Dawn Of The Dead (2004) (DOTD) x 3

This is a shot from the opening credits of the film and this is only shown for a couple of seconds and is a subtle hint of where the zombie virus may be from. This shot shows people praying in a mosque suggesting that the virus may have come from the Middle East and not long before this movie came out the attacks of 9/11 had happened so many of the American public was scared of terrorists even more than usual. So making the zombies Middle Eastern gives the movie this theme of invasion because America has been taken over by this symbolic “virus”. During the opening credits there are several very grainy footage from the Middle East  which adds to the realism of the news report. The music playing during these credits links in very well to the film too because its all about the end of the world.

In this scene we see the remaining characters being chased by a horde of zombies that chase them into an elevator this breaks up the chase and changes the mood briefly and acts as a piece of collision cutting. The music is conventional for elevators but not for horror movies so this is also contrapuntal music as it is quite cheery and happy CJ also mentions that he likes the song. The way this shot is set up puts Ana in the centre connoting how she is a leader and central character. Monica is to the left  and is the female victim which is displayed by her use of make-up and long blonde hair which are the conventions for the female victim her expression also connotes this.

This is from the end of the film where we see the final characters get on the boat and Ana watches Michael shoot himself. This scene shows some themes of freedom and American independence. This is done by the placement of the American flag in the background and that the survivors are sailing away into the sunset to be safe and free. Even Ana is a representation of the stereotype of an attractive, blonde American women but it is done in a way that doesn’t objectify her but makes her look strong and independent. The weather is nice in this scene and sunny which connotes happiness, this is called pathetic fallacy. The sun rising (hence “Dawn” in the film’s title) because it reflects the mood of the scene and it is happy because they made it to the boat and are getting away. However halfway through the end credits there is more footage that shows where the survivors end up and they are killed off screen (restricted narration) and this is an unhappy ending which is another convention for horror films.