Use Of Sound & Camera Angles In The Woman In Black

"The Woman in Black" is a horror movie about the ghost of woman who haunts the town where she died, dressed in black, hence the name "The Woman in Black". The opening scene follows all the conventions of a horror movie.

At first we are only shown close up shots of what are regarded as victorian children's toys. These type of toys are considered creepy as they are very delicate. The dolls that were shown are considered really creepy and scary by many people and find them haunting. Using these props along with the music creates a light but dark feel to the scene. After we are shown three victorian girls who are playing with the toys (a Three Shot).

The girls are looking at the direction of the camera, we the audience are not aware of what they are looking at for it is not shown in the frame, they are staring at the audiance which adds to the unordinary and scary tension. Suddenly they turn and look at the window. The camera focuses on the window suggestion to us the audience what's about to happen as we should work it out knowing it's a horror movie but we are still not sure if what we think will happen happens.

The following shots are just close ups of the girl's shoes showing them walking in a certain direction whilst crushing their toys. From this we know somethings not right. Then the we are shown the faces of the girls which are just expressionless and seem as if they are being controlled. They reach the window seal open the window and jump out. A scream is used. However we are still in the room and the camera zooms out from the window showing the rest of the room. Suddenly we see a ghostly figure in black but it's out of focus.

The opening sequence fits perfectly and does what it's supposed to do, bringing curiosity into the minds of the audience.

The use of music in the opening scene creates a very mystic atmosphere as it is a piece composed of classical instruments that if played in a certain way can sound very demented and dark. These instruments are usually used in this genre as they are very good at creating an on the edge feel within the audience creating suspense which is good within a horror movie as it's easier to scare people this way