Analysis of 'Carrie' - Opening Scene

Overview

Above is the opening scene from Carrie which uses a variety of effects to accurately create a threatening atmosphere for the audience, as well as set an sinister tone for the rest of the film. The scene displays the character Margaret White giving birth to her baby Carrie White.

Lighting
At the beginning of the scene, high key lighting is used to display the outside of the house and the surrounding area. However, when filming inside the house for the rest of the scene, low-key lighting is used. The high-key contrasted with the low-key lighting emphasizes the difference between the inside and outside of the house; outside the scene is brightly lit, clearly creating an atmosphere of positivity, whereas inside is full of shadows, suggesting negativity and creating a foreboding environment. Furthermore, inside the house, artificial lighting is included in the form of candles. These candles connote theology and therefore implant the idea that the remainder of the film may circle around religion.

Camera Angles
This opening scene is dominated by high angels and also includes some birds eye views. This reinforces the idea of religious undertones to the scene as these angles put the audience in a position of higher power and almost superiority to the character, Margaret, on screen: the audience is placed in a god-like position.

Camera Framing
Throughout the scene, a cabinet door, the character Margaret and the baby Carrie are all placed centrally in the camera frame. This central positioning suggests to the audience that these are the lead characters and that this door will play a central role in the rest of the film. This is supported by the constant use of close-up shots on both Margaret and Carrie. The close up shots allow the audience to see the character's emotions clearly without getting distracted by the background. This focus on the character's face emphasizes their importance as it almost magnifies them. It's also a relatively unnatural shot as in real life you wouldn't often get this close to a person's face and therefore aids in setting an unnatural tone for the rest of the film.

Camera Movement
The sequence has a certain fluidity to it, aided by the tracking shot used in the house. This use of this camera movement allows seamless motion for the audience to effortlessly follow, which heavily juxtaposes the extremely difficult task of the character, Margaret, on screen of giving birth. Furthermore, the use of the tracking shot moving so slowly and further reducing pace when passing certain items within the house (for example the door mentioned earlier), allows the audience to pick up on what are supposed to be significant items in the scene and allows them to remember them for when they appear later on in the film.

Sound
The use of string instruments for the background, non-diegetic music creates an ominous and foreboding atmosphere. This atmosphere is emphasised by the diegetic off-screen screaming of character Margaret as the audience doesn't know who is screaming or why. Additionally, the diegetic sound of birds chirping when the outside of the house is shown symbolises life and connotes a peaceful environment and the fact that they are cut off when he inside of the house is shown and the diegetic sound of the woman screaming is heard suggests to the audience that the woman screaming somehow stops this peaceful environment from being created and sustained within the house.

Mise en Scene
The props used throughout the scene really contribute to setting an ominous tone for the rest of the film. For example, the sharp scissors connoting pain, the blood connoting death and the lock on the door connoting dominance and captivity. Furthermore, the Bible on the stairs drenched in blood once again hints to the audience that religion will be a central theme in the film and the blood suggests that religion may be the cause of a death(s).