The Importance Of Setting Conventions In Horror Movies

As you grow older your views on what you fear change. As a child, I developed a fear of little things such as ghosts, the dark, etc. Once I grow into an adult I developed a of things observed on a daily. Americans between the age group of children and adolescents introduce themselves to bigger fears by watching movies that replayed on the already experienced fears. For example: Freddy Krueger, Jason, Vampires, Werewolves, etc. Many people in society watch these horror movies, and movie goers assume that directors based the movies on serial killers, who become glorified for the crimes committed and made into huge stars that we love. In the film Halloween, a little boy name Michael Myers kills his sister at the age of six. Twenty years later, Michael return 's to his home town Haddonfield, Illinois to kill a group of teenagers that appear around his deceased sister age. Halloween identifies as one of those gruesome films that you question, because he was a six year old when he first killed. To society Michael exemplifies monster qualities because at that age, how can someone so young stab his sister or anyone to death. Michael Myers poses as a Monster in America, he demonstrates traits of the devil in him and express his hate by killing his family, by existing in a dysfunctional family.

Horror is the genre that keeps the reader on their toes for nights upon end. It keeps them thinking. Thinking about how cruel and disturbing someone, or something, could possibly be. Thinking about what in the world happens to a character after the story drops off in a cliffhanger. Thinking about the probability that the events in the narrative could transpire in real life. Thinking about how likely it is for those things to happen to the reader. Refusing to look out their window in fear of seeing the glimpse of a murderous face, and listening to every sound with acute accuracy, praying that the noise is not one of a stranger creeping up the stairs. Scary accounts make the reader live in fear whenever the

Horror, what is it, according to literary historian J.A. Cuddon, it is “a piece of fiction in prose of variable length…which shocks or even frightens the reader, or perhaps induces a feeling of repulsion or loathing.” This sets the guidelines for how the generic horror piece is written, as long as it can scare the reader in one sense or the other, or cause them to loath a certain part or character, then it can be called horror. The horror today has roots stemming from old folklore and religious traditions which had elements that dealt with death, the afterlife, and the demonic, along with the things or thing that embody a person. Horror during the 18th century was called gothic horror and this particular type of horror was invented in the

The setting on the dvd cover is a very wide shot type to show the isolated setting this sets the miss en scene for the film and what the audience should expect from it. An isolated setting is a common feature of a horror film as having a setting isolated scares the audience, as it makes events more realistic. If they take place in one location, rather than all over the place. The feeling of being alone in a horrific situation creates tension and has the audience in suspense and after looking away from the cover they can know that the film happened in that one isolated setting that has no threat to them this link to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and how fear is directly related to our needs. Biological and physiological needs and safety needs. By having an isolated setting on the front cover and the Lead (Daniel Radcliff) in it makes the audience have a empathetic understanding of the

Since it’s infancy at the beginning of the eighteenth century, horror has followed certain conventions that results in an awakening of the senses, evoking intense emotions of fear and terror in the audience. Horror feeds off triggering the primal fears embedded within all of humankind, creating a sense of menace that is the very substance of this genre. Furthermore, the central menace of a piece tends to enlighten the human mind to the world of the paranormal and the enigmatic, dark side of the unknown. The movie “Psycho” directed by Alfred Hitchcock is a perfect example. Infamous for its shower scene, but immortal for its contribution to the horror genre, “Psycho” was filmed with great tact, grace and art in regards to horror conventions.

Insidious easily fits the film conventions of the horror genre and themes. Insidious incorporates classic horror elements like haunted houses, ghosts, children being possessed, and outside experts of the spiritual world. A family with three children start to witness things out of the ordinary and are unable to understand what they are seeing. The mother, for instance, knew she was seeing strange deities, but her husband refused to believe it and thought she was just out of it. The classic element of denying there is anything out of the ordinary going on is a classic horror element. Typically the people who deny the reality that there might be something supernatural happening, are the first people to be killed or affected in some manner.

One of the spookiest experiences in Harley’s life was on a cold, dark Halloween night when Harley and her friends, Lauryn and Heidi, got chased by a clown for 3 blocks on a gloomy narrow road. This scenario relates to traits  of Gothic Literature and Magical Realism because, that experience was in a dark setting and contained weird incidents and a disturbing plot. Those two genres are similar because they both usually have unrealistic characters and scary plots. However, in Edgar Allan Poe’s “Fall of the House of Usher” is an example of Gothic Literature because, the story’s setting is in an isolated, creepy, and large house with odd characters and a frightening plot line, while Julio Cortazar’s “House Taken Over” is an example of  Magical Realism because the realistic characters are accepting the unimpressed narrative tone in an ordinary way of life. Gothic Literature is a style of writing that is characterized by elements of fear, horror, death, and gloom. Settings are usually in a isolated and haunted location in a big house or castle with trap doors, dark rooms, and secret passages. Characters are usually supernatural beings or monsters.

In 1928 ground-breaking technology made it possible for movies to have sound. This revolutionized horror films because sound gave an extra dimension to terror. Noise built suspense and signaled the presence of a threat. (Wilson) Instead of a monster suddenly making an appearance without warning, music would signal that they were near. Growls, Snarls, footsteps, and screams allowed the audience members to feel like the victims of the movie.

Horror is designed to scare, cause alarm and dread, while also entertaining the audience at the same time in a cathartic experience (Dirk, 2016). Horror films are meant for a specific type of audience that enjoy scary films. Dirks (Tim, 2016) approach to genre horror, is that films went back as 100 years ago, from the earliest days our vivid imagination in seeing ghosts in the shadows to be connected emotionally of the unknown, and fear things that are improbable. You watch a horror film, it makes you aware of the scary surroundings, the essence of fear itself, without actually being in any sorts of danger. Dirks argues that there is a fun and thrill factor in being frightened, or watching something disturbing. It gives you that feeling of an adrenaline rush, as well as having that feeling someone is actually next to you lurking in the dark (Dirk, 2016).

In all of the previously mentioned films, there are a range of camera techniques being utilized to their advantage. In the horror film Psycho, they use extreme close ups to help show emotions or to add drama. Point of View filming is also common in all three of the films, as POV can make the viewer feel more engaged and being able to see what the victim in the film can see adds an element of fear that wouldn’t be able to be achieved if everything was shot in 3rd person. For example, in Scream, it is often filmed in the Point of View of the victim who is being stalked and later killed by the antagonist and shows things such as the girls boyfriend tied to a chair or the killer running through her house. Another technique that is used in these films is Mise-en-scene.

When we think about horror, we think about death and bad things happening to good people. Horror gives a face to material that generally does not have a face. It gets our blood flowing and you cannot stop thinking about it. When is the next bad thing going to happen? Who is it going to happen to? It allows our minds to be creative and picture what we want. It kind of follows the idea that we are not at the top of the food chain like we always are and most people find that scary. Matthew Lewis does a wonderful job of depicting horror in The Monk.

In horror stories there is just enough mystery to make you want to know more, and enough danger to make you glad this is fiction. Scary stories can allow people to conquer their own adversities. We all have our demons, things we’re afraid of but don’t want to admit. Some horror novels play on common fears like IT by: Stephen King which uses clowns as the source for fear, Chucky which features menacing dolls and Contagion which portrays rampant pestilence. By vicariously facing your fears in a novel, you’re able to tame them in real life. Sometimes even watching a character deal with the monster uplifts you to face your own fears. The concept of gruesome entertainment is all in human psychology. In order for us to be entertained, we have to feel the story being told. Scary stories bring us the adrenaline rush, the exploration of the unknown, and even the upliftment we all crave. Luckily the monsters in these stories are all fiction and cannot harm us in real life. Until they show up the next night, waiting for you in the

Getting the audience to identify with their characters is fundamental in crafting a successful story. That’s why filmmakers have developed a cinematic language to subliminally invite the audience to identify and empathize with their characters. One of the strategies used is the “POV” (point-of-view) shot. In this shot the audience sees the events taking place through one of the characters' eyes, therefore allowing them to experience what goes down firsthand. Slasher movies such as Halloween and Friday the 13th use this technique to simulate the experience of committing a violent murder. The scariest part is: the audience enjoys it. In fact, they eat up the gore and murders. For them, the more gory and inventive the killings are; the better.

Horror films are known for their ability to scare audiences, to get the audience’s hearts racing, their blood rushing. A good horror film will cause viewers to be on the edge of their seats and having their perception of reality distorted as they attempt to understand the unraveling plot of the horror film. The tone of the film aides in the amount of suspense that a horror film produces, since a much darker film will create a more suspenseful atmosphere than one that is more focused on campy monster makeup. But the tone of a film is determined by the sound of the film, or in other words, the score. Sound or music in a horror film, or the lack thereof, make the intense scenes and without the addition

Since a psychological thriller is not only supposed to manipulate the character's mind but the audience's as well, these tactics concerning setting have deep meaning and hidden messages which amplify and twists plots to confuse the audience and keeps them on the edge of their seat. Setting should be treated and cautioned in order to not deliver the wrong messages to the audience. connotes