Horror Genre - 2.2

Horror Genre

Horror is a film genre seeking to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's primal fears. Inspired by literature from authors like Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, Mary Shelley, horror films have for more than a century featured scenes that startle the viewer. The macabre and the supernatural are frequent themes. Thus they may overlap with the fantasy, supernatural, and thriller genres.Horror films often deal with the viewer's nightmares, hidden fears, revulsions and terror of the unknown. Plots within the horror genre often involve the intrusion of an evil force, event, or personage, commonly of supernatural origin, into the everyday world. Prevalent elements include ghosts, aliens, vampires, werewolves, demons, gore, torture, vicious animals, evil witches, monsters, zombies, cannibals, and serial killers. Conversely, movies about the supernatural are not necessarily always horrific. 

Characters:

-The Protagonist - often a female role, most morally standing/smartest of the group. Almost always survive in order to be part of a sequel 

-The Sex Appeal - Role often filled by a promiscuous Woman, often the first to be killed + are the first to expose their body 

-The Irritating Character - Often partnered with the ‘Sex Appeal’ and often the first to go - due to their behaviour (The Viewer is usually happy when they have been killed off)

-The Unlikely Hero - Generally the one the audience suspects to be the antagonist because of their actions/appearance in the film

-The Antagonist - The ‘Bad Guy’ of the film - usually revealed at the end of the tim. usually killed off at the end/wounded in some cases to make room for a possible sequel

-The Token Black Guy - Often the one to sacrifice them selves to save others or to act as the muscle of the group - Sometimes take the role of ‘The Irritating Guy’.

-The One who gets his Comeuppance - ‘Side Kick’ of the ‘antagonist’ - Only interested in their own well being but always killed off before the end. 

Conventions of a Horror Film 

- Good Versus Evil

- Depression

- Religion

- Childhood Issues

- Revenge

- Supernatural

- Beyond Death

- Science Goes Bad

- Zombie Apocalypse

- Nightmares

- Madness

- Insanity

- Lust

- Self-Consciousness

- Envy

- Suicide

Horror Film 1 - The Possession
The Possession is about a young girl who buys an antique box at a yard sale, unaware that inside the collectible lives a malicious ancient spirit. The girl's father teams with his ex-wife to find a way to end the curse upon their child. Some conventions in the film include (Good Versus Evil, Religion, Supernatural, Madness etc) the film is about an exorcism, one of the main stereotypes within the Horror Genre. Within most Horror films, to create a suspenseful atmosphere the film is mainly built up of Diegetic Sounds e.g (Door Slam, Creaking Floorboards, Wind, Rocking Chair sound etc) the Soundtrack however is Orchestral - Non-Diegetic, meaning you can hear the soft but deep sounds of a violin, Scary wavy Brass section or even the loud slam of a Drum. Also in the film (Inside the Box) it contains a dead moth. The moth is a symbol of sensitivity and impulsiveness, in dreams it can mean impending danger, and has traditionally been associated with psychic powers and their development. And of course like butterflies, they represent transformation. It is said that moths are an omen (Portent of good or evil) death in some cultures too.

Horror Film 2 - Saw
Saw is about Two men who wake up in a secure lair of a serial killer who's been nicknamed "Jigsaw". The men must follow various rules and objectives if they wish to survive and win the deadly game set for them. some conventions in the film include (Good Versus Evil, Insanity, Madness and maybe revenge and suicide) The film is like a game show, they both must complete a task in order to go onto the next level (in this case survive). Just like in The Possession, the sounds are mainly Diegetic e.g (Door Slam, Creaking Floorboards, Wind, Rocking Chair sound etc) but there is also a Soundtrack played over the top of the footage. Jigsaw is related in some sense to a clown (Scary Make-Up Mask, Rides a Clown Size, Children's Size Trike) Clowns are again a main stereotype of a Horror Film. The main Clown Horror film of all time in my opinion has to be 'IT' the story about Pennywise the Clown. As it says here "Some researchers believe that coulrophobia cases increased after the 1990’s, when Steven Spielberg directed the classic horror film “IT” depicting a murderous clown was released" - http://www.coulrophobiafacts.com/ 

Representation

What is Representation? 
Representation is to Present/to Depict, Something that was already there but has been represented by the Media. Representation is the way in which meaning is given to the things which are depicted that stands in for something.

Examples of Representations in Film Openings 
Friends with Benefits -

Who is being Represented - in the scene we see Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis before they meet breaking up with the partner they are with before they get together in the film.
In what way are they being represented -  Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake are being represented as the innocent characters as they break up but Justin Timberlake gets dumped instead of him breaking up with his girlfriend. This was done to help show how work is more important to him than a relationship at the time (he was late showing up at a concert and his ex had a go at him, this led to their break up) however Mila Kunis breaks up with her Boyfriend because she doesn't think the relationship is working well so they break up. They are represented as the innocent characters at the moment as if one of the characters has a history of cheating it is kind of predictable to what happens later in the film. because we see them as being innocent they are clean meaning anything could happen in the film and we wouldn't expect it.
Who is representing them in this way - The Director is representing them in this way to help build a story like i said before, we don't know anything about the characters so with them being innocent at the start things could change in the film later on.
Why are they being represented in this way - The Characters are being represented in this way to help create a story without any hidden secrets about the characters. Like I said before this was done because we (The Audience) have no idea what the character is like, so we learn while the characters are learning.
Is this representation fair + accurate - This representation is Fair because its a natural representation of the characters. we don't know anything about them making them 'Innocent'.

Insidious
Who is being represented - In the scene we see a child sleeping on a bed then round the corner we see the Old Woman holding a Red Candle then the titles 'INSIDIOUS' Appear
In What way are they being represented - In The Scene the Child sleeping is being represented as the innocence. due to the fact hes sleeping and completely oblivious to the Old Woman in his room. Children are represented as the innocent ones as they are the youngest and isolated characters within a horror film. this made it easy for him to get possessed.
Who is representing them in this way - The Public see him as being innocent as he's only a child but later on in the film we see that the childs dad was once possessed by the Old Woman when he was a child. meaning that it was destined for him to be possessed.
Why are they being represented in this way - The Child is being represented in this way to create an uncomfortable feeling for parents and parental guardians because it would scare them to think it was their child.
Is this representation fair + accurate - it is accurate as it creates an uncomfortable feeling towards parents/guardians like i said before i wouldn't say its fair as even the father didn't know he was once possessed otherwise he would be waiting for the day to come.

Feedback - Miss Spencer

An excellent set of analysis, with lots of detail and good use of technical language. These are at a sound level 3, in order to improve add some screen grabs to illustrate your point, ensure you cover iconography and editing, and discuss the effect on the audience throughout.

Well done
Miss Spencer

Concept Idea

Title - ÖHSINJA

Locations - Home of Charlie

Characters - Character 1 - Charlie

                   - Black Figure - ÖHSINJA

Props - Candle

          - Match Box

          - Matches

          - Knife

ÖHSINJA Costume Idea

                     - Black Cloak - Torn and burnt at the bottom

                     - Red Eyes

                     - Grey Hands - Black, Long Finger Nails

Lighting - fairly light but still dark

Music - No music will be used in the scene

Mini-Plot - At the Start of the film a Young Adult named Charlie is sitting down at a table with a Demonic Book in front of him, the Character walks over to a kitchen draw and grabs a knife, he sits back down and lights the candles placed in front of him and stabs the book once done (This scene is set towards the end of the film in which it says at the end of the opening scene '24 hours before'). The Film is about a Young Adult called Charlie who finds a book outside his house one day and decides to read it, as he's reading the book he becomes lightheaded and wakes up not even knowing hes been possessed by the Demon named ÖHSINJA. 

Character Micro Description

Main Character - Charlie

Aged between Seventeen/Eighteen, around average height, Charlie is a Student wanting to go to university. He’s a very Ambitious character who has his eye set on what he wants. he’s fairly brave however when it comes to clowns he becomes scared - Coulrophobia (Fear of Clowns). He hates Horror Films but loves Adventures. If he sees a challenge he will do all he can to try and reach for it.

Black Figure - ÖHSINJA

Average Height, Covered in Black (Black Cloak, Hood, Clothes). The Black Figure is the Possessed Demon from the Book that Charlie opened later on in the film. The Black Figure has a secret name which only charlie knows at the end of the film in order to survive (the end is the scene we see at the start of the film but continued) His secret name is ‘شيطان’ - ‘ÖHSINJA’. شيطان is arabic for Demon. (Charlie is the only person who can see ÖHSINJA due to the fact the Demons spirit is inside him)

Conventions of a Horror Film

- Good Versus Evil

- Depression

- Religion

- Childhood Issues

- Revenge

- Supernatural

- Beyond Death

- Science Goes Bad

- Zombie Apocalypse

- Nightmares

- Madness

- Insanity

- Lust

- Self-Consciousness

- Envy

- Suicide

Things To Do

-   Poster

-   Editing

-   RECCE

Horror Opening Scenes

Horrors
Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunter - 2013 

Opens with Two Children 'Hansel and Gretel' walking through a forest and come across a house made out of candy and sweets. The Children start eating the House until the house door opens leading the Children inside. As the Children enter the house the candles light up instantly - like magic 'relating to the Witch'. The Witch then emerges from the darkness like a solute - relating to a haunting spirit (Evil).

The Witch captures the children and places Hansel in a cage and Gretel working for her, Gretel is able to break out of her chains and stab the Witch with a nail and push her into the oven where she burns to death. Costume is important in this film as the film is set in the 19th century meaning that they need to be wearing old fashioned clothing. The Witch however looks a lot darker than how she is originally written in the fairytale itself, she is wearing a black, distorted dress like clothing with what looks like a goblin looking makeup effects to make her look scary and evil. Because this is a horror film it has to be dark so because they are walking through the forest in the dark, makes it very suspenseful to what might happen to them. The Lighting however in the house is a little bit lighter but a it still has a very scary atmosphere. The Editing in the scene is mainly used when

Gretel fights back and the Witch tries to kill her with her spells but it has no effect on her, the effect looks like a heat wave but with some green particles flowing towards Gretel. The effect isn't over the top as it has to be in some sense believable somehow as it is a mythical story so they have to try and aim for the expectation that myths are real. The Camera work such as Medium Shots and Close-Ups were used to help bring out the emotion/expression of the character - relating to Love, as it helps to make the character look more scared/worried. In the opening scene there is hardly any music as its a Horror film, them music generally tends to calm the audience down but because there isn't any music it makes the audience more scared and makes the scene more suspenseful. Sound Effects how ever were used in the opening scene E.g when the Witch emerges from the darkness and when the Witch uses her evil powers to attempt to kill Gretel etc.

World War Z - 2013 

Opens with a Montage of clips (Like The Purge) but in this film it opens with happy looking footage of the sky, a beach, a city 'everyday things we can potentially see' but with suspicious/creepy music played in the background 'this is

the opposite in The Purge the Music is happy and the footage is violent and scary. Their is also an over layering of voice overs from News Broadcasts talking about this illness and about world issues involving health (the montage is the build up towards the present day 'the start of the release of the infection to the point where people are dying). The Soundtrack is building up from start 'Quiet' to end 'Loud and Vibrant' The music sounds like something you would hear in a TV show like Holby City or Casualty due to the fact its about human health and death. Costume wise there isn't

anything really significant about the opening in particular its just a montage of News Broadcasts and establishing shots. The Lighting at the start 'The Sunset' could symbolise the fact that bad things will happen because the light of the sun is often associated with Hope and Religion, the fact that the sun is setting could mean that the hope is slowly drifting away - not even the help of religion and god can help them. The editing in the Opening Credits is really good as it is basic but it stands out because of some mirror transitions and some shapes reflecting the image in the background

or blurring it out a bit, this helps it be less basic and more practical. Also the camera work is set out to be news because of the fact its News, the world has a threat and its trying to be resolved - people need to know about the Virus in order to try and keep themselves safe.

Thriller Opening Scene

Thrillers

The Dark Knight - 2008 Opens with the Company Credits but with a twist. Normally 'Warner Bros' would stick to their original title screening with the company theme tune and normal CGI intro with bright colours but this opens without the Company Theme and without the bright colours.

Instead it opens with a Fade in - from black 'Transition' with a purple filter but no music is playing in the background not even the symphony soundtrack - this helps to build up the suspense in the scene at the start this continues even through the DC Comics title screen until an establishing shot of a city can be seen as the camera zooms into a building 'there is a very quiet ticking sound - like a clock 'relating to the thought of running out of time - time is of the essence' as the camera zooms into the building the ticking sound 'Diagetic sound' progressively gets louder until the framing changes to two guys in one of the rooms of the building, smashing the glass 'Glass Sound Effect is loud - Diagetic Sound'. The two guys then set up a grappling gun and fires it towards a roof top of another building 'The Bank' the ticking sound can still be heard in the background even when the frame changes to The Joker standing on the side of a street walk holding his mask in his hand - the mask is facing towards the camera, this makes us think about who the man is but we can already tell that he is the joker due to his purple suit in which he is wearing. The Joker then gets in the car in with two other guys already in the front seats, the soundtrack then builds up adding a synth layer on top of it. As the two guys who are zip lining towards another roof top a deep bass drum can be heard which helps make the scene suspenseful because they could fall - its very dangerous plus it helps to tell us that they are dangerous. The Joker arrives at the bank and the two other guys fire bullets into the air - the music progresses and becomes more vibrant and suspenseful. As the other guys reach the safe the music calms down a little bit focusing more on the ticking as the hostages in the bank are all holding grenades - Relating to the ticking sound. One of the Bank Workers doesn't get caught and has a shotgun, he then takes a stand and tries to shoot The Joker in with makes the music a lot harder and brighter - like a hero is trying to help. The music corresponds to

the hostages and bank workers really as the ticking signifies the grenades and the bright, vibrant sound responds to the hero. The music starts to get stronger as the drilling machine on the safe breaks and the worker is walking towards The Joker firing his shotgun, this is like the bank is fighting back and the villains are slightly falling. The Joker then shoots the Bank Worker making the music quieten down a bit. The Music stays the same up until the Bus Crashes into the bank - Diagetic Sound. The Costumes in the scene are very relatable to the comics as the fact that all the villains in the scene are all wearing clown masks makes there identity secret but its ironic because they all work for The Joker yet The Joker is working with them, this is his plan because at the end he is the last one standing with all the money and as he reveals himself (Takes off the mask) this makes him the leader of many villains. The Make-up in the scene is not cheesy what so ever, the make-up for The Joker makes it look like he's been wearing it for a very long time - due to the distortion of the paint and the sweat marks on his face making his red  mouth pain sync with his white paint. The Lighting in the scene is like an everyday city which is what makes the scene realistic. Even tho the joker is a clown villain, the story is very believable. The Lighting makes the City look Perfect meaning that this could happen to anytime, anywhere. The Editing in the opening scene is very good and is quite strong, because when The Joker is in the car with the other two criminals with clown masks on they are talking about The Joker - they unfocused The Joker in the background, this made him blurry and not very visible but you can still make out that he is there in the back of the car.

The Purge - 2013

Opens with a deep orchestral soundtrack (making the scene suspenseful) with text fading in and out. The text says 'America, 2020, Unemployment is at 1%, Crime is at an all-time low, Violence barely exists, with one exception...' it then fades out and a quote appears on the screen saying 'Blessed be the New Founding Fathers for letting us Purge and cleanse our souls, Blessed be America, a nation reborn' it also then fades out but the deep

orchestral track fades out and happy, early morning music is then played over a montage of what happens during the Purge, but the music starts to get darker (more emotional) the happy music played over a montage of death could symbolise the fact that America in 2020 is proud of this day which occurs ever year and that it helps to bring piece to the nation yet its the worst thing to do. They are a nation who wants nothing more than piece, the purge is a way to let criminals and evil people get the anger off there chests but the irony about it all is that some people do it for fun which could tell us that its really just an act of childishness (America can afford it basically) the happy music can also symbolise the innocence about it all as even innocent people who try and cower away from the purge still get killed even though they are hiding, the music could be a tribute for the dead. When M-E-S comes into play the costumes used are very dark yet normal, they are basically men wearing jackets, tracksuits and costumes 'this includes masks and weapons'. they are meant to be dark and in

some sense scary due to the fact this film is about death and horror, they are basic costumes because of the fact that the murderers are potentially normal everyday citizens of America - anyone can be a killer even if they look innocent. The lighting in the scene isn't really normal due to the fact its filmed at night time however we can talk about editing as well because the camera lens filters are like thermal
The Editing in the film is very good especially with the transitions at the start of the film with the CCTV Camera montage of footage shot during previous Purges since its started. Its like a time line of events building up to what could happen this year in the Purge. The Camera work is set out like a CCTV Camera like I said before as it kind of tells us that even shots wouldn't be taken on foot as the Purge is too dangerous, the Camera Crew are trying to keep it fairly realistic and use CCTV as there camera feed.

Feedback - Miss Spencer

I gave you feedback a while ago Ben, but don't really feel you have acted upon it. Could you please ensure that you tackle the changes I have suggested and then reply to this feedback letting me know what you have done.
Thanks