The opening sequence of The Woman in Black establishes mystery and builds tension. It begins with three little girls looking off-camera at something unknown, creating intrigue for the viewer. The setting of an old house with antique furnishings further suggests horror. Close-ups of the girls playing with dolls hint that the toys will factor into the upcoming scene. Without warning, one girl stands on a doll's head as if killing it, then all three jump from an open window to their deaths, with diegetic sounds reinforcing the sinister events. This shocking conclusion leaves the viewer unsettled and curious to understand more.

1. Detailed analysis: Woman in Black
I am going to analyse the opening sequence of the 2012 woman in black directed
by James Watkins.
In the opening sequence of the woman in black, there is a Master shot of three
little girls looking at something behind the camera, however the audience don’t
know what it is. This is then creating an enigma code, which is used a lot in
horror films, as many people are scared of the unknown. This makes the viewer
want to know what the three little girls are looking at, this would make the
viewer want to keep watching. There is also a good use of mise-en-scene in this
scene as the room they are sitting in has old curtains, an old carpet and old beds,
this suggests that they are in an old house, which is commonly used in horror
films. There is also a non diegetic melody playing in the background, which is
commonly used to make the scene more creepy and scary.
There is then several close up shots of the dolls that the tree little girls are
playing with, this could be suggesting that the dolls are important in the
upcoming scene and something is going to happen to them. I also think that the
girls playing with the dolls, represents their innocence. However, dolls are
usually used in horror films to create fear. The dolls could also be symbolising
that the girls are soon to become under control of something else, just like the
dolls are under control of the girls.

2. In this shot you can see the three girls playing with their toys, this type of scene
is usually used in horror films, as the children’s innocence can easily be turned
into evil. This creates scary characters. Also, because the three little girls are just
playing with their toys, this shows that they are totally oblivious to what is going
on around them and what is about to happen.
In the final part of the opening sequence, the representation of the girls through
the dolls is further shown when there is a close up shot of one of the three girls
standing on the dolls head, killing it in a way. This is then followed by the three
little girls walking towards the window and jumping out of it, killing all three of
them. Therefore, you could say that these two actions are linked with one
another. There is also a diegetic synchronous sound of the pot dolls being
smashed as the three girls stand on them and drop them. Finally, there is a
diegetic asynchronous sound of the girls mother screaming, which indicated to
the viewer that the girls are dead.