Killing scenes in horror

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv7hfUws27w

I looked at this scene as it follows most of the conventions for horror for a killing scene and it is of a woman being killed by a man, the camera actions are shakey and as if point of veiw of someone there.

The sound is also also quite earry and loud which adds suspence and also helps to set the mood with it, the sound is non diegetic which means its put on afterwards and isnt actually there, which is what we are planning on using for the killing scene in our film.

Generic codes and Conventions of Horror

In different genres of film there are different codes and elements that a type of genre will follow, E.G Horror films nearly always contain the following:-

• Settings are usally somewhere dark and dismal, usally a single building like a house or castle. Buildings usally have an 'old' look to them. Some horror films are set outside and this usally takes place in a forest or a wood although usally characters will find themselves at a building eventually.
• Horror films have alot of music in them this helps the audience to build up tension and give some idea that something is about to happen.
• Blood! All good horror films have alot or atleast a little gore in them.
• Camra angles can vary in horror and there is no real set convention of camra angles that tell you its a horror film but most of horror film shots are quite slow with little editting untill some action happenes e.g someones head getting cut off the camra and editting speeds up to create drama and excitment.
• Characters are nearly always the same there is a bad guy who does all the gorey stuff but usally has an unknown identity untill the very end when he is reveled (usally as part of his plan he unmasks himself). There is a hero and a sidekick and a few helpers, which include a screaming girl, that get killed off one by one leaving one or two at the end to find out the identity and then proably die themselves.

Evaluation Of Prelim Task

I think our film went quite well. We used a wide variaty of camra shots and made sure we had no continuity errors alothough i think we did have one, where it jumps to fast from one persons line to the next and sounds a bit cut and rushed but there was no time to re-film it so we had to edit it as best we could to make it as good as we could. Also when we dont cut it soon enough and you get part of us talking and standing up. I think it would of been better if we had added music to it too but that would of created a copywrite issue and we hadnt learnt about garage band at the time. One the whole i think that the film turned out well we kept to the 180 degree rule as well which was the most important rule as our whole film consisted of us sat opposite each other at a table talking.

The Frank-furt School and The Hypodermic Needle Theory

The Frankfurt School

The school developed concerns about the power of the modern mass media (propaganda) in the early to mid 1920’s.
The founders of this school of thought were left-wing (neo-Marxist) and clearly under threat in the conduct of pre-war Nazi Germany, they moved to America and refined their model in an area of expanding media output in post-war America.

The Effects

The hypodermic needle model stressed the effects of the mass media on their audiences; the model owes much to the supposed power of the media (in particular film) to inject audiences with ideas/meanings, such was the thinking behind much of the Nazi propaganda that was evident in ‘Triumph of the will’ and similar films.
Totalitarian states and dictators are similar in their desire to have total control of the media because they think that having control of the media will help them control entire populations.

People worry that T.V can corrupt vulnerable members of the audience by watching –
-graphically sexual
-too violent
-or in other ways offensive
The best known of these groups in the UK was the national viewers and listeners association (Mary Whitehouse) which argued that T.V was a direct cause of deviant behaviour, especially in the young.
A resent model of audience suggests that there is a highly active making of media for a range of purposes designed to satisfy needs-
-information
-entertainment
-identification

The psychological basis for this model is the hierarchy of needs identified by Maslow.
The main areas that are identified in this uses and gratification model are –

- The need for information our graphical and social world (news and drama)

- The need for identity by using characters and personalities to define our sense of self and social behaviour (film and celebs)

- The need for social interaction though experiencing the relationships and interaction of others (soaps and reality T.V)

- The need for diversion by using the media for purposes of play and entertainment (game shows and quizzes)

Generic codes and Conventions of Romance

Romance films are often different to horror films in terms of mise en scene and are generally well lit and very calm in terms of camera work (no rushing and single shots, not alot of hand held shakey shots as they are used to build up tension and make the audience feel uneasy which is not needed for romance) The genre usally has two main charaters: A girl and A boy, which are eaither together or are together by then end and the whole film is about how they get toegether.

Ideology

Johnny Depp is the king of pirates and a god on the silver screen, he has the abbility to make anyone that watches a movie with him staring in it fall in love. He is a family man and has been with his french girlfriend for 12 years and although saying they will never get married their life together is very long term. He has two kids one girl and one boy, he tries to protect them from the media and says little about them. He loves music and has played the guitar since he was 14 being in several bands and in his early teens to mid twenties went through a 'sex drugs and rock and roll' stage. He belives in equality and tries not to let his celebrity status get in the way of him spending time with his family and doing what he wants to do.

Genre as a Marketing Tool

This is a poster of the film Drag Me To Hell, it has a dark background in keeping with the genre and fog which is associated with 'mystery' and often in the horror genre has things 'lerking' in it.

The houses in the background could show this doesn't happen in the woods or anywhere secret. It would imply that it takes place in a house or estate where there are other people around, which is a different kind of horror to things like 'The Blair Which Project' where the main aspect of the film prides itself on the fear people feel being on their own in a strange place e.g. the woods.

The foreground has the main charater in it (the fact that the main charater is a woman goes against Laura Mulvey's theory). As you can see the character is screaming which would imply fear and the hands around her seem like they are either holding her against her will or, by inference of the title, 'dragging her to hell'. The fire in the foreground could represent 'the fires of hell' which is also in keeping with the title of the film.

The title is in white which is a good contast with the dark background although doesn't have much connection to the horror genre whereas 'Hide And Seek' (another horror film) has red writing which would imply blood or gore.

Scopophilia and Voyeurism

Scopophilia is where we get 'pleasure' from looking at others as it can help us to understand life in general. As a child it helps develop understanding on how the world works and how to communicate.

Voyeurism is where you can see someone without being seen yourslef, e.g through a key hole or a crack in a door. We also get enjoyment of voyeurism when watching T.V or going to the movies and watching a film as we see the charaters live their lives yet they cant see us.

Male Gaze - Laura Mulvey

Laura Mulvey was a feminist that realised in Hollywood women were always seen as one of two things and nothing else,
A madonna (housewife, mother, sexualy unalavible, 'pure')
or a whore (sexually avalible, 'easy', sexually objectified)
The lead in the narrative is always a male hero and he seeks the female form in one of these ways.
This theory is still widely used in most narritives.

Theory of Propp

Vladamir Propp was a Russian critic who said that most films followed the same narritive structure and similar charater stucture.
Propp said that all charaters have a funtion and purpose that is followed in almost every film.
A hero- Main focus of narrative and seeking something out
A Villain- Seeks out to oppose the hero in his mission
A Donor- Assists the hero where he can using a certain 'trade'
A Dispatcher- Sends the hero on his quest
The False Hero- Disrupts the heros success
The Helper- Aids the hero as much as he can aka Sidekick
The Princess- Reward for the hero and usally the subject of a evil plot by the villain
The Princess's Father- Rewards the hero for his assistance to helping the princess

However nowadays this theory isnt always applied to films as now adays there is the use of a female hero and some charaters are left out as they wouldnt effect the narrative of the film.

Semiotics

Roland Barthes said that verbal language is just one way to communicate, he said that alot of thigs can communicate through meanings.
There are three stages to every sign:-
The Signifier- The physical form of the sign e.g A red rose
The Signified- The consept or idea that the signifier produces e.g A red rose= Love or passion
The Referent- The real message e.g A man giving a girl a rose= I love you

Types of shots

This is a medium close up, it is used to see the persons facial expressions but also its got their sholders in the shot so you can see part of their body language.

This is a close up shot it is used to see peoples facial expressions and helps you to see what the person is feeling.

This is a low angle shot it is used to show the person as having alot of power over and being superior to other charaters and the audience.

This is a high angle shot this does the opposite to the low angle shot and gives the impression of the subject having less power and being inferior to the other charaters and audience.

This is a two shot (group more than one) normaly it can have two (or more) people in it and this helps to establish relationships between the charaters, this shot is also good for dialogue as you can see all the people talking to one another and can see their facial expressions.

This is a long shot it is used to show the whole charater and their enviroment, it usually has the whole body and some room below their feet and above their head. It is used to show body language and how the charater is interacting with their enviroment.

This is an extreme close up it is used to see one particular part of the subjects face, e.g eyes, mouth, nose. It can show in depth emotion and make the audence even more in tune with the charaters feelings.

This is an over the sholder shot, it is used to see from behind what the charater is doing and gives the audience the charaters point of view. It is mot commonly used in dialogue.

This is a medium shot, it is like a long shot but the subject has been cut off at the knee, this puts more focus on the top of the body and facial expressions but you can still see some of the background.