The document compares and contrasts the films 28 Days Later and Shaun of the Dead in terms of their structuralist and post-structuralist qualities. 28 Days Later follows structuralist conventions through its use of villains, weapons, and settings/locations. In contrast, Shaun of the Dead challenges horror genre paradigms by combining horror and comedy elements, through the use of unconventional weapons, daytime settings, and diegetic music. Overall, the document analyzes how the two films approach and subvert structuralist horror film tropes and conventions differently.

1. Jaspreet Bhatoa Media essay Ms Richardson
Compare and contrast 28 days later with Shawn of the dead, commenting on the
structionalist or post structionalist qualities.
Structuralism is an ideology (theory/way of thinking about the world) that can
be applied to a film theory. A structionalist film theory emphasizes how films
convey through the codes and conventions. The horror genre has certain
paradigms that may be grouped into relating iconography e.g. signs, symbols and
sound. Post structionalist departed from the claims to objectivity and
comprehensiveness made by structuralism and emphasized instead plurality and
deferral of meaning, rejecting the fixed binary oppositions of structuralism and the
validity of authorial authority.
The film 28 Days Later (structionalist) is a 2002 British zombie horror film
directed by Danny Boyle. Shaun of the Dead (Post modernist) is a 2004
British zombie comedy directed and co-written by Edgar Wright, and co-written
and starring Simon Pegg alongside Nick Frost. A horror film sometimes follows
something that is happening in society. For example, 28 Days Later is following
the subject of HIV and blood transmitted diseases.
Zombies are very popular in horror and fantasy-themed entertainment. They are
typically depicted as mindless, shambling, decaying corpses with a hunger for
human flesh. In Shaun of the dead the way to become a zombies is a zombie bite;
kills after a few hours, then causes reanimation. The speed of the zombies in
Shaun of the dead is quite slow and the way to kill zombies is the destruction of
the brain. In contrast, to 28 Days Later, where the way to become a zombie is if
there is any contact with infected blood; victim turns infected in seconds. The
speed of the zombie in 28 Days Later is similar to a human but they have higher
endurance. A zombie in 28 days later can be destroyed by anything that will kill a
human. The humor is further created when Shaun leaves his apartment and we
first see the zombies but, Shaun is completely oblivious to them, thinking they
are the normal people he sees every day. Again, this is a comment on modern
society and the tedious routine style life these people lead.
In horror films the most common weapons that are used are butcher knife
(psycho),hooks (candyman), the chainsaw (Scarface), the ax, weapons of
convenience (Final destination), ropes and bare hands (the grudge).
Structionalist prefer weapons like knifes and guns. Therefore in 28 days later
they use the weapons that structionalist prefer this back ups the horror
paradigm but in Shaun of the dead they use snooker cues as a weapon, this
making it post structionalist and this is going against the horror paradigm. Also,
Ed uses a shovel as his weapon of choice, again rejecting the paradigm. A shovel
is used for digging in gardens, which is something people do as a hobby, or for
digging graves, so the shovel could be a post-modern rejection of structuralism
ideas of props or, could connote that he is going to kill the zombies and
ultimately send them to their graves. In another scene, Shaun specifically says to
‘get any blunt objects,’ which completely goes against the prop paradigm of
sharp objects as weapons.
References
http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/post-structuralism

2. Jaspreet Bhatoa Media essay Ms Richardson
In a scene, diegetic sound of Queen’s Don’t Stop Me Now is playing while Shaun,
Ed and Liz are attacking a zombie to the beat of the music; this adds humor and
juxtaposes largely with the high-pitchednon-diegetic sounds you would often
hear in horror films. The theme song is not conventional either, as it is quite
upbeat and the sound effects it uses give it a mocking tone. However, in some
scenes, there is non-diegetic sound in the background, such as when Shaun is
walking back home from the shop, adding to the suspense, which is conventional
of horror films. In 28 days later, there is more non-diegetic sound than diegetic.
In the scene in which they are in the supermarket there is non-diegetic sound
playing but it is happy music because they are getting food for their road trip to
safe side.
The very first scene of Shaun of the Dead is shot in a pub, one of the busiest,
crowded ‘safe and secure’ settings so, already the film challenges notions of
horror and setting paradigms of secluded houses or a forest in a remote location.
The fact that the scene is shot in a pub allows the audience to relate to the film,
as a pub is part of our everyday lives. The majority of the film is set in the
daytime, which is a postmodern subversion of the paradigms of a dark, nighttime
setting. In contrast, with 28 days later is shot in the daytime and nighttime.
There is a scene in the film were there is establishing shot of a block of flats and
there is one particular flat which has Christmas lights on at the front this
connotes that there is life even with the darkness. There is a scene where they
are in the blackwall tunnel and its dark and gloomy there tyre gets a hole
puncture (they show this by using a close up). As they shot this part of the film in
a tunnel it could connote that there is a danger, mystery and there is no way to
escape the tunnel other than the light at the end of the tunnel. Structionalist
would agree with the locations of the film 28 days later as they follow the horror
paradigms unlike Shaun of the dead. As the film (28 days later) draws to an end,
the daylight has become much brighter and now the audiences’ are able to see
bright colours and a change in tone through the atmosphere, in contrast to what
was built previously.
In conclusion, 28 days later follows the structionalist paradigms by the villains,
weapons and setting/ locations. Shaun of the dead challenges the traditional
paradigms of a horror by making the film a horror and a comedy.
References
http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/post-structuralism