Shaun of the Dead's narrative follows a classic pattern of equilibrium, disequilibrium and equilibrium. This scene is part of a sequence that establishes the disequilibrium in the narrative by establishing a post-apocalyptic setting that the main characters must contend with. This clip opens at 51:51 and ends at 53:56 (“Shaun of the Dead”). It begins with Shaun racing outside of his house away from a zombie who has attacked him. His friend Ed comes following after, with his car key in hand. Two unassuming guys are suddenly in an unfathomable situation and taken by fear as they narrowly escape the zombies encircling them in the street.
Shaun in the door frame with paddle racing out with door open behind him. Racing forward urgently to open the gate, Ed appears behind him while the door closes in back. The camera moves closer era facing straight. Ed yells "Shaun!". As the non-diegetic sound of the gate opens, a soccer ball catapults from his front-facing near left (or the camera's front-facing right) in a trajectory and bashes him in the head. (“Week 7: Sound & Mystery Train 3). The sound effect of ball and its resonating thump strong. He curls his shoulder inward in reaction of pain. Ed purses lips and tightens shoulders slightly, is right behind him now. Standing behind him but positioned halfway to his right, He moves his fisted hand in a motion of protection as Shaun is hit. Swiftly, the camera moves 180 degrees right, away from Shaun and Ed, followings the origin of the ball, stopping s at a boy who looks sickly and wobbling with strange gesture. It is not expressly apparent this is a zombie yet it must be. In 2 seconds more, the camera once against cuts 180 degrees left back to Shaun and Ed. They have no emerged fully outside the gate, facing the boy, looking horrified.. Camera cuts, then swings left, into the road. The car is now positioned to the right of the frame. Zombies fill the shot, scattered in the middle of the roach chaotically. A series of 1-second shot cuts move dynamically around the men, following their line of sight and exposing the zombies encircling them from all sides. The shots intersect the environment with creative use of angle and positioning so Shaun and Ed are seen in multiple dynamic positions. This is enhanced by shot speed, which is the preeminent technique used by the cinematographer. Shaun's encounter with a new zombie as he opens the gate introduces the first non digetic sound. This non-dietetic sound is a musical note pattern that is significant for its distorted pitch and timber, the same sound which is repeated through the scene. We hear this panic theme consistently as the sole non-diegetic theme that repeats. With the men facing the zombie boy outside the gate, he camera then cuts to a parallel parked car a short distance from the curb, but no longer at eye-level. The camera is lowered, at the level of the tires and is peeking over the body of the vehicle facing the two men. It is as if the audience is the camera and is scoping the situation. This is enhanced by the non-diegetic musical loop effect which continues, as if a warning sound , The sound is a mixture of cacophonous sounds which creates a mood that communicates tension, confusion and risk. The panic theme manipulates the viewer's mood in order to illustrate fear and the confusion of the situation. This use of sound is key towards making the audience have the feeling that they are experiencing the same circumstance as the characters on screen.
The non-diagetic panic theme is matched by diagetic naturalistic sound effects. This background noise is naturalistic and is formed of car alarms, motor acceleration, window wipes. This ambient sound communicates a base for the dialogue as well as reminding the audience that they are not in a normal situation, with car alarms and the steady drone of the zombie behind them. This quick switch to naturalism highlights the clarity of Shaun's mind, helping us to empathize with his point of view rather than remain distanced and skeptical. To some degree, the use of the car-alarm sound has a less than realistic pitch, and can be heard ringing with greater frequency than normal. This sound is key to the scene itself, whilst the sound is existing in the layer of importance to the scene. The car alarm invites a sense of worry and panic, similar to the effect that alarms had in World War II movies. In this case, the naturalistic effect of the real car alarm also reinforces the emotion of the friends who are in total fear. . By just using sound the audience can understand to some extent the fear that the characters are feeling and that is an excellent example of how sound can manipulate an audience.
The placement of shots in sequence via editing communicates meaning to the audience. This majority of edits in this scene are swipe cuts, where the shot 'swipes' quickly into the next one, signified by a small staccato non-diegetic sound effect signifying a quick pace. This rhythm delivers a feeling of surrealism and it gives the shot sequence a sense of continuity as the events unfold. We see this progression as Shaun and Ed lock themselves in the car, and the camera now fits them at eye-level, shifting between the windows of the passenger and driver and back Shaun and Ed's respective faces. On Ed's side, 6 zombies cluster, wobbling, slowing moving forward to the car. Straight ahead is the boy who hit Shaun just moments ago. Yet once in the car, the camera cuts from Shaun's fearful face back to the boy. A quick, snappy glance shows an evolved zombie, with darker eye circles and now a bloody, fending mouth. At this point, the camera shifts quickly back and forth through the car. It first faces Ed's window Its rolled up but the whole crowd of zombies in the street moving towards them. It cuts up to Shaun, he is turning his head from Ed's window, now to his window to look at the boy. Ignition of car starts. Ed is looking forward, and then cuts back to the house. The sense of surrealism is grounded in a second layer of realism that is reinforced by shot continuity which establishes the characters' point of view. This effect is important for developing the genre blending elements to the film. The realness of the situation and their effect on the internal experience of the characters in a way that the audience can relate translates the emotion from the screen to the mind of the audience. As the shot swipes in quick 2-second cuts moving from the character's point of view to the object of their sight and around them, the surrealism of the situation is established. (“Week 6: Editing & Come Drink With Me.” 5). The shots reverse between the zombies and the characters. The zombies elicit a fuller range of their (albeit, limited) behaviors and identifiers. Shaun looks back at the boy from his car window and the boy's mouth is suddenly very bloody; his eyes encircled more severely. This disequilibrium is a nightmarish tension which the editing cutaways properly disclose with frequent cuts to each character showing the different reactions and responses. This is consistent with the techniques commonly employed in horror genre films, as shot length is typically kept snappy and short to create a quick pace as a scary drama in coming to life on screen. Realism is further reinforced by the lack of added on transitions and strict reliance on quick cutaways.
The editing furthermore establishes narrative continuity with its use of eye line match, which keeps a realistic theme throughout the work. When the men enter the safety of their vehicle, the camera work lingers to establish the force of the presence of the zombies as they encircle the car. The camera takes the point of primarily of Shaun, but sometimes switches to Ed. All of these elements combine both the horror making the audience feel like they themselves are occupying this same terrifying reality they occupy.
The closing of this scene delivers a tense acceptance which foreshadows the broader narrative context. As the men drive off from their residential block, the camera cuts to quick acceleration. But just a few blocks down, the camera remains on a steady-cam and cuts to two passing cars zooming by. This contrast suggests a difference in speed between the cars. The audience is able to gauge that the speed of Shaun and Ed's car is slower than the two cars which have just passed, driving down the road in an opposite direction. The two men are seen looking intently out the window, with a monotonous, public service announcement voice playing on the radio loudly. The voice robotically is informing the public of a situation which they must be informed. This closing part of the scene captures a sense of the habituation and acceptance of this zombie conversion that takes place over the wider scheme of the plot. Earlier in the street, the appearance of the zombies – in particularly their dress, also foretells this. The zombies occupy a new kind of “mass peoples” who are automated in behaviors and skill, wearing street attire which is indistinctive such as hoodies and baggy trousers. . Most of these people hold low-wage, undesirable, or otherwise dull jobs that require only machinelike skills; a shot of people
The dialogue is heard alone for the beginning of this scene with only sound effects of natural environment sounds like the door shutting and the gate opening. As the men prepare to enter the car, Ed raises his forearm in the direction of his curbside parked car and disables the alarm with a click. A strong timbered diegetic sound of car alarm beeps incessantly while the non-diegetic music theme continues. From here, the camera moves in even closer while car alarm beeps rapidly, both men move head in direction of car alarm sound.
The protagonist struggle, is represented with the technical codes of whip-,pan, crash zooms and hyper-kinetic camera edits. Symbolically the normality of the everyday man and his mundane life turned upside down is shown through the unremarkable costumes and drab setting. The representation is made relatable by using characters and setting. The characters are stereotypical of what people may find in their own friend group. Its is also set in a normal urban environment but the caricature is that London s turning into the city of the living dead, people are so absorbed with consumerism that they have allowed their individuality to be crushed.
Works Cited
“Shaun of the Dead.” Youtube.com. 9 May 2016. Online video clip. Deena Early. Accessed on June 7, 2016.
“Week 6: Editing & Come Drink With Me.” Film & Media Studies 85A: Introduction to Film Analysis, Sections A1 & A2. n.d., Microsoft PowerPoint file.
“Week 7: Sound & Mystery Train.” Film & Media Studies 85A: Introduction to Film Analysis, Sections A1 & A2. n.d., Microsoft PowerPoint file.
