The shining opening frame analysis

The opening starts with non-diegetic, ominous horns playing in the background whilst the camera zooms in on a small isolated island in a lake surrounded by high, barren canyon walls which are reflected in the lake. Nature is removed from the contextual sounds of the natural surroundings and replaced with the horns to build a psychic, eerie mood which places the scene instead in context with the yet to be seen Overlook Hotel which will be as isolated as this solitary island. The shot is as symmetrical as nature allows in such a setting, and the island situated before a distant mountain which both anticipates and highlights it. This opening sequence begins with a jump shot to an establishing shot of the landscape which immediately informs the audience of the location of where the film will be set. All these elements within the first few seconds of this shot give the audience a good idea of the themes and content of the film, since the very first shot gives a sense of an ominous force is surveying the area, and with the very is desolate, isolated area further shows the audience that the contents of the film (e.g. characters) are going to cut off from the outside world

The scene soon fades to a bird’s eye, aerial view of a lone car as the camera follows the car whilst it drives on a thin serpentine road through a dense thick forest. The forest continues to create a sense of isolation which is key theme in the film and the trees appear to be extremely tall and pointed which create a sinister feel to the forest and make the car itself seem tiny in comparison. The forest’s high overviews create a similar anticipation that the audience will later experience with the maze at the Overlook Hotel. The curve of the road echoes the curve of the canyon wall and the lake which allows for a smooth fade in. the scenery itself in this shot along with the rest of the opening sequence goes against the codes and conventions of the typical horror opening through the representation of the calamity and beauty of nature but nature is both beautiful and terrifying which indicates possible terrors which will later come in the film.

The shot then cuts to a closer shot, still remote, following the little yellow car from behind, placing it in context of the lake and imposing ice-capped mountains and accompanied with eerie and shimmery sweeps of percussion such as the the twanging of piano strings and soft rumble of shakers along with the horns. The effect of changing from a dense thick woodland area to a more empty field and lake gives the sense to the audience that the car is travelling a very long way, slightly hinting that they are progressive moving deeper into isolation and further away from civilisation. The continued following of the car continues to give a sense of a large malevolent force unendingly following them and in a way hunting them, which is shown through the gradual close-up the camera gets as each new shot is introduced.

The film is set in Montana which is known as the land of the shining mountains which suggests that not only individuals and places but nature itself and the mountains in which the Overlook is embedded may shine.

During this shot, the credits are introduced in a bold neon turquoise-aquamarine colour. This is an interesting choice of colour and font as it goes against the traditional darker such as blacks or reds readily used in many horror films past and present however If you invert the colour of the titles, you will have the same red and orange combination of the rug in the hallway outside room 237 at the Overlook.

Here the audience is much closer to the car and is psychically levelled behind the car instead of watching the VW from a bird’s eye view or at a distance. The camera moves in such a way which give the feeling of bird soaring past the car. As the camera leaves the road and the VW behind, the voiced ululation effect begins in the music and intensifying the eerie predatory like music. Prior to this shot, no other cars had been seen on the road but once the camera has past the VW, a few cars will be seen pulled up on the road later on during the opening sequence.

The camera returns to track the car as it travels through yet more forest. The VW approaches a white station wagon that is pulled over on the side of the road as if they had broken down and seeking help despite them being stranded in the wilderness, further emphasising the idea of vulnerability. The yellow car then approaches and disappears into a tunnel leaving the audience disorientated. At this point, the chilling music has developed and now features screeching sounds linking in with the idea of screaming and supernatural behaviour. After the car pulls out of the dark tunnel the audience continues to see the credits listing the actors but incidentally, Joe Turkel (the bar tender) and Philip stone (Delbert Grady) are the only to names to be splashed with a rainbow arch from the lens and these are the only two characters to appear to Jack (the protagonist) in the film.