The Shining

The Shining Opening Sequence Analysis

In class we were asked to watch the opening title sequence for The Shining, Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film.  The point of the exercise was to show us that although it may be a horror film, very little can take place within the opening title sequence.

The whole of this sequence consists of a helicopter following a car as it drives along mountain roads in the middle of nowhere.  The beautiful landscapes shown juxtapose the sinister music that is playing in the background, which make the viewers feel uneasy to watch as the music is what creates a sense of horror to the scene.

The whole sequence goes against the typical horror film idea which would usually entail dark lighting in an eerie setting which is why watching this opening feel so much more uncomfortable because there is an inevitability that horror is going to come but the audience is just sat around waiting for it to happen.

The whole sequence is set up of establishing shots to show the audience the setting of the film, although the setting may be beautiful, the image of a lone car driving along a reseated road does add and uneasy mood to the whole sequence.

 The typography used within this sequence isn't what would be expected in a horror as it is very brightly coloured and in a very regular font that is just moving up the screen.  Without the music playing in the background, it could be mistaken for any genre of film.

At the very end of the sequence the car arrives at a seemingly abandoned hotel in the middle of a desolate location.  This is the first image within the sequence that shows the audience that this may be a thriller due to the eeriness of the hotel.