Opening Sequence Analysis

The opening sequence to 'Ghost Ship' misleads the audience by drawing them into a cheerful calm atmosphere and then dramatically impacts the viewers at the end, identifying the genre. 
The clip begins under water which instantly identifies the setting which is in the ocean and then a crane shot pans anticlockwise to establish the pacific location which is on a cruise ship. The isolation of the cruise ship suggests danger within itself as it is set apart from anything else apart from the water beneath it.
We are shown the title ‘Ghost Ship’ which suggests a thriller genre. The title fades into the ship which is the background which looks as if the ship has been branded with that name and informs the audience that this ship is the one.
No elements of mise-en-scene suggest the genre at the start of the clip, passengers are shown dancing to a slow but happy diegetic music which portrays a cheerful atmosphere. The fonts of the title and credits are pretty and pink which supports the happy cheerful atmosphere created by the music. From the costume of characters we assume they are wealthy, they are in ball gowns and suits with servers.
Characters within the scene do not seem to have any significance and all have short time on camera with straight cuts to other passengers.
Continuity editing is used throughout which indicated it’s all happening as we watch and only reveals things to the audience as they evolve which means that they know as much as the characters themselves. This editing has a greater impact as the audience are shocked when the metal wire cuts through the passengers, just like the complete shock of the characters themselves.
Throughout the scene, the diegetic music of the lady singing is the dominant sound but when there is a close up of somebody pulling the lever the singing dims into the background. The dominant sound becomes the actions of; pulling the lever, clicks and the release of the wire. The extreme close ups of the process of the wire being released highlights the event and makes it the focus point which suggests the narrative is going to centralise what the metal wire does. During these moments the lighting becomes more shadowed which gives a colder feel and indicated the thriller side of the film, reflecting the genre which is about to be revealed. This creates possible enigmas associated with the title, 'ghost ship'. The narrative could be about the person who set the winch was not a human but a ghost and alternatively the narrative could be that all the passengers that was on the boat become ghosts which makes it the ghost ship.