Analysis of 'Shaun of the Dead' Opening Sequence

Shaun of the Dead

In order to analyse the opening sequence to Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2004) I will be looking at the different features that represent comedy within the clip.

Sound
There is non-diegetic music throughout the clip which is low pitched but funky and catchy. The music is used in a way that sometimes matches with the scene and sometimes doesn’t. This may have been done to signify to the audience that the film is a comedy. For example, in one scene there are a bunch of characters bobbling their heads and the music is synchronised with this. Towards the end there is also some diegetic sound as the two men are speaking to eachother. This is called dialogue and an example of this is "aint you got work".

MISE-EN-SCENE
Within this clip the mise en scene is what signifies to the audience that this is film is a comedy. Throughout the clip there are different scenes, some each include a group of people who are all dressed the same or doing the same thing. An example of this is when a group of people are dancing at the same time as well as wearing very similar clothing. This is shown in different ways and creates a sense of craziness because everything is the same.Towards the end there is a scene where two full grown men are sitting on the sofa playing video games. The room that they are in is very untidy and junk is all over the place which signifies that the two men are irresponsible.

Another example of people being the same is when a group of men dressed in smart clothing, all pull out their mobile at the same time. This causes the audience to be confused as it comes across in a strange way that isn’t very understandable.

Editing
At the start of the clip there is a swipe from a black screen to the following scene which makes the clip flow. This also contrasts with the following scene as the man pushing the trolly is moving in the opposite direction to the swipe. Throughout the clip there are also various push outs which are frequently used to make the scenes flow. An example of this is when there is a push out from the women working to the men dressed in smart clothing pulling out their mobile phones. This represents men and women as being different as all of the people working in the shop are women whereas the men are all standing in a line queuing for something.

Camera
A variety of wide shots have been used to capture a fairly large amount or group of people in one shot. Every shot is continuously moving (pan) which makes the clip seem like it is doing the same thing over and over. This has been done to show what the town is about and slightly confuses the audience as the shots are always moving.

A high angle of a man’s bear feet is shown which makes him look lazy as he is walking slowly and looks like he is struggling to stand up. In addition, a zoom shot is shown of the two men sitting down playing video games on a couch. This suggests to the audience that the characters are lazy and unsociable as they have just woken up.

Titles
Towards the start there is text overlapping a small part of the scenes towards the bottom which features the cast and movie company. The font is bold and clear but yet slightly textured to make it look like there is blood on the text. The film title is then shown on the floor in one of the following scenes as there are people walking along nodding their heads in synchronization to the non-diegetic music. This creates a sense of comedy and craziness about the film as there are people dancing whilst there is text on the floor with blood on it.

Conventional Elements
This clip has included a variety of conventions of opening sequences including
• Film credits and titles
• Non-Diegetic Music
• Diegetic sound (dialogue)
• Film Company Name