Analysis of Shaun of the Dead and why it is a British movie.

1. Analysing: Shaun of the Dead –
Narrative & Genres –
Set in London, Shaun of the Dead focuses on a range of genres, like; Romance
(Shaun is in love with Liz, they fall out, get back together at the end, as well as
David and Dianne having a relationship), Horror (the film shows the characters
surviving a zombie apocalypse, every now and then showing gory scenes
involving human flesh being torn apart), Comedy (many of the scenes shot have
a comedic value to them such as the pub fight scene, as well as many of Shaun
and Ed’s conversations being quite comedic) and Drama (Shaun has to deal with
his mom and everybody else he knows’ deaths). Overall, the narrative of Shaun
of the Dead is very linear in the sense that it follows a clear path from start to
finish, in which the viewers are shown the protagonists’ lives previous to the
outbreak, follows their journey to rescue their friends and finally hold off in one
last area, finally ending with the protagonist and his lover surviving with a happy
ending. It has been inspired by numerous shows and movies of the likes, the
most recognisable being the clear reference to ‘Dawn of the Dead’ to which
‘Shaun of the Dead’ parodied, whilst at the same time it takes many points from
various films of the same genres which encouraged both names, deaths and
setting.
Camera & Editing Techniques –
Shaun of the Dead is riddled with a vast amount of fast cut shots/edits
throughout the movie, which are utilised for increasing the pacing of the overall
movie if it begins to drag and is added for comedic effect (as seen during Shaun’s
plan speech). The movie also contains a large amount of quick pans to quickly
switch the camera from one person’s face to the next, as demonstrated during
some of the conversation scenes. Overall, the movie has been edited in such a
way to make the film fast and entertaining, with many shots being cramped into
the screen in a short period of time and a lot of action happening at once,
especially in the Winchester.
Mise-en-scene –
Shaun of the Dead is a British movie set in the capital city, London, mainly in the
more well off areas since places it was filmed in were pretty calm, in comparison
to the darker parts of London. The main casts’ costumes were just plain clothing,
to demonstrate that they are all ordinary people with no military training or any
special attributes, which serves as the film’s way to sympathise with the viewer
and a way to patronise us. Likewise, the zombie’s clothing is just normal
everyday clothing, which has been ripped up just like all other zombie movie
zombies, although what truly makes them stand out is the prosthetics that make
them pretty scary as the threat to the protagonists.
UK Stars –
As expected in a British movie, Shaun of the Dead features a huge cast of British
movie stars that partake in the movie whether as main or supporting characters,
many of which have gone on to be part of big movie franchises, such as the
Hobbit and Star Wars. Some of these mentioned stars feature popular faces such

2. as; Simon Pegg (Shaun), Nick Frost (Ed), Kate Ashfield (Liz), Martin Freeman
(Declan) etc.
UK Directors, Writers, Crew –
As UK films normally involve a British director being involved with the
production of the movie so that it is, in fact, labelled a British movie. As such,
Shaun of the Dead was directed by a British man, Edgar Howard Wright, who is
also commonly known for directing ‘Hot Fuzz’, ‘The World’s End’ and ‘Scott
Pilgrim vs. the World’, which are also popular British movies. Not only does the
director being British make it a UK film, but it ensure that the way of life of a
British citizen is like and allows for a better and more accurate representation of
life in England, as we can observe in Shaun of the Dead and the type of
neighbourhood somebody ofhis social status would live in. Likewise, the writers
and majority, if not all, of the crew are also British allowing the movie to portray
British life even more realistically.
Types of Music –
A lot of the music within Shaun of the Dead is either used for comedic value or to
add some seriousness in an overall funny movie, whilst some effects are
intended more for the blood and gore which may or may not be visible at times.
One of the examples for when music was used for comedic effect was during the
pub scene in which Queen is playing in the background, adding a small touch of
comedy in a scene that ultimately dooms the survivors in the end. However,
other tunes such as the iconic Shaun of the Dead song ‘The Blue Wrath’ by I
Monster and a variety of other songs, which of course they would have to
purchase the rights to use, were also included throughout the movie. On a side
note, many of the songs included were composed by musicians from the UK,
whilst some were either used due to them being quite old and cheap to acquire
the rights to or simply as a nod to the movie ‘Dawn of the Dead’, as is the case
with Goblin’s ‘Figment’. Likewise, some of the effects can be heard during the
scene in which Shaun and Ed are bashing two zombie’s heads with blunt
weapons (cricket bat and shovel) in their back garden. Various other sound
effects are also used, such as; the Winchester firing sound, the zombie groans,
ripping of flesh etc. Many of these sound effects could easily be re-created with
cheap materials and props, allowing for the British movies to keep a low cost
whilst still maintaining an entertaining and amusing factor.