Saturday 7 December 2013

'The Exorcism of Emily Rose' Opening Sequence Deconstruction


Opening Credits of 'The Exorcism of Emily Rose' from Hollie April Buhagiar on Vimeo.

The opening sequence to the 2005 horror film The Exorcism of Emily Rose begins with a completely black screen and the non-diegetic sound of a female voice melodically saying the word "Emily". As the audience already knows, this name features in the title of the film and is likely to be the name of the main character of the film. The way the voice says "Emily" is as if she is luring or beckoning the character which creates an eerie sense and makes the audience weary of what may happen next in the film.
  • This eeriness is carried on through the following non-diegetic low and quiet rumbling sound created by an orchestra accompanied by another non-diegetic sound of crickets chirping in a field. These sounds get gradually louder, creating suspense and are accompanied by the visual of two production companies' logos (Screen Gems and Lakeshore Entertainment). During the production logo visuals, the same voice repeats the name "Emily" in the same beckoning and eerie manner which adds to the suspense and eeriness. 
  • The non-diegetic sound of heavy breathing of what seems to be a young girl builds up by getting louder and faster. This is an obvious and effective addition to how the start of this opening sequence aims to build suspense, primarily through sound. The loud breathing abruptly goes silent along with the screen which goes completely dark. This is followed closely by the voice again saying "Emily", but the voice whispers it this time. This whisper in otherwise complete visual and audible absence makes the audience seem unsure of the events which have just taken place.
  • Several production companies' names then fade in and out of a black screen in a consistent, dark and eerie font. While these are shown on screen, non-diegetic sound of what seems to be machinery or an old video recorder plays in the background. Machinery and video recorders used in horror films have connotations which strongly conform to the genre including death as certain types of machinery are often used as weapons by the antagonist. The use of hand-held video recorders/camcorders are also a commonly used object in horror films as seen famously in the 1999 horror film The Blair Witch Project. This sound is followed by low and high non-diegetic droning sounds which become relatively loud to create a dramatic and eerie atmosphere.

  • The first proper on-screen visual which is part of the film is the title of the film, 'The Exorcism of Emily Rose', which is written in a slightly sinister, dark red font. The dark red colour that has been chosen resembles blood to carry connotations such as death and violence. The deathly and eerie connotations are highlighted further with the image of barbed wire which is partly covered in blood. 
  • Several equally eerie shots are shown consecutively which all convey a farm which the audience assumes is the setting of the film. These shots include a close-up shot of corn crops in a field and wider angle shots of pumpkins in a field and a farmhouse. The wintry and lifeless images create pathetic fallacy as they convey the overall horror-like mood of the sequence. The individual shots are separated by high-pitched notes which also convey an eerie sense. While the shots are shown, the main cast's names are presented in a similar font to the previous title shot.
  • During the wide-angle and high-angle shot of the farmhouse, a darkly dressed man walks towards the building, appearing from the bottom of the frame. The man is then followed by the audience through several other types of shot such as a close-up shot of his feet walking through a frost-covered field and a wide-angle shot of him walking up to the front door of the house. The way the man is darkly dressed and approaches a seemingly deserted farmhouse, mixed in with the eerie, low-pitched non-diegetic sound in the background, makes the audience feel uneasy about the situation and brings a level of doubt of what may happen next.

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