Horror
When it comes to people's greatest fears or phobias such as insects, the dark, or scary mythical creatures created from folk tales made long ago, the horror genre implements these things in movies which attracts a vast majority of people who would want a quick adrenaline rush which no other movie genre can do. The way horror movies interacts with the audience such as suspense or a jump scare is something that makes the genre unique.
The Poltergeist (1982)
Genre Techniques
A technique that all horror movies do are jump scares. This approach to make a film scary is what the whole audience expects to see a lot of when they enter the theatre, therefore if a movie does it right, and not just adds pointless jump scares such as a loud noise without context, then the movie can be a masterpiece.
That being said, the genre relies heavily on sound which is used in horror movies for many reasons: it can create suspense, a loud sound on top of a scary scene builds the scariness of a scene, it could also include no sound at all which could also build up to a potentially intense scene.
Annabelle: Creation (2017)
Characters
Characters that usually are chosen to be the main conflict in horror movies vary from ghosts, to animals, to even creatures created from folk-tales. These characters are always the antagonists of the story who taunt the protagonists throughout the whole movie. The antagonists in this genre have two different faiths, either they are defeated by a good character, or they escape and live which allows the production to move on into a sequel.
Examples
Us (2019)
Us revolves around a family who try to survive their dopellgangers who are led by one who's jealous about the normal family for living a regular life. The mythical creatures follow the protagonists around whom inevitably stop the evil character, which is a typical faith for horror characters. This movie successfully allows the audience to feel uncomfortable in certain parts, making the film a great example of a horror film.
Jaws (1975)
Jaws is about a shark who again, taunts a small town by ferociously killing the town's population slowly. The animal stalks the whole town up until the protagonist of the film kills the shark. The noises used on top of the score create a sense of suspense throughout the whole film, creating wonderful scares, making Jaws one of the most popular horror films of all times.
Institutional Conventions
Regarding horror movie trailers, they typically consist of the video leading up to the introduction of the antagonist in a scary suspenseful manner, showing one of the jump scares of the film which is meant to intrigue a potential audience. Posters show the antagonist which is done to show consumers what film would scare them the most.
Horror Films That Would Make People Fanatics to the Genre:
- Halloween
- Friday the 13th
- The Conjuring
- The Shining
- The Silence of the Lambs
Reference