antagonists identity is hidden until the end of the clip this is common for the thriller genre. The secrecy of his hidden identity is used to create suspense and add to the enigma, it leaves the audience confused as to why he would do something like that especially why he has chosen to kill his own sister not anyone else, but it also quite menacing as the doesn't seem to have this motive intentionally. The audience are left puzzled as they do not expect a young child to be capable of such a brutal murder.

The narrative of the whole opening sequence is based around the night of Halloween, this is a common day for a thriller to be based around and is stereotypically used in thriller films more than any other genre. This is because Halloween us seen as a day of children and costumes this day has connotations of which craft and black magic. Children dress up in costumes on Halloween which is likely to be the reason he is dressed up in a clown costume and is hidden under a mask. This is conventional to the thriller genre as there is a hidden identity as the antagonist is not known until the end. The audience build a relationship with the character as he is just an ordinary boy on Halloween that has dressed up but has decided to murder his sister. This creates shock, suspense and surprise as the narrative creates an enigma. This enigma is created within the scene because there are questions that the audience have that are not answerable. With out a narrative the story line would not hook the audience and make them want to carry on watching the rest of the film.

Conclusively, from the opening clip of the film halloween. I have depicted all of the conventions used to make this opening conventional to the thriller genre . This has given  me the inspiration to include these within my own clip. Watching Halloween has helped me understand how incorporating different film techniques can set the mood of a piece. It generally builds more suspense and shock to the audience. A specific convention that I will use in my own thriller sequence that I am going to include in my opening is the fact the thriller identity is hidden until the end of the sequence.