Sinister- Opening Scene Analysis

The scene opens with a old fashioned shot of a family with bags on their heads attached to rope in the middle of a forest which is conventional of horror movies to be set in an abandoned, isolated area. This gives the movie a sense of mystery as the identity of the family is being kept hidden and makes the audience feel as is they are being kept in a loop.The non-diegetic ghostly music sets the atmosphere as suspenseful. The diegetic sound of the branch being cut makes the audience feel tensed an on edge as it means that the family of four will hanged and as a result will die. This juxtaposes with the sound of the tape rolling and adds a sense of realism. This is a convention of horror movies as they tend to make the audience feel uncertain and on edge. The use of the super 8 camera filter footage gives it the old, haunting impression, perhaps this was supposed to be remained a secret. This scene immediately gives away so much to the audience without the use of any voice or antagonist. This is a long shot and this gives the audience a chance to focus on every detail they can from this scene. As the family are being lifted up the grainy non-diegetic music builds up and the family are dead. The title of the film then appears in a white, worn out chalky writing, this could suggest it has been written by children as the opening scene is based of a family.