We watched the opening of the infamous horror film 'Scream', and I analysed the use of sound in the clip and the representations of gender within the scene.
In the 'Scream' clip, diegetic and non-diegetic sound represents a mostly negative view of men and a largely sympathetic view of women from the audience.
The phone begins to ring and the protagonist picks it up, which becomes a recurring symbol of tension, signalling to the audience the girls' vulnerability as she continuously responds to the anonymous phone call. The girls' voice is high pitched with a relaxed tone, showing her to be possibly naive, as the man on the phone has an extremely calm and deep voice as he says "I'm sorry, I guess I dialled the wrong number". The girl then begins to make popcorn, which becomes louder and pops more aggressively building tension within the girls' otherwise quiet and serene home. As the man says "I want to know who I'm looking at", a diegetic score begins: a slow, minor piano, suggesting that the girl is beginning to feel exposed and under threat. The eerie sound becomes louder as the girl shouts "listen..." and drums sound as the girl runs down her hallway, which suggests that she is trying to gain control over him. Hostility increases as the girl peers outside her front door, breathing heavily due to her fear. The male character could seem mysterious as the room is silent, but then the doorbell rings and the girl screams hysterically, "who's there? Who's there?", whilst crying, suggesting that the male antagonist is leaving her defenseless as she questions him. As the girl cries, the phone rings again and she jumps and sobs, answering the phone, further implying his male dominance over her. The girl whispers "how do you know his name?". Her questioning the anonymous male character could represent her worry and fear. It is then silent for a few seconds and then drums beat as she shouts "he's big, and he plays football, and he'll kick the s**t out of you!", her voice breaking with anxiety. This portrays a possible stereotype of gender as the female feels that she will be protected by her male partner. However, after the girl is commanded to turn on the patio lights, again showing female weakness, her boyfriend Steve is outside, silently strapped to a chair, which could portray an alternate view of men: as weak, as one has been controlled by another.
Mise en scene potentially shows females as vulnerable and innocent which could be seen as positive or negative from the audiences' position. Males could also be seen as protective and loyal, or weak, depending on the audiences' point of view. The girl has light blonde hair and fair skin which could symbolise innocence and perhaps naivety, emphasised by her youthful age. She is wearing a cream jumper and pale blue pyjama bottoms, showing that she is perhaps comfortable but also unprepared and unknowing of any danger. Her house is relatively large, with white walls and bright lights on which could highlight the symbol of purity and youth, and thus making her seem less able to defend herself and more sensitive to attack. Props are used effectively as the girl walks over to her popcorn in the kitchen, and then to some knives on the counter which could forshadow her susceptible position and also symbolise the controlling male stranger as dangerous. As she looks outside at her boyfriend Steve, he may hold alternate connotations as he is wearing a stereotypically masculine varsity jacket and jeans, but he is tied to a chair, which could portray the preferred view of weakness, or oppositional view of bravery and loyalty, comparing vastly to the other male antagonist.
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