2. Mise en scene
The Mise en scene in the opening sequence of sixth sense helps the
audience to understand what the film is going to be about. For example, the
woman who walked down the stairs was wearing a purple long maxi dress,
this might suggest she was at a special occasion which requires her to
dress nicely, this dress makes her as normal as any other person getting on
with their daily lifestyle. She is a conventional damsel in distress. There
was chiaroscuro lighting when she was finding the light bulb she was lit and
the wall shadows her making her the main attraction, this is effective as it
tells the audience that she is important and we follow her. This is also
effective as it singles her out as she is on her own in danger in the dark.
Low key lighting was also used making atmosphere more scary and its
white black on black credits.
3. Questions asked
What is she doing?
Why was she scared?
Where is she?
What was the noise?
Why is she dressed up?
What is she getting?
4. CameraworkCamerawork was used in a variety of different ways for example their
was close-up of the bulb, this makes the audience automatically think
this is an important prop, it also makes the audience carry on watching
to see why this bulb is relevant to the film they are watching. In ‘The
Sixth Sense’ when the female character walks into the basement we
are able to see straight away that she is not alone. This is shown
clearly from the long shot taken from behind the wine rack which gives
the audience a feeling that there is someone or something watching
her and also allows the audience to see why the subject is about to enter the
room. This is used to make the watcher feel uneasy as they feel like the
women is defenceless as she is not able to see that there is something
watching her. A tracking shot is also used to show that she is looking
for the wine, this is used to reinforce the fact that she is being watched
and gives the viewer the impression that every move that she makes
there is something watching her and that she is clearly in serious
danger as she is not alone.
5. Sound
At the start of ‘The sixth Sense’ non diegetic sound is used,
which builds up from a quiet sound to a much slower and higher
pitched sound to a much louder and faster sound, however
nearer to the end of the opening sequence, the sound track got
much more quiet then slowed down again. The change in the
pace of the soundtrack and also the change in rhythm and tone
helped to build up the suspense that the audience should feel
throughout the film. At the beginning of the opening sequence
when ‘The Sixth Sense’ credit appeared on the screen the
audience can hear a high pitched sound of strings to show that
the film is going to be very jumpy and almost give the sense of
a paranormal atmosphere, which gives the audience the sense
of uncertainty about what could happen. When the light bulb
flickers on the audience are able to hear a diegetic sound of the
door opening, this is strange as throughout the start of the
opening sequence they have only hear non-diegetic sound.
6. What we learn
From the opening sequence in ‘The Sixth Sense’
we are able to see that there is a clear sense of a
paranormal atmosphere from the sound
throughout to what it is trying to show, we can
also see a weak women who we see in the
opening sequence, and through the camera
angles used the audience are being shown her
every move which gives the idea that the female
character is being watched.
7. EditingThe editing in ‘The Sixth Sense’ gives it an unusual setting to make
the audience feel unsure about what is going to happen. We see this
from the beginning when the titles are coming up and we also see that
the writing is white and the background is black which gives the
audience an idea that there will be a lot of contrast in the events that
may occur. Because the female is wearing a dress and is downstairs
in the abandoned basement makes the audience feel uneasy due to
us not knowing what could happen next, one of the reasons being that
it looks extremely dark in the basement and darkness is normally
associated with danger. The editing is also slow paced which gives it
the emphasises the idea that the women is clearly not alone in the
room. At the start when the credits come the text is in serif. This is to
indicate that there that the film is going to be serious, as it isn't going
to be casual or friendly. The music in the background also suggest its
not going to be friendly as it has moments of tension and build up of
suspense as parts of the music jump to scare the audience, this also
allows the audience to realize that the genre is horror.
