Analysis of 'The Shining' title sequence

'The Shining' is a 1980 British-American psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. It stars Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd and Scatman Crothers. The film is based on Steven King's novel of the same name. It was produced by The Producer Circle, Company, Peregrine Productions and Hawk Films and it was distributed by Warner Bros.

The sequence starts with the Warner Bros. logo which, like the other films I've analysed, sticks to the conventions of title sequences. We then see a establishing shot moving over a clear lake to an isolated piece of land in the middle; the theme music for The Shining also starts here. The music paired with the establishing shots of the landscape immediately signify to the audience that the atmosphere is foreboding and omnious and that, despite the peaceful exterior, the environment they're in holds sinister undertones. Furthermore the shot of the lone piece of land in the middle of a clear unmoving lake emphasises how isolated this area actually is; the lake is completely still and there are no people, houses or cars in sight in this shot. This makes the audience feel tense and unnerved as the camera slowly pans across the completely abandoned landscape.
We then see a single yellow car driving along a road surrounded by trees; this is the first sign of life the audience sees and that suggests that the protagonists are within the car. It is revealed later in the title sequence that they are driving up to the hotel however in this shot, they appear to just be driving. This use of narrative enigma further heightens the sense of isolation and tension as it forces the audience to ask questions and think 'why is this happening? Where are they going?'.
In the next few shots, the camera is following the same yellow car - this further emphasises that either the car itself or the characters in the car are of some significance - and the deep, slow, droning music continues in the background. The credits themselves start within these shots; the bright blue font matches the simplicity of the landscape the yellow car is driving through. The lack of fancy effects and intricate camera shots or font actually increases the tension as the audience is sat waiting for something to happen and they are presented with many questions that don't get answered immediately.
At one point in the title sequence, we see another car driving away from wherever the yellow car is heading; this makes the audience wonder what they're driving away from and adds to the ominous atmosphere that the camera-work and music already creates.
The landscape gradually changes to show that the car is driving up some form of hilly, mountain area and then suddenly in one of the penultimate shots, the landscape is shown to have snow on it. This suggests that they are very high up as further down, there was no snow - this just adds to how isolated the destination of this yellow car is. We later find out that the isolated nature of the hotel is one of the main factors that adds to the horror in the film.
We then see an establishing shot that pans over a large, ominous looking building - this suggests that this is the place the yellow car is heading to - whilst the music continues to play.



The audience for this film would probably be 25-45 years old as I believe the simplistic yet sophisticated nature of the title sequence would appeal mostly to that age group rather than a very young or very old demographic.