Blue Velvet

The Blue Velvet opening scene has effect non diegetic sound. They put the song on top of the film and this helps to establish the setting. The music is happy, therefore, as an audience, we also feel happy. The music helps to establish a stereotypical American type setting which also creates a sense of dramatic irony because it makes us believe that it is going to be joyful throughout but it is not going to end that way. However, when it gets to the old man watering his garden the mood of the music changes – it becomes dull and dark. This foreshadows what is about to happen because when the music changes we know something is about to happen and it does. This is effective because it shows us that something crucial was going to happen before it even happened.

Mise on scene pays a big part in the opening scene because the first thing we see is the picket fence and the red roses which also helps to establish a stereotypical American setting.  The red rose can imply danger but also love, so as a audience this confuses us because we don’t know whether something dangerous and bad is about to happen or whether love is going to develop. However, as the opening scene carries on we see a red fire engine, which also carries on the stereotypical American lifestyle. A fire engine normally implies danger so this helps us narrow down that in the film something bad/dangerous is going to happen. Flowers then make another appearance but this time with yellow daisies. This leads back to confusion we face when we see the red roses because the yellow daisies mean cheerfulness. This is effective because it leaves the audience questioning what is going to happen, so it leaves them wanting to watch more so they can find out what is really going to happen.

When the man has collapsed/died and is lying on the floor the hosepipe is still on the dog is playing with the water. David Lynch used effective editing and added slow motion to the dog. This makes it seem as if time has completely slowed down. It also implies in that moment that the dog is elated and the slow motion helps us to understand that.  It also implies that he is just an innocent animal in this but because they show a close up of him it may mean that this part is crucial to the story line but just don’t understand yet.

At the end of the opening scene we have a close up shot of the grass which implies that for whatever the reason of the man’s death was – it came from the grass. This implies that the danger is coming from the ground and because of the close up it may suggest that the ground has an importance to the film. This could also be foreshadowing what is about to happen in the film – maybe they will find something in the grass. This close up is effective because it allows us to see what David Lynch is trying to get us to understand before we actually get any answers.