As a Tim Burton film we can expect dark and gothic themes right from the start of Sleepy Hollow. Followed from Mandalay's icon are the production team and director's name, in white on a black background with mist surrounding the text to give the audience the general theme of the movie. After the opening credits there is a close up of red wax, zoomed in on to look like blood so to fool the audience and add an eeriness to the beginning. Further on we see a male character, shot from below the holding a female's hand, as she caresses it to suggest a couple. The shot then fades to another of forms and the male's hand filling it out followed by the female's which is then put into a satchel. The scene suggests that a plan is being carried out, telling the audience that they are most likely the villains of the story. This is shot mainly in close ups as not to reveal their identity, connoting a horror mystery. However their names are shown whilst they sign the papers; the letter is signed Peter Van Garret and the wax seal reads Van Garret with a picture of a windmill which could foreshadow something to the audience. The scenes runs whilst non-diegetic music plays. This draws in the audience and aims to get the viewers hooked on the story from the start. The music switches in between atmospheric and creepy to a heavier tone, suggesting only some parts may be gory whilst other scenes are inciting.
The scene then cuts to another character in a carriage as the music gets darker and now a diegetic noise of fast horse's steps overlaps the music. A quick shot of the same Coat of Arms with Van Garret is painted to the side of the carriage, inferring that the first unknown character is inside. The camera now shoots inside the carriage where we see who we assume is Van Garret. The shot makes it seem as if the viewer is spying on the man or is seeing what he sees. The performance by the actor tells us that he's impatient or worried by the way he looks around and outside the window. By this point the horse's steps are quieter and now we hear loud rain followed by thunder. We then see a shot of a scarecrow, used to unnerve the audience and add tension to the scene. By this point the audience can assume that something bad is going to happen.
The music fastens in speed and becomes deeper as one of the horse's cries and a sharp sword sound is heard by Van Garret. At this point the camera is still focused on Van Garret so the neither he or the audience can see what's happening.
Lastly we see the horse rider's head has been cleanly cut off as Van Garret runs towards the scarecrow. A few moments of waiting is shown to add tension until we see his head too being cut off as blood splatter onto the pumpkin head of the scarecrow until the scene fades to a city.
Overall from the opening of Sleepy Hollow we can infer that the film is for older viewers due to the slight gore and dark themes. The film is also set in the past (1799) as the viewer can see by the character's older fashioned cuffed clothes and the use of props. It is clear from the start that the film is a horror mystery due to the use of dark lighting and saturated colours, apart from the eye catching red of the wax and blood to make it appear more gruesome and slightly grotesque. The audience is easily drawn in by the unexplained events from the first three minutes of film.
I have not yet started to plan my opening by I am intrigued by a thriller or psychological film, and a horror opening shows some of the mise en scene I could use in my scene. Sleepy Hollow also shows me what horror music is and when I look at the opening of a thriller I can compare the music so that choosing it later on is easier.
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