Research into Similar Media Texts: Texas Chainsaw Massacre

 TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE

I used this for my next opening sequence analysis as it is a classic horror movie and it is a budget film which we are intending ours to be. 

• The movie starts with who the film is by, this fits the conventions of the majority of films and the ones I have looked at.
• The movie also begins with a voice over and some text giving a brief introduction to the film, it claims that it is based on true events to attract a wider audience and as a subtle commentary on the era's political climate, the majority of the plot is fiction; however, the character of Leatherface who is the main antagonist were inspired by the crimes of real-life murderer Ed Gein.
• The voice over and text is something I have not seen before in this genre so that intrigued me. 
• It then sets the date of the film, by showing a title on screen, again something that is not very common to me.
• The films then starts with a black screen and some very weird noises that sound like something being ripped, although it is not entirely clear what it is. As we can not see anything our senses our heightened and a tension is built. We can also hear something breathing quite heavily. The film then has shots of light which light up areas of a body, the first we see is a of a disgusting looking hand. The shots also focus on the body part and then go black for a second and when it flashes back it is zoomed in on to them. The tension is brought by the fact we have been given very little information and are waiting for the next flash and something more gory. The hidden information also gives the film a very surreal film and this is added to by the flashes of light as they are so bright against the dark screen. 
• The sound is also eerie feeling as their is a high pitch noise coming from what must be the camera flashing. As we get to the skull and it starts to become more obvious what this is their is also a distorted sound as well. A radio presenter can also be faintly heard and this soundbridges into the next scene. The purpose of this is to make the audience familiar with the location and also what is happening. The audience is given information but not in a direct way. 
• It then cuts to the body in early evening, this shocks the audience as you can now see all of it, it starts of close up and pans away slowly, allowing audience to take it all in. This allows them to get the information they need and process what is going on. 
• The opening credits then start and are black and red which connote evil and red. The also move which adds to the surrealism.