This image is followed by a montage sequence which includes- two people holding hands, a person sighing a will, a piece of paper (supposedly the will) being put into a brief case, the sealing of the will with a stamp. This opening scene establishes motif that will recur and may only be interpreted accurately in terms of importance on reviewing. During this section we are repeatedly being shown a windmill (it is seen on the stamp the briefcase and the carriage) with the name Van Garret written underneath it.
This is likely to be the family crest which all point toward the denouement when the windmill explodes and all the loose points in the story are tied together. In the opening scene there are many feature which refer to the past these include: Horse and carriage. The inconsistency of the road. Clothes and hair. Environment (the place where Sleepy Hollow is based in is deserted, remote and unlit). Music used is classical music. Fog, lightning and thunder.
During the first encounter of the headless horsemen we see a glimpse of him passing behind the carriage as we see this we notice we see Van Garrets head framed by the window, in doing this, Burton has highlighted the characters head making the audience anticipate the decapitation. Throughout the first scene there is no dialogue, which adds tension however throughout the scene the character communicates to the audience through facial expression making it seem like you’re watching a silent movie.
Before the death of Van Garret the poor fellow is trying to get away is trying to get away from the killer however he gets lost in a cornfield and runs into a scarecrow with a pumpkin for a head. The pumpkin is well known for being associated with Halloween, with spooky from its nature. We see a variety of camera angles and angles allowing the audience to share the sense of being lost. However, Van Garret is startled by the appearance of the object as its almost alive but at the same time demonic.
However when seeing the scarecrow the camera angles automatically zooms in to Van Garrets face which shows relief, which is shared with the audience, nevertheless this is only momentarily as the horse is made present though digetic (the whinnying of the horse). The final image of the seen is of the pumpkin being streaked with blood, the motif starts and the scene. Scene 2 Unlike the previous scene we observe an urban, built upon city of New York, which is a contrast to that of Sleepy Hollow. However unlike the modern day buildings the attitude toward to crime is still going back to the medieval ages.
We shown different gruesome contraptions that might have been used to punish criminals in the court. In this scene we immediately Ichobod Crane does not belong in the city of New York as Crane believes to identify criminals modern day scientific methods must be carried out however, by sharing this view with the community Crane is put to the test of solving these crimes of the headless horsemen. This shows that Crane is a detective however; does this mean the genre of the whole is murder mystery’so Ichobod Crane is sent to the town of Sleepy Hollow.
As this is scene the credits are used in ghostlike font, which disappears after being seen. By doing this Burton adds the sense of a supernatural feeling. Another way Burton makes the have a sense of horror is the use of a non-diegetic sounds (orchestra playing classical but spooky song) which seems to get to get louder as Crane gets nearer to the Van Tassel mansion. As Crane enters the town he is seen going past a grave yard and as he walks down the street surrounded by simple houses we see villagers closing the shutters of their houses which is used as a metaphor for the secret which is vital to the solving of the mystery.
It is kept from Crane as he is an outsider, and cannot be trusted. As Crane is seen walking up to the Van Tassel manor the building it self looks spooky. As Crane enters the building there is a change in the atmosphere instead of being ominous and mysterious one, we see village folk partying. In the centre of the room we see a crowd of men surrounding a young woman (Katrina Van Tassel) playing a game. However when the presence of Crane is noticed there is a cold welcoming as the main men of the villagers are seen giving each other signals.
The way these signals are carried out we noticed these characters are conspiring and not the whole truth. When the meeting is held in a separate room we are told the story of the headless horsemen however instead of being a narrative there is an exposition sequence giving the viewer a background detail of Sleepy Hollow is presented in a frame narrative which makes it more interesting for the viewer however by doing this it reinforce one of the main phrases viewed in the movie “seeing is believing”.
The production of this movies sole purpose is to make money for the organisation behind the movie (pathe) the movie has been designed for viewers aged between the ages of 15 (this is known by the certificate rating) upwards as it has a lot of images which parents might not find suitable for children. As different individuals have different preference Burton has used several genres in the movie, which increases the amount that will come to watch the movie.
