Film Openings:Genre Specific Analysis

What do the titles tend to look like?
The 2 films that I researched for the genre analysis had quite strong titles which clearly outlined what genre the film was. One title that particularly interested me was the 'House of Wax' title as I thought it being made out of wax made it interesting as it clearly relates to the film and gave it that 'spooky' feel to the opening.

What kind of music and/or other non-diegetic sounds are used?
The non-diegetic sound to the 2 openings easily connoted the 'Thriller' genre as it gave it a dramatic feel to it and also created suspense. The music that was used in both films was genuinely opera sounding with instruments such as the violin to create tension.

What types of character do we see in the opening sequences?

The characters in 'House of Wax' and 'The Grudge' are seen to be anonymous and disturbed people by the use of mise-en-scene in 'House of Wax' as the wax pot being in the kitchen in the morning and in 'The Grudge' the use of a normal morning routine being disrupted by drama connotes that the character was distracted and trapped- illustrating Barts Enigma Code.

What kinds of mise-en-scene dominate? What are typical features of setting, lighting, props?

The mise-en-scene made the opening sequence in 'House of Wax' interesting as it was set in 1974 and demonstrated what their lifetstyles were like. In 'The grudge' the lighting was strong as it highlighted the man on the background whilst the woman was slightly darker in the background connoting which character was dominate in this opening sequence.

What narrative codes are employed and how?
The narrative codes in both sequences connote Barts Enigma code as the viewers are thrown into a persons morning routine being disrupted but also having a reason behind it eg the man committing suicide in 'The Grudge' and the woman in 'House of Wax' hitting her distressed child.

Is there a particular form of cinematography or editing that is specific to the genre you're working in?
The use of editing in both of these sequences start off by using slow tracking cameras focusing on the characters then eventually the edits begin to show face paced jump cuts to create tension to add to the genre of 'Thriller' by demonstrating drama.