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Shaun Of The Dead Opening Scene Analysis

Decent Essays

In this essay, I will be focusing on the analysis of the opening scene in Shaun of the Dead, specifically for the media language techniques used and how the film uses an interesting combination of genre as well as narrative to appeal to a target audience. Shaun of the Dead intriguingly merges the conventions of horror and comedy, and this is especially apparent in the opening scene that I will be analysing.

The movie follows a group of middle class adults (age 25-30) as they attempt to find shelter in a pub during a zombie apocalypse.The title is a reference to a popular zombie movie named 'Dawn of the Dead'. The replacement of 'Dawn' with 'Shaun' introduces it as a zombie movie on the outset to anyone hearing the title, but it becomes clear it is more of a parody of a zombie film after the words are switched around. This rhyming and replacement is part of the comedy influence of the film.

The first few minutes of the movie show people working mundane, dead-end jobs, such as working at a supermarket check-out, pushing trolleys in a car park, or simply waiting in line at a bus stop for their morning commute. This differs from the usual conventions of the horror genre because, unlike other horror movies, the opening scenes aren't darkly lit but rather are very bright with little to no shadow. A busy supermarket in the morning is not a conventional setting for a horror movie opening. Consequently, the opening is unconventional and different and establishes Shaun of the Dead

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