Halloween Opening Credits

When looking at different opening credits for different horror films, I found that they are all generally very simple revealing little about the film narrative itself. They seem to linger on so that the audience is forced to watch the just the text, keeping them in a lot of suspense for quite some time.

The Halloween (1978) opening credits are a good example of this as they show this technique of keeping the audience in suspense and in the unknown for a few minutes. However, the title itself acts as a genre signifier for the audience, as audiences would usually recognize the subject of Halloween as being that of horror with its connotations of ghosts and witches.

The first 5 seconds of the opening credits is just a black screen and the audience have no idea what to expect. The piano music along with the synthesized clicking sound however really builds up the tension as the titles start to come on screen. After ‘Moustapha Akkad presents…’ appears on the screen, the director does not immediately reveal the title, but an iconic image of a pumpkin/jack-o-lantern, which is contiguous to the idea of Halloween. This would be very effective in cinema, as the black screen would mean the audience is surrounded by the mysterious darkness with the only light coming from the lantern inside the pumpkin. It appears with a sudden volume increase in the piano, adding a new melody that makes you feel quite uneasy.

He then introduces the main actor, Donald Pleasence, who as part of the narrative image is identifiable to the audience therefore making them more and more anxious to see the movie. His name is emphasized by the largeness of the font, so that it immediately catches the audiences’ attention. The director’s name then appears in smaller font followed by the large title ‘Halloween’ at exactly 30 seconds. The director has therefore used the first 30 seconds of the opening titles to build up tension. However, by giving the audience information that they are most likely to have already known, the director is at the same time attracting and involving them as this familiarity brings the audience a form of pleasure and contentment.

After mentioning the producers, the director then goes back to introducing the actors but those, which are new or those with a less important part. He mentions both the actors name and their character name so that audiences and identify who’s who and familiarise themselves with them, hoping that they too gain more popularity from starring in this film.

The director then goes on to mention the other roles in the industry such as those involved in screenplay, photography, music etc. Interestingly, although there is no action involved the iconic pumpkin seems to be getting larger and larger. The effect of this on the audience would be quite threatening, as it feels as though you are moving closer and closer to it, as if being pulled in towards the screen. It also builds up audience apprehension as you see the transformation from a small Halloween pumpkin to something that looks rather monstrous and menacing. Although this clip does not show it, the pumpkin eventually splits into a skull, which may get the audience even more worried. Skeletons of course connote the idea of death and decay. The thought of there no longer being any flesh or eyeballs can be quite troubling.

As it gets bigger and bigger the music also changes at 53 seconds where the strings come in, slowly increasing in pitch as if leading up to something big. However, the strings fade away again as if to not give away too much, and the music returns to its original uneasy melody. The strings and piano return repeating the same three notes ending on a loud high-pitched sound. This effectively creates the right tense atmosphere for the viewer and gets them into the mood before the film starts. The strings also build up the excitement as audiences gain pleasure from being thrilled. The music used during the opening titles is repeated throughout the film every time the murderer appears on screen.

The slow fading on and off titles really keeps the audience waiting and anticipating what is going to happen, making them slightly edgy and nervous. The Pumpkin and lantern also matches the font colour that fades from red to orange to yellow, giving the film a sort of brand image under the colour black and orange. The colour red also connotes danger as well as blood therefore representing the gore of a horror film. Red orange and yellow are also colours of a flame and also connotes danger or signifies some sort of warning to the audience.