Saw V Opening Credits: 9 Frame Analysis



In this first shot, there is non-diegetic music which identifies the genre of the film for the audience as the instruments used are string instruments which creates the feeling of eeriness and uneasiness. When the red cloud effect appears behind of the text, the sudden non-diegetic sound effect of a lightning bolt striking contrasts with the string instruments playing which foreshadows the scariness of the film. The background colour of this shot is black which is repeated throughout the opening credits as this suits the genre of the film and continues to make the audience scared.

The next screen shot has the non-diegetic sound effect of metal chains clashing with one another which represents the visual effects on screen which is barbed wire twisting followed by  a dagger going through the centre of the barbed wire. The barbed wire twisting coincides with the independent production company’s name. The barbed wire and the dagger in this shot also foreshadow the events of violence in the film. The barbed wire is then tightened around the dagger and then pulled and the dagger is released from the barbed wire which is wrapped around it. This visual effect shows the torture that is endured during the saw films.

In this shot, the non-diegetic string music is introduced again and in this shot it intensifies which creates the feeling of tension within the audience. Once ‘A LIONSGATE RELEASE’ is on screen, a bright, white light highlights the words one by one in time with the non-diegetic music. An image also appears once the light reaches the ‘EASE’ of ‘RELEASE’. This image, however, is hard to identify which creates the feeling of uneasiness for the audience making them feel unsure of what is to come. However, the dark colour used tells the audience that the image coincides with the genre of the film which is horror.

During the transition between this shot and the previous shot, the non-diegetic music is less intense once the text if off screen, however, once ‘TWISTED PICTURES PRESENTS’ appears on screen, the non-diegetic music intensifies once again. Behind the text, the un-identified image becomes clearer in this shot and to the audience, it looks like a wall covered in slime, however, it is still a very UN clear image which continues to make the audience feel uneasy.

Once again, during the transition between this shot and the previous shot, the non-diegetic music is less intense and then intensifies when the next shot appears on screen. Like the previous shots, the illuminating light highlights the text on screen. In this shot, the picture is most clear and appears to be the outside of a building. This represents to the audience the feeling of imprisonment as it looks like an old, worn down dungeon. This is an eery image and foreshadows the events that come in the film, which are characters being captured and held and tortured in a worn down, old building.

The next shot zooms onto a figure which the audience is unable to identify with until lightning strikes and lights up the room in the shot and the audience is shown a man lying in the middle of the empty and dark room.

In this shot, the background is clearer to see than the previous shots. This shot shows the clearest picture of the background. Like the previous shots of the credits, there is a light illuminates the letters one by one. The non-diegetic sound that sounds like someone taking a deep breath in matches the speed that the small light is moving at. In this shot, the background relates to the genre of the film and it looks like a dirty wall which represents the hostage situation that the characters are in.

This is the first shot of the film that the audience see of a character. As the audience has not received any information on the narrative of the film, this shot seems confusing. The audience are unaware of what is happening, as is the character. This creates the feeling of uneasiness which in a theme that runs throughout the film. There is the diegetic sound of chains rattling which creates the feeling of being trapped and the feeling of uncomfortable. The panning shot shows the audience the setting of the character which appears unpleasant and basic.

After the camera zooms into the chains around the character’s ankles and shows the audience the situation of the character, the camera zooms into a close up of the character’s face. This demonstrates to the audience the panic that he is feeling and creates a more intense relationship between the character and the audience. The audience therefore, feel the panic that the character is in. When zooming into the character’s face, the camera begins to rotate to show the character’s disorientation as he has woken up in a place and he does not know where.

By Melissa Owen