Horror Genre

Horror Genre

The usual age that horrors target for their audience are between 15 and 25. This is due to the fact young adults like to try new things and experiment with different emotions and from horrors they seek thrill as it excites them! Both genders do watch horror films however males are more likely to watch them due to the stereotype of thrill seeker which is portrayed by males. Also males like to think of themselves as the hero in real life situations and with the violence that is included in horrors males like to believe that they can help the innocent/vulnerable female.

Why do people enjoy horror films?

 Gore watching – characterized by low empathy, high sensation seeking, and in males a strong identification with the killer

Thrill watching – high empathy and high sensation seeking – motivated by the suspense of the film and more identification with the victims.

Independent Watching – high empathy for the victim with a high positive effect of overcoming fear

Problem Watching – high empathy for the victim but characterized by negative effect – sense of helplessness.

(Found at Filmmaker iq)

 History of Horrors:

- In the early 19th century, writers started to experiment with the darker form of literature and in 1818 the first recognisable horror 'Frankenstein' was published. In the 1830's Edgar Allan Poe began to experiment with the gothic genre.

- Frankenstein and Dracula were brought out in 1930 and is argued that they are the first films that created many of the conventions of the horror genre that we use in modern filming.

- In the 1940's, the second world war created problems and cinema and films were put on hold which caused a huge decline in horror production. 

- After the war ended in 1950's, horror films created a new bread of antagonist as they introduced the mutant character like Godzilla.

- Originating from the horror genre, the 60's saw the introduction of 'Thriller' This stemmed from Alfred Hitchcock's 'Psycho' which was considered to be one of the best of its kind to the modern day.

- Films became to improve during the 1970's and the trend in this decade were children becoming the antagonists for example 'The Exorcist' Some of the most iconic films were produced for example:

Jaws, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Alien, Halloween and The Last House on the Left.

- The horror industry began to try new things as the 80's went by and visual effects were introduced. This was the first time that there was much experimentation with costume, character and setting and the trend became more explicit.

- 'The Birth of the Serial Killer' Film makers ended the days of monsters and focused on using serial killers as the antagonist. Although many were thrillers they still followed horror conventions and by now film making was more advanced and technology was increasing with effects and camera techniques. 

- 2000 and modern day has seen that teenage horror has been a popular choice and this was due to the 90's hit 'Scream' where the lead characters were teenagers. This changed the way horrors were viewed as they were more accepted and common. Because technology is more advanced than ever we are currently at the peak of movie production as filming is more advanced with bigger and better effects.

Setting:

Horrors are commonly set in small isolated places in urban environments with dark streets. They can also be set in large cities or a run down ghost town - anything that can connote isolation. Often they are set in places with dark history with abandoned houses, hotels and insane asylums.

Iconography:

Visuals like dark reds and blacks are used as they link to death, anger, danger, blood ect. Lighting is important ad low-key lighting can help create dark shadows and tension with unfamiliar shapes. 

Props help identify the horror genre or a specific villain/character. (Chainsaw, knife, Gun, Machetes ect)

Character Types:

The main protagonist often the victim/hero

1. The Villain, often a monster, a freak, alien or serial killer.
2. Creepy children
3. Police officers - both good and bad
4. The princess

Scream Analysis

The title of the film "Scream" refers to first reaction from the female victim when the doorbell rings as her initial reaction was to scream when she is in danger. This suggests that this could be a on-going theme during the film as all vulnerable victims scream when in danger.

The title 'Scream' links with the main female victim as her instant reaction when in danger is to scream. This makes it clear that this could be a continuous theme throughout the film. The title is also written in red which connotes death and danger which implies that this film will include horrific deaths. It also connotes determination and strength which could symbolise the killers power in the film. The first noise that audience hear when watching the opening is a high - pitched screech from a girl. This represents the title of the film and this also creates suspension and ask's an enigma code which gets the audience thinking what is going to happen and why a girl is screaming. 

This also introduces us to the main character, the female victim which suggests vulnerability and innocence as she is wearing a white jumper. This automatically stereotypes her as we see her as weak meaning she is unable to fight for herself. We are introduced to the scene by a phone ringing, this is an action code as we understand as an audience that something bad is going to happen.

When she picks up the phone the audience are introduced to the phone we are introduced to the possible villain of the film, a close up of her face showing her emotion, this also allows the audience to see that she is relaxed and confident while on the phone. Her calm tone when talking also implied that nothing bad is happening. The camera zooms out and zooms back onto Drew Barrymore's face when the phone rings to show confusion and to increase the tension. 

When the phone rings the audience are able to see that this isn't a normal cold call and this is due to the 'villains' ring back to apologise. The camera is still using a close up to pan Drew's face and then a shot is shown of the outside. We are shown a dark forest, a typical scary location as it is isolated and sets the mood for the film as spooky and mysterious.

The film then goes on to show more of the location after the second call, and a long shot is used and the audience are then able to clearly see the big house and the outside garden area. It includes large trees and a swinging chair which makes a squeaky noise, the noise effect suggests to the audience that maybe a child or a young person is involved. This makes it much more frightening to the audience because of the thought of a child being involved in socially unacceptable and terrifying.

As the person rings more, the audience see that Drew Barrymore's voice gets more distressed. She also plays with the knives which are in the knife rack, this is relevant because it represents murder and pain, which may make the audience think that might happen to her. It also implies an action code as the audience wonders if a knife will be used in the victim’s killings. The reference to her favourite movie being about a guy whole "walks round in a white mask and stalks babysitters," contrasts with the theme of this film and the image of which may be seen on some film posters.

The camera then focuses on her popcorn on the oven which looks like it is done; this could imply that Drew Barrymore’s character will die soon as it reflects her last moments. The mood is instantly changed once the caller says "I want to know who I am looking at," this is known to the audience through the female’s facial expression of shock and the background noise which suggests danger. From this her actions are become more aware and after she hangs up we hear the phone ring again, and from her hesitation we understand that she knows she is in danger. The mood of the caller also changes and he starts to snap at her on the phone, the background noise starts to rise and get louder which increases the tension.