Film theories and Shaun of the Dead

Film theories and Shaun of the Dead

Propp theory: Propp's theory of narrative is that it is driven by 8 characters. The Hero, villain, princess father, dispatcher, donor, false hero and sidekick. This works for Shaun of the Dead as each character could fall into these brackets. Shaun is the obvious hero, Ed is the obvious sidekick and it could be said that the villains are the zombies themselves. Liz is the princess character as she is the typical love interest. Yvonne could be described as the helper or the donor character due to her help in the narrative. Dave is the false hero which is primarily seen in the middle of the film where he tries to shoot Shaun's mother after the revelation that she has been bitten by a zombie as well as when it is revealed that he is in love with Liz. The story is driven by these characters and how they respond to zombies attacking them.

Barthes theory: Narratives are a series of codes that are read and interpreted by the audience. These are: action, enigma, semic, symbolic and cultural. Action is played with mostly at the beginning of the film where Shaun and Pete are oblivious to the zombie apocalypse that is going on around them. Enigma is seen where the fact that Shaun's mother was bitten is hidden from the audience leading to a large reveal later. Semic is when an audience recognise things through connotations. As Shaun of the Dead is a slight parody, there are many things that an audience would recognise from actual horror films. For example the scene where Shaun walks to the corner shop the 2nd time. Contrasting the first time, there is blood and broken glass everywhere which is synonymous with horror films. The symbolic codes could be the first appearance of the zombies. It is not explicitly said that that is what they are but the slow walking and missing flesh can symbolise this. Cultural codes are mainly seen with Shaun and Ed's personalities that are commonly associated with the British working class.

Todorov's theory: Todorov describes narrative as going in a particular order:

• Equilibrium
• Disruption
• Conflict
• Resolution
• New Equilibrium

This can be seen in Shaun of the Dead as it starts with Shaun living his mundane, unhappy life with his girlfriend Liz having recently broke up with. The disruption is seen when the zombies emerge. Due to this Shaun has to gather his friends and family into one place where all the zombies end up. This is the conflict. After most of the main characters are bitten only Shaun and Liz manage to escape and when it looks like all hope is lost the army arrives just in time to save them resolving the plot. The new equilibrium is seen at the end, six months after the outbreak. The film ends with Shaun basically living the same life as before, however Liz' feelings towards him have changed.

Levi-Strauss: Levi-Strauss describes narrative as created by constant binary opposites. There are many binary opposites that are in this film. They include:

• Good vs Evil
• Friends vs Relationships
• Bravery vs Fear
• Strength vs Weakness

Whilst these are all present in the film, I would not say that they are a huge part of it like the other three are.