Horror Clichés

Clichés are in most films no matter how unique they are. Props and gender stereotypes involve the most clichés especially  in a horror genre:

 

An opening sequence that I think shows these clichés in an effective way rather than making them predictable and boring is Saw:

  

 

This opening sequence introduces the horror genre through many clichés such as: darkness, chains, blood, dirt and a dead body. It perfectly lets the audience know what to expect throughout the film by presenting these commonly used themes in a new and refreshing way.

Gender Representations in Psychological Horrors

(Blog Post on Genre and Gender in Horror + Gender Stereotypes)

 

Psychological horrors rely on atmosphere and the mystery of the unknown to spook the audience whether this is through the actual film or the posters advertising it. However psychological horrors are no different from regular horror films when it comes to stereotypes. The gender stereotypes used in horror films are usually the same: a defenceless young woman as the protagonist that narrowly escapes death throughout the entire movie and the male antagonist that is usually a fully grown man and carries a weapon that matches the way he kills or a young girl or doll that possesses supernatural powers. These stereotypes are used in horror films, psychological included, as they work. The audience is familiar with these stereotypes and immediately put them into categories.

 

The psychological horror 'The Conjuring' was a highly praised film that marketed the film with teaser posters before it was released. The first picture they released was a tree with a noose hanging from it. This only hinted at the themes that would be in the film and gave no suggestions towards who the characters were and what the threat in the film would be. However the second poster included many stereotypes from the horror genre, including gender:

 

 

 

The stereotype for the antagonist is there and the gender stereotype of the protagonist. From the poster it is hinting that the woman in the rocking chair is the protagonist, a female that is unaware of the threat, the doll, and is looking straight forward. She is clueless to the threat which also shows the audience that this is a psychological horror and the girl herself looks unkempt which could be hint towards the characters mental state. This kind of character shows up continually in many different horror films as the audience will know this kind of character well as because of the female protagonist stereotypes they will now what to except from her during the movie.

Horror Pictures

For a homework task I had to take horror pictures testing out different camera angles. For my picture I asked my dad to dress in a skull mask and cloak and take a picture in out garden at night. We got a separate mask of a head and got my dad to hold it up with a fake bloody hand holding a fake knife up to the head. I took several photos from different camera angles but my favourite angles were the most simple: a long shot and a medium close up. I put both pictures into a PowerPoint slide and annotated them.

 

The Long Shot:

 

This shot shows more of the background, such as the tree and the bird bath, and less of the man/killer's appearance and what he has done.

 

The Medium Close-Up:

 

 

This shot is closer to the man/killer and it shows what he has done, killed someone and is now holding their head. It also shows that he is holding a knife and what the head and his mask looks like at a closer distance.