The Curse of La Llorona (2019)

    New Line Cinema and Atomic Monster would produce the 2019 film, The Curse of La Llorona. The film's cinematographer was Michael Burgess, who has been part of 23 major films - 9 of which he was the cinematographer.

    The introduction of the film is 1 minute and 42 seconds long. Below is how the opening scene is shot:

• Close-up of a young boy handing his mother a necklace. (Picture 1)
• Medium shot tracking left that shows the woman receiving the necklace and the boy standing next to his brother. 
• Breaking the 180 rule, a medium close-up of the mother now holding the necklace. Tracking right.
• Close-up of mother wearing the necklace (shows from the bottom of the chest to bottom of neck), and showing it to the boys saying "I will keep it forever in Spanish." (Picture 2)
• Medium shot tracking left while faceless parents and their two sons spin to the right in a circle while holding hands.
• Medium close-up shot tracking left while faceless parents and their two sons spin to the right in a circle while holding hands.
• Close-up shot tracking left of boy covering his eye with his brother and mother continuing to spin to the right around him. Father has seemed to disappear though.
• Breaking the 180 rule, a medium close-up shot tracking right now from behind as the boy keeps his hands over his eyes - presumably playing hide and seek - while his mother and brother break the circle and seem to run off. The boy remains centered during the shot. 
• Re-breaks 180 rule, a medium close-up that tracks right showing the boy taking his hands down from his face after his family has run off. The boy remains centered within the shot.
• The boy is now on the right rule of thirds line with another medium close-up that tracks to the right. He darts his head back and forth seemingly looking for his family.
• Long shot that places the boy on the right rule of thirds line again, in an open field. He spins in circles continuing to look around for his mother and brother. 
• Extreme long shot that places him on the left rule of thirds line, demonstrating even more clearly how small the boy is compared to where he is, as well as adding to the feeling of isolation. The boy begins walking, calling out for his mother and brother. (Picture 3)
• Long shot shows the boy entering a canyon through the back toward the right rule of thirds line as he continues to search for his mom and brother. 
• Medium shot showing the boy up closer as he continues to look. This shot goes on for 10 seconds, building up suspense.
• Medium shot dolly backward with the boy as he walks forward. He is centered within the shot and continues to call out for his family.
• Medium close-up from behind shows the boy continuing to walk down the dirt path as he searches for his family.
• Long shot shows the boy walking down the dirt path, and he gets closer to the camera. As he gets closer he has a frightened look on his face while looking into the camera - it then quickly dollys in. (Picture 4)
• POV shows the boy approaching the river shaky and frightened when he discovers his mother drowning his brother. The mother looks up as she notices him.
• Medium close-up shows the boy still in shock as he realizes what is occurring. 
• Over-the-shoulder shot of the boy with his mother - and drowned brother - on his left side. (Picture 5)
• Medium close-up shows the boy still in shock as he realizes what is occurring. He quickly turns around and runs and the camera tracks him.
• Low angle medium tracking shot of the boy running away and his mother's arm slightly in the frame on the top left.
• Long shot which continues to show the boy running away. However, the mother is almost fully in the shot, showing she's getting closer to catching him.
• Medium close-up of the boy getting his arm grabbed and pulled by his mother. The mother is not in the frame though, and the only part of her that can be seen in the frame is her arm from the top left corner.
• Title The Curse of La Llorona shown in bright yellow and orange letters on a black background.

    Immediately one of the first things you notice about this opening scene is its yellow tint. Tinting the opening scene a yellow color helps convey to the audience that this scene takes place in the past - likely one hundred or more years ago. This is later confirmed when reading the movie description as it reveals the opening scene takes place 350 years ago (1673).

    One of the other primary cinematographic features in the opening scene was the camera level. Excluding a handful of long shots, nearly all shots in this opening scene were on level with the boy's head - never showing any higher. This was done to emphasize the boy's perspective and show that this scene would focus nearly entirely on him. In doing so, this scene provided additional suspense. For example, due to the fact the camera was on his level, we never saw the faces of his mother or father. 

    By giving this scene an aged look - via the yellow tint - and showing it primarily through the child's perspective/level it gives this scene a very unique look, as well as adding to the unease and tension.

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