R24 - Analysis: 'The Visit' Opening Titles & Soundtrack

Like the previous film, this movie also begins opening up from dark with increasingly loud music. The music is conspicuous and begins to become clear that the sound is like the wind howling and things rattling in the wind. The first production company is also Universal as the word 'Universal' mimics the ring of Saturn however coming around Earth. The music become fully loud and the other two production companies are presented: Blinding Edge and Blumhouse productions.

The screen then blacks out and then on screen a small text appears on the right hand of the frame which says 'Universal pictures present'. The sound was quiet however non diegetic sounds of a recorder getting ready to work can be heard.

Then the scene moves onto a clip of a school taken as if nobody knew, and the non diegetic voice says "..at the end of high school, I fell in love with a substitute English teacher". This raises suspicion within to audience to find out whether he loved her back or even how old she was. She then goes on to saying "it was quite a scandal". Whilst she tells the story of her life, she going on to saying how he fell in love with someone else in Starbucks, perhaps suggesting to the audience that she would've got revenge?

The woman presented in the scene looks middle aged, as if she is/was a mother looking back at the memories of her past. She seems to be in the comfort of her own home as she is sitting informally yet the tone of her voice is as though he is serious about this interview. 

She then goes to explain her past about leaving home through diegetic, synchronous sound. She says "the week I left my parents, they cursed at me which was crazy unusual and it ended very badly. I left at 19 and I havent seen my parents in 15 years". 

However whilst the camera focuses on her, it shifts to a different cut and angle where the frame when she is sitting shows her, however when it cuts, the camera captures her through a way that is almost as if she doesn't know it on her. It gives the audience the impression of 'behind the scenes' as opposed to what she is presenting herself to be.


This opposes the character she plays previously as this one is more raw. When looking at it, the audience do not automatically think she is a mother, but she looks more like a high school student who hasn't escaped her past. 

The non diegetic voice over continues to say "they looked me up on the internet, and asked to spend a week with their grandchildren... they have a counselling website, people love 'em... I told the kids, they said they wanted to go, I didn't want them to and they wanted to go anyway". This suggests that there is still some tension between her and her parents as when she says 'people love em', it is almost as if people shouldn't love them, because they're not what they seem. Her facial expressions give the idea that this isn't the first time she's heard it so it bothers her. 

The last thing you hear before the titles come up is a younger girl's voice saying "describe the events which you left your parents farm when you were 19". The setting of a farm is conventional in a horror story therefore it could connote that the grand parents are actually the main 'horror' of the story. 


The screen cuts to black and 'The Visit' appears in red which appears larger. Sharp sounds can be heard and almost a faint humming sound.