Task 2.1 Night of the Living Dead (1990)

Task 2.1 Night of the Living Dead (1990)

Night of the Living Dead is a horror film made in 1990 and is a remake of the famous Night of the Living Dead film from 1968. It is directed by Tom Savini and stars Tony Todd and Patricia Tallman. It is about unburied dead coming to life and targeting human victims.

Like most films, Night of the Living Dead begins with the logos of the film companies that where involved in the production of the film. It starts with a fade from black. This editing could be used to represent the night time. The fade is suspenseful as we are waiting for what is revealed. The still camera shot shows the moon rising from the leaves. The fact that it is concealed by the leaves shows that it is hidden and then revealed, which could be representative of the dead, who come to life after being hidden.

The title is then revealed to the left of the screen, as opposed to the centre of the screen. This is to keep the moon clear, as there is nothing standing in its way, and if it represents the zombies, it could show the weakness of the humans trying to prevent the danger. The title is conflicting as it says night, but the text is light. This is irony that is also in the plot of the film, as only danger are the people already dead. The title is capitalised, which emphasizes the danger that is proposed in this film, as it is almost 'shouting' the title to the audience. There is then a fade back to black. This fade could show the change in time scale from this shot to the next, which is set in the day.

The post title shot is an establishing shot of a road. The foreground is a very plain field with freshly cut grass, which shows little danger. In contrast, the background shows a dark forest that the viewer will subconsciously link with danger, with it being a setting that is a convention of horror. The sound is diegetic at this point with the sound of people talking. It was initially non-diegetic as it began before the shot. We know these are people in the car as the sound gets quieter as the car is further away from the camera.The car is white, which also contradicts the title of being night and it means we no longer associate the people with the dark. 

The next shot is a low angle shot and this time the car comes closer to the camera. The low angle shot increases the importance of the people in the car as the viewer looks up to them. The shot after this, however, is a high angle shot of the car entering a graveyard. This immediately changes the viewers perception as the people in the car now seem vulnerable.  The camera initially showed the gates but then tracked to follow the car and subsequently, the graveyard. There are dark trees in the foreground now which links with both the titles and also the forest in the background and the viewer expects danger. The background looks misty on the alternative route to the one the car is taking which could show that they have narrowly avoided the dangerous situation. The graveyard is another convention of horror films, as it is a commonly used setting in horror films.

Throughout the whole of the opening scene, there is eerie and mysterious non-diegetic music playing. This is used to keep tension with the viewer and to make them not feel entirely calm even though there is nothing dangerous shown in the opening scene.