The film opening begins with the ‘DreamWorks’ clip institution being displayed on the screen. As the short clip begins to play, a low, mysterious sounding violin follows. The tempo of the strings gets faster and faster as the volume increases and the strings sound more vigorous and violent and the sound of an organ emerges, creating great tension and suspense in the viewer, almost foreshadowing dark and sinister events to come.
This then leads to the ‘Warner Bros’ (film institution) logo enlarged on the screen. The sound of the organ in a minor key is played in the backdrop. The high pitched, screeching noise of the organ keys all being played at the same time creates a sense of confusion, unease and discomfort for the viewer, again adding to the sinister and dark contents of the film.
The deafening and piercing sound of the sharp organ is then all of a sudden completely cut off as the screen fades to black. A few seconds pause takes place before the white text quietly fades into the shot. The pause is unexpected and creates further tension and anxiety in the viewers mind. The context of the text is the two major film institutions that created the film.
This leads to an establishing shot of a Victorian London, allowing the audience to know the location and time period in which the film is set. The camera then slowly pans the skyline, showing the roof tops and chimneys of the City, along with the low and menacing sound of a repetitive violin playing. The scene is at night, with dark and dingy weather. Lightening and thunder strike as drops of rain and also blood are pictured falling from the sky. The music’s tempo and tone, dark night sky and fear-provoking weather all foreshadow the menacing nature of the film, whilst the disturbing site of blood dripping from the sky may foretell the possibility of terror, torture or death in the course of the film. The names of the producer and production company fade in and out slowly as the camera continues to pan the night sky. A white, serif font is used for the text, contrasting with the dark backdrop, allowing the text to be easily read and visible to the viewer which is important.
The camera slowly zooms into a dirty, broken window, focusing on a solumn barbers chair in the middle of the spot light. The lonely, chair could represent the isolation sweeney todd feels as he is rejected from society. The name of the director fades into the centre ontop of the chair, giving it main focus and importance. This shot then cuts to a close up shot of a portrait of a young man hanging on the wall. The old fashioned style of the portrait and surroundings again echo the 19th century time period in which this narrative is set. the picture gradually fades, dripping with blood. This foreshadows the tragic deaths and disappearances that may occur throughout the film. The portrait is positioned on the right hand side of the frame, which is leveled out with the name of the actor playing the main character (Johnny Depp) on the left hand side, displayed in the same, simple white serif font. The camera pans to show us a similar portrait of a young woman, which may suggest an emotional link between these particular characters (perhaps a tragic love story). The name of the main actress (Helena Bonham Carter) is shown in the same font creating an even balance across the frame. During this clip, a single, weak, innocent sounding flute is just heard over the masking whine of the piercing violins.
Following this shot, the camera continues to pan, revealing the famous barber’s chair. The focus on the chair introduces the main element of the narrative, concerning the profession of this films villain. Blood is clearly show dripping down the chair, suggesting violent activity associated with the chair and its owner. The murky, shabby atmosphere of the setting, as well as the ragged state of the barber’s chair echoes the grim, testing times these people had to live through in the past.
The camera then travels in a downwards motion, revealing a contraption connected to the chair, which allows Sweeney T odd to dispose of his customers by pulling the latch and watching them fall to their doom. Blood dribbles down the mechanism behind, reinforcing the idea of death and torture throughout the films narrative. The camera trails after the dripping blood into pure darkness. The blood transforms into the form of text, revealing the title of the movie; Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. During this sequence various well-known names of the main stars appear on the screen, in the continuous simple, white font. The credit is very effective in starting off the narrative, inviting the audience into an experience filled with death, blood, gore and despair. It clearly shows the dark, disturbing nature of the story, whilst keeping distance and not giving too much away, just enough to grab the audience’s attention and keep them on the edge of their seat, longing to find out more.
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