Shaun of the Dead
Opening Montage and Ending
Narrative
the opening lateral movement left to right going down in age - all mundane, low paying jobs. starting with the old man pushing trollies who doesn't seem to be walking well (can be seen as an allegory for the way lower class citizens are treated like.
at the end of the montage, there's a boy kicking a ball on his own at the end of a crowded street - symbolic at the end of the hill just like being at the end of the class structure and how many people are being thrown at the bottom of the hill. all these disadvantages evoke misery and sympathy because it is unjustified and we're positioned to question ourselves and our own behaviour.
the ending montage shows Noel as the trolley pusher now. this is symbolic for the inevitable fate for the working class and how you will always acquire a low paying job. by the end it is now justified. heroes the opposite way of lateral and is chained up and we have an excuse to to control the working class (marxist) excuse and justified and they're a source of entertainment and we watch it we are apart of the problem
the height difference in the opening shot of the people at the bus stop, women and black people are lower than the white people. they all look hypnotised and dazed, they are hypnotised by society and consumerism
Consumerism is the idea that increasing the consumption of goods and services purchased in the market is always a desirable goal and that a person's wellbeing and happiness depend fundamentally on obtaining consumer goods and material possessions
todorovs narrative theory is somewhat adhered to. in terms of their life, they have adapted to living in a world where zombies are a norm but in terms of capitalism, consumerism and class inequality, it is still the same
in the opening, we watch Ed watching TV, this is because we are positioned outside of this consumerism perspective. in comparison to the end where we are watching the tv with them. we are now immersed and have become the problem.
Wright blurs the boundaries with regards to the narrative plot twist and specific timings where there is a complete divert but also a cyclical structure. this is due to the implicit hints to an apocalypse throughout the film, from the opening of the young adults embodying a zombie-like posture/walk to shaun noticing a man acting unusual outside of his work. because we have these hints at the beginning, once shaun finds out that there's an apocalypse we aren't surprised because we're essentially told this before hand.
when the man asks shaun for money, we reminded that they live in a place of poverty and misfotunate
both films use the specials sound track (in this sold) to establish main ideologies in their films
parallelisms between humans and zombies - John. S Knight
These scenes evoke images of zombies in several ways. The people are all emotionless, deadened, and operating almost as if on primal reflexes. By lining them up side-by-side, the angle of the panning camera emphasizes the similarities between the workers (especially the women at the register and the men presumably waiting for the bus), reminiscent of the loss of individuality associated with zombies.Most of these people hold low-wage, undesirable, or otherwise dull jobs that require only machinelike skills; a shot of people trudging down the street in automatized unison features undistinctive street attire such as hoodies and baggy camouflage pants. These shots suggest that the film focuses on the zombification of the working class, and perhaps the force of zombification is the exploitation of low-wage labor.
Like Shaun, Ed has already been zombified by his slacker lifestyle before the apocalypse. Once again, this highlights the human inside the zombie—as well as the zombie inside the human. Shauns unchaning routine despite there being a zombie apocolypse represents the repetitive toil of the working class
as the news- caster explains that zombies have become “ideal recruitment for the service industry” because they retain “primal instincts.” This directly mirrors the cart pusher in the beginning of the film, who even wears the same uniform. The rest of the snippets of the TV programming continue the critical joke
No one objects to the exploita- tion of zombie labor, any more than to that of the working class. As we zoom our focus out to the broader society, parallels between low-wage labor and zombie exploitation corroborate the interpretation of Shaun’s individual experience, as does the emphasis of the working class in the post-apocalyptic reality TV. By subverting the traditional take on the impending threat of zombies as violent killing machines, zombies in Shaun’s universe represent a group of people in our society that shares remarkable traits—the mind-numbingly boring routines, the hopeless anonymity, and ultimately, the despairing feeling of being an expend- able piece of flesh and bone.
Shaun of the Dead
Performance
Propp's character theory
Rather being the hero, it can be argued that Shaun is an anti-hero. he hasn't got the ideal hero 'physique' and he prioritises the pub over their safety. it is also in fact Yvonne who saves them from the pub (Shaun and Liz esentially become the damsel in distress at this point). However, Shaun may also be seen as a false hero due to his initial plan and his intentions to save his family and friends
As they are making their way out of the Winchester at the end, there's a two shots of liz and shaun coming up from the pubs basement, portraying shaun as a hero for saving liz. he has also gone from having a baseball bat as his weapon to an axe, symbolic of his bravery and intentions to protect liz. he has a red tie tied up around his forehead, similar to hero in 'The Deer Hunter' and 'Rambo'
This new image of Shaun is then challenged by the transition into a crowded shot, showing the audience that shaun and liz are surrounded by zombies resulting in shaun slowly backing up behind liz, highlighting that visually he is presented to be the hero but in reality, he is not.
when David throws crisps around in distress at the Winchester, there's a quick-cut to Shaun's hand catching the packet. his action is heightened by the added SFX creating a dramatic effect as his movement is complimented by sounds alluding to power and heroic qualities. this is reinforced by the reaction shots of others looking up at shaun optimistically in shock, highlighting the potential that he will save the day. then there's a group shot of Dianne, his mom and Liz moving around to follow where Shaun is, establishing the guidance they desire from shaun. However, once liz asks 'so what's the plan?', shaun extended his face, puffing his cheeks up to indicate that he doesn't have a clue.
I monster - Blue Wrath