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SHAUN OF THE DEAD - OPENING SCENE - Coggle Diagram
SHAUN OF THE DEAD - OPENING SCENE
MISE EN SCENE
Ed on a slot machine
His life is risky, insecure business
Shaun is hit in the head with peanuts
Peanuts are commonly associated with the pub, so pub life is constantly hitting him in the face
Later comes back and gets to catch them
Foreshadows Shaun taking control over his life
Chekov's gun
We don't see who hits Shaun, so it suggests that Shaun is a common mainstay in the pub
Workers that act like zombies
The mundaity of life already makes us zombies
They come back later as actual zombies
"Zombie" Shaun
In a state of
false consciousness
Deep shadows Nosferatu style
The degrading house
Litter, deep blue walls
Vibrant colours (blues, reds) lost in a sea of grey
Living in the mundane, everyone staying in their lane
CINEMATOGRAPHY
The opening shot
Cigs and booze
A life of informality, rotting away
Breaking the 4th wall
We see Shaun in his own bubble
Looks away after he's called
Snap back to reality
The rest of the world is out of focus
Irrelevant, in his own little world in his head
Giving that 1000 yard stare
Already a zombie, in a state of false consciousness - he's content in that state
He returns to this state at the end of the scene, after promising to do something nice, like he's retreating to his private world again
Camera pushes back, allows us to RECOGNISE our protagonist, but then allow us to take in more of the mise en scene
Simple back and forth between Shaun and Liz
When somebody else comes in, it shows that they're breaking in on a private conversation
They are the only 2 that survive
The film is of them cutting out everyone else that's not important and getting back to basics
"It'll be just the two of us", literally
Ed in the way of Shaun and Liz
Metaphorically and literally
Mundane, bleak colour scheme
An almost post apocalypotic atmosphere
Whip pan into Ed
Gives the scene more of a comic book, exacerbated and energetic feel
SOUND / MUSIC
Eerie,
phantasmagorical
sci-fi sounds in the title cards
Lets the audience know what kind of film they're about to watch
Sounds are taken from Dawn of the Dead
B-movie esque sounds
Ghost Town by The Specials
Reflecting a post apocalyptic world
Reflecting the state of Post-Blair / Thatcher England
"Time, gentlemen!"
Foreshadows the end of the Winchester
Small clank when the screen turns to blank
Could be the end of Shaun's life?
"Player 2 has entered the game"
Always 2nd in life, never on top
EDITING
No actual cuts, instead slides to the next scene
Everyone's life is the same
Cross dissolve
Going into Shaun's hypermale dream / fantasy
Rapid, fast paced cuts on mundane things
Contrasts to show the mundanity of Shaun's life
PERFORMANCE
"I just wish we could..."
Clear exposition for who Ed is
Ed speaking louder than Liz shows the dominance each has on Shaun's life
"No, what does exacerbate mean?"
Clearly showcasing the IQ of Shaun
Ed makes everyone begin to say everyone's name, creating chaos
Wright is trying to get the audience to side with Shaun, but also shows that he's a bit of a beta too
Shaun takes an insecure drink after promising to do something nice
A visual "oh shit"
Everyone marches on the same beat
Just like a zombie
"You've got work"
Unwillingly and unthinkingly moves to tasks, like a zombie
Shaun has the energy of a naive schoolboy
His white shirt and tie definitely reflect that
Can be reflective of Gen Xers, who are known for being in a state of arrested development (still trying to be children)
Repeated dialogue (throughout the film as well)
Cyclical state of being a zombie
David consistently interrupts
Irritating - foreshadowing how he's not as nice as he appears to be
Liz's I want moment
Establishes her desires, and how they change throughout the film
