Analysis of the opening of Halloween

Halloween

Halloween is a 1978 film by John Carpenter. It is an American independent horror film that has been set in Haddonfield, Illinois, USA, a fictional town on Halloween.  It follows a psychotic murderer who was institutionalised since the killing of his sister at a young age escaping, and going back to his home time. It is here that 'stalks' a girl while his doctor chases him. 

Many critics have credited the film as it was one of the first films to be inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960).  The film itself doesn't contain very much violence or gore, but it has originated many of the cliches found in horror films throughout the 80's and 90's. 

 

Camera Angles
On the opening credits it the camera zooms into the pumpkin, this happens slowly. The pumpkin is a symbol of Halloween in itself and people tend to make them to scare away danger, this is significant to the film as somebody in this case it could be the murderers victim needs to be kept safe.

The camera also pans into the house, this sets the scene of where the action is going to take place during the opening sequence. Also by doing this you are shown that the horror has been moved to a suburban area which isn't normally done. Near the end of the scene you are shown the setting again, this is done when the camera zooms out on the boy Michael and his parents to then go into a crane shot, it is here you are shown more of the street.
Throughout this scene you are seeing everything that happens from the point of view of the character, by doing this the viewer doesn't know who this person is that has been watching the couple, this then keeps you in suspense as all you can do is watch. When the light goes off upstairs the mysterious character looks as if he is moving quicker. This builds more tension as you don't know what's going to happen, however once the first murder is over, Michael the young boy is shown to be the killer.

Editing

During the title sequence, the screen fades to black into a caption screen, this reads 'Haddonfield, Illinois', it is here you learn where the film is set, in this case it's a town in America. As well as this 'Halloween Night' also shows up on the black background, this gives the viewer the time frame of when the action happened.
As you can see from above a black screen is used a lot, this suggests that this movie is going to be dark, also telling you that its going to be a horror movie and nothing light hearted. Also by having the titles going from yellow to red, it suggests blood and fire, as well as danger which is bound to be included in a horror film.

Sound
The music in the film was created by Carpenter himself, for example the iconic theme tune played directly at the start of the film, this is played up until the first sound bridge of the children resiting a poem about 'Halloween' where the frequency of the music gets quieter for a short period of time, it is just before the actual film starts that you hear the last spoken words of the children and these are 'Trick or Treat'.
Dialogue that is used during the opening sequence is 'We are alone aren't we?', this is iconic to a horror movie as it always makes you wonder if anything will actually happen or if the characters are just afraid because its dark, the line also starts to build tension in the film as you as the viewer look forward to finding out what will happen.
Incidental music is then used, this comes in the form of a high pitched piece that starts off loud and then gradually gets quieter as the clock starts to chime loudly. The music suggests that something bad is coming and on top of the clock chiming you can see that time is running out for the girl who you can hear singing happily to herself. By hearing this it makes the girl seem so innocent but there is no way this danger can be stopped.
Throughout this sequence you also hear the heavy breathing of the murderer, this reminds us that we are watching the action unfold through his eyes. It also adds to the suspense of the scene as their breathing gets deeper as they reach the room of the girl. This is where more dialoue is included as the girl says the name 'Michael', this is when you realise who this person is, and you wonder why this boy has killed somebody he knows.

Mise En Scene
From the opening sequence, props have been used. The first thing you see if a kitchen knife, you see this being taken from the draw. You as a viewer then think that there may be a murder that is about to happen and this is the weapon thats going to be used, however your not always entierly sure in a horror film.
A clown mask then becomes apparent in the opening, you first see it when the teenage boy picks it up off the floor, it is then later seen again when the 'murderer' goes upstairs and picks it up off the floor of the room. By using the mask it takes away the killers identity, you then wonder whether you'll find out who this person is, however throughout the rest of the film, the mask becomes a iconic feature as you never see the face of the boy again.
As a family they are seen to be middle class, you see this from the car parked at the edge of the driveway and the fact Michael's mother is shown to be wearing a fur coat, which tends to be expensive and his father is wearing a suit. Michaels character was then shown to be wearing a clown costume, this shows the 'Trick or Treat' aspect of Halloween because as a little boy or girl you'd tend to dress up. It could also symbolise fear as many people are scared of clowns.

Opening Sequence of Halloween