Trepidation: October 2013

Thursday, 31 October 2013

Why do we like to be scared? (Part 1)

Here is a clip from YouTube explaining the scientific reasons for why people love being thrilled. Next week I am going to interview a selection of horror film lovers and ask them what it is that they love about being scared.
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Propp's Character Theory Presentation

Click the link below in order to watch my online presentation of Propp's famous theory. http://prezi.com/up72cckgnh9a/present/?auth_key=j71usvo&follow=62ovfqbjrq1p

Everything comes from something...

Sunday, 20 October 2013

Scream Essay

Below is a 700 word essay which I wrote on Scream (199). The question for this essay was ‘How does Scream (1996) subvert and conform to the conventions of horror films’?

This American slasher film which was brought to our screams in 1996. The hugely popular film was written by Kevin Williamson and directed by Wez Craven who also directed the very successful Nightmare on Elm Street and the film made a crazy total of $103,046,663 in US box offices. It follows the story of a teenager named Sidney Prescott and her friends who are being targeted by the mysterious town’s killer who goes by name of ‘Ghostface’. The film was the first of its kind to bring a tongue and cheek approach to horror film and its conventions and this is why I mostly feel that Scream subverts the conventions of horror as well as conforming to horror conventions.

I feel that this modernist film is one of a kind and it undermines horror films and through this it shows the stupidity of horror films and how they are all quite similar and all follow the same structure which is outlined by Tzvetan Todorov’s narrative theory. If you look at all the horror films that came to our screams before the first Scream there is a significant films between them and Scream as none of them make the conventions of horror known through dialogue throughout the film as other horror films follow horror film conventions but make sure the audience don’t feel that they can see the horror film conventions laid out and this is why I feel that Scream really does subvert horror film conventions due to this. An example scene of when Scream subverts horror’s mainstream conventions is when Ghostface says to Sidney “Do you like horror movies”? And Sidney replies “What's the point? They're all the same. Some stupid killer stalking some big-breasted girl who can't act who is always running up the stairs when she should be running out the front door. It's insulting”.

Scream bought something extremely fresh in terms of horror in media as before this horror films were not as popular as they once were when Psycho and Carrie first hit the screens but Scream brought a fresh of air to the horror genre as it was something completely innovative and different as it mixed comedy with horror which is not a horror film convention. Randy one of Sidney’s friends states the rules of horror films in a particular scene, stating that “You may not survive the movie if you have sex. You may not survive the movie if you drink or do drugs. You may not survive the movie if you say “I’ll be right back”, “Hello?” or “Who’s there?””. Randy is stating the conventions of horror films which can decrease the chances of you living.

As well as hugely demonstrating the subverting of horror films Scream also conforms to many horror film conventions for example the mise en scene of the film. Scream has a masked killer just as in Halloween and Chainsaw Massacre a perfect ingredient for slasher films as well blood. That jarring screeching sound of piano keys that are found in loads of horror films in order to build up tension was found in Scream. And how can I forget then sinful teenagers as well as the use of a final girl and the parents that just always turn up just too late.

Scream also referenced to a lot of horror films which most horror films do. Steve Neale (1980) said that ‘genres are instances of repetition and difference’. Which I agree with as every horror film is influenced by horror films that were produced before it. Scream mirrors scenes from Halloween for example when Sidney is making popcorn at the start of the films as so is Annie in Halloween.

So Scream satirizes the horror film genre by subverting many horror film conventions by following it’s own not to do rulebook of horror films but it also conforms to the conventions of horror films by using ingredients for horror films such as blood, knives and masks.

Sunday, 13 October 2013

How camera effects are used to add meaning in the horror genre...

Horror films are surprisingly very cheap to make and the factors that make these films so successful is the storylines, music and camerawork an excellent example of this is Halloween 1978 one of the most successful independent films and also the film that gave birth to the subgenre of slasher horror. Halloween costed at total of $320,000 and grossed over $65 million and through analysing parts of Halloween I am aware that it is the techniques in which the directors and editors use in order to make a film such as Halloween and Psycho such great and iconic films. So a range of cleverly selected camera shots, angles and movements are used in horror to create the perfect scary moment or suspension for example a jump cut to a close up of a demons face could be used in order to scare the audience who are watching that particular scene. These camera effects are also used to inform the audience of what is happening in the film for example in Carrie towards the end of the film a long shot is used to show us that Carrie’s mum was dead and she symbolically looked like Jesus when he was pinned on to the cross during his crucifixion. Below is a trailer of a film called Grave Encounters which I had analysed it previously here are my notes on how camera effects were used to create a horror in the short clip. ‘The overall camera shots and angles used in Grave Encounters trailer created emotions of fear, tension and the feeling of the unknown. Most of the clips shown were done in a subjective way so I felt like I was there in the majority of the scenes and this was because the director of the film choose to use a handheld film recorder rather than having the film recorder on a dolly or a crane. There were many low angles used for example when they were looking up the stairs which was a very suitable angle to use in this scene as ghosts are usually found in horror films above us rather than on the floor so a high angle shot would be very well suited to a film such a Snakes on the Plane where the factor that is scaring people in the film are found mainly on the floor. There was also a low angle shot used when the cast of this mockumentary were introduced and they were posing for the camera I felt this gave the impression that they had authority at that present moment which was soon lost as the castoff this TV programme were being mentally and physically attacked by the unknown. Regarding camera shots there was a lot of close ups used to show the facial expressions of the characters and this is how I knew that authority had been lost on their behalf as they looked extremely scared and vulnerable. An over the shoulder shot was used during a conversation with the owner of the physcological unit and this gave the effect of voyeurism as I felt as viewer I should have not been listening to the conversation. Finally panning was used a lot to demonstrate emotions of panic’.