Shutter Island opening credits

The opening credits of Shutter Island use the microelements to increase

anticipation and suspense. At the start of the opening credits there is a long
shot of a dark corridor with a window at the end. This shot uses leading lines
which effectively directs the audience down to the end of the corridor, this
creates suspense and establishes the genre. It could also symbolise the light
at the end of the tunnel and refer to hope. However, the rain and music
contributes to the dark mise-en-scene which increases tension. This leaves
the audience engaged and guessing because they are unsure of what may
happen.
The shot then fades into another of a spiral staircase. This fade shows a
transition of time. Fades are used continuously throughout these credits and
they are all used to represent time. The shot is disorientated which could
relate to the fact that it is a psychological thriller and could symbolise
someones, perhaps a characters, mental state. This may be inspired by
Alfred Hitchcocks work on psychological thrillers so would therefore be
introducing intertextuality. The music throughout these shots is non-diegetic
and it creates a suspenseful atmosphere. The colours are also all dark which
implies that the situation is eerie or dangerous, this then relates to the music
as they are both similar in this sense.
There is then a close-up shot of a hand however there is a cut before you are
able to see what it is about to do. This makes the shot seem mysterious and
also increases tension. The music at this point quickly increases in volume
which adds to the tension and makes the audience feel as though something
bad is about to happen. After this there is a quick cut to a dolly shot which
moves through the gates. As the camera moves through the gates the
audience feel as though they are more involved and this makes them become
more engaged. It also leaves an enigma which Barthes created to build up
tension and leave the audience guessing. Enigma codes appear often in these
opening credits, this is always done to increase the tension and suspense.
Enigma codes are heavily used within thriller films for this reason.
The next shot after this is of a dark room with a person in the corner. The
camera pans across the room and so we can see the silhouette of the person
and they are standing in front of a fire. Therefore the only colour in this shot
comes from a fire, fire usually connotes danger and pain. This could also
then be related to the psychological aspect so would therefore be
representing someones mental state. The silhouette also adds an aspect of
mystery as the audience is intrigued to find out who the person is.
The shot then fades into a clip of a close-up of someones foot on a gun, a
gun commonly represents murder and crime which could be foreshadowing
what is going to happen later on in the film. As the shot is a close-up is
raises suspense and suspicion and it is another enigma code. We then see
snow falling before the clip fades into one of a dark empty room. Therefore

the snow could imply that there is a cold atmosphere in the empty rooms
which we assume are prison cells, this again generates the idea of eeriness.
The sense of eeriness is increased by the music which increases in volume
throughout the clip.
There is then a few seconds where the screen is black before it quickly cuts
to a clip of close-up of a match being lit. The match strike immediately brings
light into the scene which conflicts with the darkness of the background. This
introduces the theory of Claude Levi-Strauss binary opposites. This may be
reflecting the opposites of danger and hope. The fire could represent either
of these two. It could, again, represent the light at the end of the tunnel or
it could symbolise pain and death. Lots of close-up shots are using in these
credits and it adds to the element of mystery. This is because the audience
arent able to see the bigger picture of what is happening so they want to
watch so they can see what happens. These are also enigma codes because
the audience may form unanswered questions.
After this there is a long shot of an isolated island, this could be a depiction
of people inside a prison linking it back to the empty rooms that are
previously shown. This is the first time that the audience are introduced to
the fact that it is set on an island. As this is an isolated place it increases
tension because there is no easy way of getting away from the island so it
makes it seem dangerous.
The audience then lastly see the title of the film and it is shown in large red
letters which stand out against the black background. When they see the
colour red the audience will immediately relate the colour to danger due to
the rest of the credits. It then moves towards the audience very quickly and
is almost a jump scare because of the music, this creates mystery and shock.
Throughout the majority of the cuts the music intensifies as they fade into
black which increases tension and leads the audience to expect something
bad will happen. However, the clips are cut before anything happens so this
is again an enigma as we are unable to find out what is going to happen.
During most of the credits the cuts fade in and out until the end when the
title appears. This is done to build up mystery and tension until it reveals the
title. This is when the audience will realise that the film is set on an island so
it may shock them. Along with the music this leaves the audience guessing
and they will want to continue watching to find out what happens.