Opening Credits in Horror Films

Nightmare on Elm Street

 Nighmare on Elm street immediately shows what genre the film is which is hinted using colours and font to suggest this. New Line cinema is the production company which is well known for producing many films. The name is coloured a deep red which can symbolise blood and danger. It is also done in a bold font to suggest domination. 

The screen then cuts to a small screen close -up shot of a hand which is covered in dirt. It shows the action of putting some sort of glove on with sharp edges. The odd glove is an important iconography linking with pain and can also forebode the coming events. Underneath appears the credits which is a simple white font which strongly contrasts the black background. The colour black suggests death, and as it is a horror film, it is likely there will be. 

After the short introduction, the title appears in a bold red font on a black background. Again, the particular use of colours represent the genre. The text grows larger and upon looking closely, the edges are jagged and rough to portray the likely distress and damage. 

The credits begin to play out during the opening sequence, the colour being white and a plain font. The choice of colour was to stand out amongst the dark background and it also fits in with the colour palette used. It is carefully positioned within the frame as to not get in the way of the action. 

The Shining

The opening begins with an aerial shot over the mountains and lakes which the camera follows a small yellow car. The size of the car amongst the mountains can represent dominance and inescapability. 

Throughout the scene, the credits roll out. They are in a turquoise colour and are written in capital letters to match the calming colour scheme. 

The camera continues to follow the car, showing that the mountains are isolated which emphasises the vulnerability and confinement. The opening sequence as a whole does not conform to the typical codes and conventions of horror films. For example, the colours in horror films are generally darker colours such as black which is not shown in the opening. 

The Final Destination

The whole title sequence of the Final Destination was done similar to how x-rays would look, the colour theme being mostly glowing grey and white colours. The beginning starts with the title written in capitals. The capital letters would emphasise power and makes it stand out. Around the title are what seems to be flecks of blood which represents the horror genre because typically in horror films, there are a lot of pain and death.

The credits stay white throughout and are in capital letters which sticks with the cold colour palette. However, the only other colour is red which is meant to be blood which is not within the colour scheme and stands out from the rest. Whilst the credits run, there are x-rays of people who are getting killed in various ways. Weapons include knives, ropes and shards of glass. These are all intimidating objects, hinting that this will be a violent movie and there will be many injuries.