"Halloween" Opening Title Sequence Deconstruction

1. “Halloween”
Deconstruction

2. “Halloween” Deconstruction
Background Information
“Halloween” is a Slasher-Horror Film
set in a fictional town in Illinois, where
(on Halloween night, 1963) a six year
old boy murders his older sister with a
kitchen knife. Fifteen years later, the
boy/man escapes from a Psychiatric
Hospital where he returns home and
stalks a teenage girl and her friends –
however his Psychiatrist realises and
follows along as well in an attempt to
prevent it.
The Opening Title Sequence gives
many hints toward the theme(s) of the
Film, while emphasising the genre of
the Film as well.

3. Production and Distribution
The immediate first name that appears on
screen is “Compass International Pictures” –
which were the Distribution Company for the
Film (the company that marketed the movie).
The fact that they‟re mentioned first could be a
tribute to all the hard work that they‟ve put into
selling the film; as after all, if they hadn‟t sold
the film to the public, it wouldn‟t have been
bought. Therefore, you could argue that the
sole success of the movie was down to
„Compass International‟s‟ marketing, which
could be why they‟ve been mentioned first.
Secondly we‟re shown the title, “Moustapha
Akkad Presents”. Moustapha Akkad was the
Producer of the film, and so therefore, he will
have been mentioned toward the beginning
because he played a large part in the creation
of the film.
You could argue that the Black background of
the titles could be representing „darkness‟ –
which is a commonly known connotation of
„danger‟ (the idea that being in the dark is
dangerous). Furthermore, the Orange writing
gives the Audience a clear image that the film
is about Halloween and links with the title
(because Pumpkins are widely associated with
Halloween, and Pumpkins are Orange).

4. Names
The next set of titles that appear on screen are
„Donald Pleasence in‟ and „John Carpenter‟s
HALLOWEEN‟.
You could say that the reason „Donald‟ has been
mentioned before everything else (including the
film title itself) implies that he was a very well
known, and well established, actor of the time.
This means that the moment the Audience see
that this famous Actor is in the film, they‟re drawn
in to watch the movie, as they‟re keen to see the
Actor (even if they didn‟t originally want to see the
film in the first place). This is a common technique
used in films that contain well known stars, as it
appeals to a wider Audience.
Then we‟re shown the title of the film, along with
„John Carpenter‟. This clearly shows the viewer that
„John‟ is the director of the film, as the film is shown
to be his (“John Carpenter’s Halloween”). This also
tells the viewer that he played an incredibly
important role within the creation of the film, as it
literally wouldn‟t have been created without him.
In terms of Connotations, the Pumpkin (that
conveniently stays next to the names that appear on
screen throughout the sequence – while increasing
in size – or zooming in) is a strong representation of
Halloween. The general assumption in Society, is
that when you see a carved Pumpkin with a Candle
lighting up the inside, it‟s around the time of year for
Halloween.

5. Names Continued
We‟re then shown a succession of
other title screens, including “a
Debra Hill Production” (which
shows to the viewer that she was
a fellow Producer to the film, yet
not as important as the
aforementioned „Moustapha
Akkad‟ – however she still played
a vital part in the creation of the
movie)….
… as well as “introducing Jamie Lee Curtis
as Laurie”.
This shows the reader that the mentioned
Actress may not be as famous as some of
her Co-Stars; however the fact that she‟s
the first of the other Actors to be
mentioned – and more importantly, the first
Actor to be mentioned along with their
character‟s name – it suggests to the
reader that she is Main Character.

6. Title Font
The font used for the Titles is Bold, and in a bright Orange colour –
which contrasts with the background of the Sequence which is
always Black. This means that the Names stand out from the rest,
which could be the Director‟s way of stating that the film itself will
be unlike other films of the time; something new that the audience
will like.
Furthermore, the Orange links with the theme of the film because
Halloween is always associated with Orange colours (because
Pumpkins are generally linked with Halloween).

7. Narrative Clues
As mentioned previously, the audience is clearly shown from the
start that the film is about Halloween due to the Title itself, the
font and the images used (i.e. the Pumpkin).
This links with the fact that most Horror Movies heavily hint the
theme of the film during the Title Sequence (a good example
would be “Sweeney Todd” because throughout that there are lots
of Razors and Blood used, which is what the film centres
around). Similarly with Halloween, it strongly follows the
conventions of a Horror Movies.

8. Audience and Production Values
The Audience for Halloween would predominantly be young Males of
the time (under 30) as the Main Character is a young Female which
would appeal to that age range.
You can also tell that the film is aimed at the younger Audience because
Halloween is mainly associated as being a „child‟s‟ event (that it‟s mainly
aimed at children). However, you could argue that the film is possibly
aimed at the older generation as Horrors are usually watched by older
people (16+), and when children go “trick or treating” they are usually
accompanied with adults, and sometimes they join in.
The Production Values are hinted at being quite low for this film, as the
entire Opening Sequence is basically one shot of the Pumpkin slowly
getting closer to the viewer; it wouldn‟t have cost that much to create the
sequence. Furthermore, there was only one “famous” Actor at the time,
and all the other Actors weren‟t particularly well known (which implies
that the Budget would have been toward the lower amounts).