Genre Research Opening: "The Sixth Sense"

Due to problems with finding the video clip to embed, I have had to resort to using the link to the video of the opening scene of the sixth sense accordingly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLeYDl7ggrk

Institution Information:

• The Sixth Sense (1999)
• Director: M. Night. Shyamalan.
• Production Companies: Hollywood pictures, Spyglass Entertainment.
• Distributed by Buena Vista Pictures.
• Rated PG-13
• Opening weekend:  £257,479 (UK) (5 November)

Title and Credit.

Notably the majority of this short clip of opening is made of opening titles that appear on a black screen with a fade in and out animation that deprives the audience of any actual footage and makes them focus on the detail of casting, production companies etc. The quite score is beneficial to an eery atmosphere that is created by not only the mese en scene but the other factors such as the diagetic and non-diagetic sounds etc. The darkness of the background creates a good foundation for the ebbing light to turn on as the first extreme close up which is effectively calm but looms with a preferred reading on an audience that has the knowledge of the fact that this is a thriller film thus having the audience on the edge of their seat, waiting for something drastic to happen. 

Camera and Editing

This shot being used for the entirety of this opening segment, presenting an immediate lurking atmosphere as well as an effectively interesting shot.The drift between the titles and darkness of the cellar with the flickering on of the light introduces the setting with a remarkably effective and immediate "creepy"atmosphere which is already a connotation of cellars to a certain extent. This gives the effect similar to that of my last point in the previous paragraph as the woman walks down the stairs as scene from behind the shelves and what they carry - presenting this character as one that the audience should look out for in terms of someone is danger as well as a likely important character. With nothing but the non-diagetic sounds of the door opening and the footsteps as this character comes down the stairs the silence adds to the preferred reading of being in suspense with the "hair on the back of your neck" feeling of being watched, fitting with the atmosphere created by the composition of the shot initially.