In the very first frame, we see the 20th Century Fox iconic logo, except for this film it has been adapted from it's usual gold, shiny colour to a grey stone in the dark snow. As a first impression for the audience, this unorthodox change in the Fox logo has darkened the mood and possibly suggested genre.
A fade to black transition reveals a new unknown setting, with a similar lighting and colour set up. Dark blues and greys dominate the whole sequence, again suggesting genre and leaving narrative clues: the themes of this film will be as dark as the lighting.
As the camera pans up and around this dark setting, an old wooden door is introduced in the background at the same time as the creator, Tim Burton, is named in the credits in the foreground. By 1990, Burton had worked on both Beetlejuice and Batman, so placing his name as first in the credits allows the audience to further agree that they are watching a dark thriller, thus they know what to expect from the film as the director has a reputation for the thriller/horror/action genres. The old-style wooden door is reminiscent of castles in fairytales, which the audience further see in the opening scene of 'Edward Scissorhands' as a grandmother tells a child a bedtime story.
Johnny Depp, playing title character, is next to be introduced in the credits after the title of the film is revealed to be behind the door shown, the words 'Edward Scissorhands' moving as if they were actually scissors. By 1990 Depp was known as a teen idol after featuring on 21 Jump Street, but he had only starred in one horror film in his career (Nightmare on Elm Street) and was more well-known for the comedy/action genres. As the audience realise Depp is starring in the film, their assumption of genre changes and begins to involve the comedy subgenre as well as thriller/horror. Just 50 seconds into the film, the audience has already made assumptions about genre and also seen narrative clues in the setting behind the credits: iconography associated with fairytales begins to reveal itself, and the low-key lighting represents a dark plot.
Further actors are credited, as the tracking camera continues to show the interior of an old, creepy castle. Winona Ryder, also having starred in Beetlejuice under Burton, was known primarily for teen movies of the 1980s, and was dating Depp at the time. The background begins to show machinery under the dark hues of the lighting: a large narrative clue as to how Edward Scissorhands came to be (again, this is reinforced in the opening scene with the grandma's tale).
To me, the opening sequence of the film echoes some of the scenes in Disney's 1951 Alice in Wonderland, particularly when the camera 'falls' downwards into solid darkness or when the shapes below are individually lit up, like the Cheshire Cat's face does in Alice. This may have been done to appeal to a younger audience, as the 'creepy' sequence conveys more of the horror/thriller genre and this childlike element will reassure audiences that it will not be a full horror film, but will also appeal to them. In terms of narrative, the character of Edward himself is shown in the first few minutes to be quite innocent and childlike, so these cut-out shapes could also represent his personality.
No comments:
Post a Comment