Old and new horror films how do they differ?

Compare two examples, from different decades, of any media genre of your choice. Describe and account for the major differences and similarities between them.

In this essay I will be looking at the differences and similarities of two horror films, Pet cemetery which was made in 1989 and The Ring 2 which was made in 2005. By doing this I will explore how the horror genre has developed other the past few years in terms of technology, characters and storyline. This analysis will become useful for me because I intend to produce a horror film so looking at the aspects of the genre which have remained the same or changed other the years is important.

To begin with both films were an adaptation of novels. The Ring was a Japanese novel written by Koji Suzuki while Pet cemetery was a novel written by Stephen King. 

Special effects are used effectively in The Ring to enhance the idea of the supernatural and how powerful it is. For example the scene where the water from the bathtub is floating upwards and swaying to the sound of the non diegetic sound effects giving off the impression that the ghost is controlling the water. On the other hand, in the film Pet cemetery, the power of the supernatural is shown through the storyline and the idea that a specific cemetery has the power of bringing back to life those who are buried there. However both films look at the negative consequences of meddling with the unknown, in the ring the main character has her son possessed after releasing the evil spirit from the well and videotape, and in the pet cemetery the little child is brought back to life but begins to kill people.

In The Ring 2, like the first film, technology plays a big role, not only on the production but to the storyline as well. This is because the film is about a girl that comes out of the TV to kill people, and they are informed that they will die through the phone, two popular technologies which are part of many people’s everyday life. This film takes advantage of the role these two technologies play on today’s society making it successful at inflicting fear on its audience. However it also challenges modern technology by ignoring other ways a film can be saved or spread, such as internet downloading and DVDs and instead uses an older technology, a videotape. Despite this the film company DreamWorks has recently announced that they would be making The Ring 3D, something that the Japanese film company have already put into practise. This shows that the film is keeping up-to-date with the recent trend of films being released both in 2D and 3D.It also shows that the film producers have recognised the potential the film’s concept has of becoming even more frightening with the addition of 3D, since it complements the idea of the girl coming out of the TV and out of the screen as well.

Both films explore the idea of children being the threat. They both challenge the image children have of being innocent and in need of protection by making them the killers in both movies. In The Ring the ghost who kills people is a young girl that was killed by her adopted mother while in the pet cemetery the killer is a little boy who died but was brought back to life. However the difference lies on how these children were portrayed. Gage at the start of the film was a normal little boy who unfortunately died, he became a killer involuntary and had no objective, and he just killed because he was evil, while Samara had always been a strange young girl who had a strange effect on animals and was possibly possessed by an evil spirit since birth, she was killed by her adopted mother and killed others for revenge and the desire to have a mother. The fear of children was a trend which began in the 1970s. The reason for this was suggested in David J skal’s novel ‘The monster show’ where he said that this fear of children was a result of the introduction of the contraception pill.

Live Evil: Storyline Updated

Camera focuses on a news paper which shows 3 teenagers, who have died mysteriously. The camera slowly begins to zoom out and the newspaper is suddenly covered by a book which the main girl was reading. Main girl hears a knock on the door and walks out of the room.

The door swings back and ‘Pandora Pictures’ appears on the screen, and the whole screen goes black.

Scene two

Then an image slowly fades in of hands wearing black gloves with a distinctive bracelet, putting a DVD inside a black DVD case which has the main characters name on it Rebecca Lucky.

Then there is a cut to the door with the same DVD on the floor. The main girl picks it up and goes to the living room to watch it.

Movie

We teenagers are walking with equipment in a park....... 3 hours later inside movie

They are sitting in a circle with their tent readymade telling each other horror stories. One of them has the idea of going to explore.

That person takes too long and male friends decided to go look for him.

“I’ll go check why she’s taking so long........You know if I go you probably won’t see me again...in one piece that is” he says laughing.

“Okay just make sure you don’t conveniently fall over when something chases u”

30 minutes later inside movie.

Main girl gets worries and goes to find out what’s taking them so long. While walking in the dark she finds out she’s in a cemetery she’s suddenly she’s knocked down and the camera falls on the floor facing her she begins to crawl over to grab it but before she can she’s dragged away from it.

Scene 3 (u write it)

Main girl gets freaked out because it’s her in the movie and stops the movie, then leaves the house. While she’s walking around she gets really short flashbacks of the movie and newspaper. Then she realises where she is...in front of the cemetery the same one from the movie. When she realises there’s a zoom to her shocked face.

Then there is a cut to the living room. Her sister comes into the room and sits on the remote control and the film begins again.

Movie:

Main girl manages to escape from the things grip by kicking hand away, grabs camera then begins to run.

Trips over then has a flash back of when she’s says don’t conveniently trip over. She screams and blood splashes on to the camera lens.

Scene four (me)

Care taker of cemetery appears out of nowhere then asks girl “can I help you”

“ Where the way out?”

“That way” he says pointing; camera zooms onto his hand and sees the same bracelet and gloves as the one from the person who put the DVD into the case.

Over shoulder shot of guy smiling as she walks away.

She gets lost and hears weird noises the camera does a 360 degree turn around her then it zooms onto her feet where a hand grabs her, camera zooms out and we hear her scream. Then the camera focuses on the soil to indicate that she has been dragged into it.

Controversial Films: American History X

FILM REVIEW:The Body (Short film)

Title: The Body

Main actors: Emma Johnson, Blair Vaux-Nobes

Year of production: 2012

Company: Redland Pictures

Produced by: Kirk Redgate

This short film is about a young couple whose peace is disrupted when her husband suddenly loses his mind and becomes determined to end her life.

This film fits under the horror film category because it conforms to many conventions of horror films, for example there is a lot of emphasis placed on the fact that the girl is alone at home with her husband and there is nobody to help her. Diegetic sound is used to support this at the very start of the film when everything is silent and all we can hear is the clock ticking away, giving the impression that the main girl is alone at home and leaving the audience to wonder where her partner has gone or what might have happened to him. Isolation is a common element used in horror films to make the characters seem helpless and generate sympathy from the audience who hope that somebody might show up.

Another effective use of diegetic sound is during the fight scene, where we can hear the sound of the bottle breaking on his heard and her head banging on the door. In this scene its interesting how they chose not to use non diegetic sound to build up tension and instead left only the synchronous sounds. This was very effective since the sound of them fighting were quite loud and could be heard clearly, again showing the complete silence around them.

Another horror film convention present in the film is the asynchronous sound of a heavy rain storm outside the house. Stormy weather is very commonly used in horror films since lightening can be an effect use of lighting where the room is quickly lit up and we see where the threat is but the main character doesn’t. However in this film this convention has caused a continuity problem, this is because when the characters went outside, the garden wasn’t wet like it should have been.  

Mise-en scene also contributed to the scariness of the film by adding normal everyday objects we usually wouldn’t find scary and placing them in a different context such as the black cat circling the main character. Black cats are often seen as a symbol of bad look so this could have been a code indicating that something unfortunate was about to happen. There was also the use a Christmas tree where the villain was sitting under, usually we would associate a Christmas tree with colourful lights and gifts but the black and white effect made the treat look creepy by casting shadows, making it more suitable for a horror movie. The fact that the villain was under the tree where presents would usually be placed could symbolise the fact that the main girl will receive an unexpected gift which in this case is her husband’s sudden personality change.

Slated camera angles are effectively used to illustrate how disoriented the villain is. The scene where the camera is following him and imitating his movements as he wobbles towards her, gives the impression that he is not himself that something is causing him to act that way, possibly the omniscient  behind the camera. This is reinforced by the non-diegetic music that plays while he is walking which is repetitive and gives off the impression of being hypnotized.

The antagonist’s unnatural situation is further supported by a low angle shot which reveals his face for the first time to the audience and allows us to see that he seems to be in a trance as his eyes have become fully white.

Superimposing was also used appropriately to show a transition from one scene (her getting out of bed) to her another (her opening the door). It gave the impression of her coming out of her safety zone and entering the danger zone.

The narrative structure of this film is Linear with a close structure because it has a clear beginning where non-diegetic material is used which is a note introducing to the audience what the problem is and what has or will happen, the middle is a constant rise and fall of action where the victim escapes but then is suddenly cornered or caught by their attacker, at the end of the film it is clear to the audience that the  girl did not survive since at the start of the film the note stated that they both died.

The Body conforms to two theories. The first is Levi strauss’s binary opposites theory because there is a clear clash between two opposing forces in this film which is the women who is the victim trying to safe herself and the man who is the villain who is trying to kill the girl. The second theory is the The enigma code since in the beginning of the film the audience is presented with text which describes an event that has taken place, this hooks the audience because they become eager to find out what happens next or how the event took place.

The female lead supports the representation that women are weak and emotional. This is shown through the fact that she is the helpless female victim in the horror film, which again conforms to conventions. The cutaway used to show her  panicking and struggling to open the gate while he is calmly limping after her shows that women are emotional since she is letting her emotions get in the way of her successfully opening the gate.

The male lead conforms to the representation that man are aggressive. This is clearly supported by the fact that he is made the villain who is trying to kill the girl and does not hesitate to act violently towards her, for example the scene where he bangs her head on the wall. However depending on whether he was being controlled or was possessed by some kind of supernatural force could suggest that he was weak or vulnerable, which goes against the stereotype that man or powerful.

I believe that this film should be rated 12 because it contains moderate violence which isn’t shown in great detail. Despite giving references to easily accessible weapons the scenes do not show the characters using them against each other such as the hammer, wood block.

Presentation of Our Initial Ideas

This is the first presentation we did where we introduced our inital ideas to the rest of the class. Here we talk about the storyline and how we plan on making our film work. We also pointed out why we chose to do a horror film and how we intended to conform to the conventions of our film's genre.

Conventions of a horror film

Conventions are things that are generally done in a certain way, over and over again. Each film genre has its set of conventions which the audience expect to come across when watching a movie, since they are already familiar with them.
However sometimes film producers choose to challenge these conventions in an attempt to make the public curious about the film since it doesn’t fall into the typical formula.
These are the some of the conventions of a horror film.
Setting:
Horror films tend to place the characters into isolated areas to give them the impression of being helpless since there is nobody around to help them. For example abandoned houses, hotels and theme parks as well as dark woods and cabins.
Another common factor associated with horror film settings is places having a dark history such as haunted houses where families have been killed etc.

Camera shots and angles
- Handheld cameras are often used in documentary style horror films such as Paranormal Activity. This technique causes the film to become very shaky and prevents the audience from having a clear image of what is going on. It can also be used as a way of allowing the audience to feel involved with the film in scenes where the camera is filming when she shouldn’t be or when the camera is accidently facing a different direction, revealing something to the audience that the character doesn’t know.
-POV (point of view) shots are often used to allow the audience to see the world through the antagonist's eyes. This could be used to show that the victims are being watched or chased.
-High and low angles can be used to show that characters are being watched and targeted. It can also be used to show nightmares and fear.
Lighting:
Horror films are usually very dark and contain a lot of shadows. This helps to build up suspense and tension in the scenes since it prevents the characters from seeing clearly. Which again gives them the impression of being helpless. e.g dark rooms and streets as well as narrow alleyways.

Sound:
Non diegetic and diegetic sound can be used to build suspense and tension especially if there’s a sudden change in tempo such as footsteps. It can also be used to show how the character is feeling .e.g heartbeat, or as an element of a jump scare.
Common Events/Scenes:
-One of the most common opening scenes for horror films is the death of a particular character which then leads to the main story such as Jaws or The Ring.

-Jump scares are a very popular way of scaring the audience while they watch the film causing them to 'jump' out of their seats. Most of the time this has nothing to do with the actual threat it's usually  a loud noise or an object falling on the floor or even a character appearing out of nowhere.
-Something that often happens in horror films is the characters conveniently ignoring what is going on despite there being an obvious threat. This often comes in the form of other characters failing to believe what another character has found out or experienced.
-Another thing is the power going out, usually at the most frightening moments, this can be used as suspense since the audience don’t know whether the character has been caught.
-The phone lines are cut or the battery runs out. This is to prevent the character from asking for help, which often results in someone having to leave the hiding place in hope of find help. This leads to the vehicle conveniently not working and then the character is attacked from behind.
-Another thing that is frequently is one of the characters actually daring to investigate a strange noise somewhere, despite the fact that it should be the last thing you do in that situation.
-There is also the 'This is the part that you runaway' scenes where one of the characters always manage to trip over a perfectly clear floor or run up the stairs to lock themselves in a room instead of going outside.
-Characters looking outside windows while the killer appears behind them or breaks through the glass to grab them are also a typical scenes in horror films.
-Many horror films also included the characters getting lost after asking a suspicious person for directions or taking a short cut.
Character types:
- Main protagonist who is often the hero/ victim of the film and ends up surviving or giving their life to protect another which is the only survivor.
-The immature troublemaker teenagers that always get killed.
-Antagonist who is often a serial killer or some kind of supernatural being such as a ghost, alien, monster etc.
-Creepy looking children or local people.
-Police officers.
What conventions will we be conforming to or challenging in our film:
Conform:

Characters:
We will have a suspicious looking local which will be the care taker and the cause for everything bad thats going to happen.

Events/Scene:
-We will have one of the characters check out why somebody is taking too long to comeback and they will become victims as well.
-One of the characters in our film will conveniently fall over

Sound:
We will use non diegetic sound to increase the tension in the film and the tempo will vary from slow to quuick.

Camera:
Half of our film will be filmed using a handheld camera.

Challenge:
Lighting:
Natural ambient lighting will be used since half the film will be during the day and the other half during the night. The attacks will take place during the day as well as the night.

Live Evil:Initial Ideas for Story-line

This is our initial  ideas for the film's story-line.
The film will begin with the main character watching a horror film on TV.
The horror film that the character is watching,will be in a documentary style where everything is filmed from the characters point of view with their camera.
The film will be about three friends who go camping in the park but discover that it’s actually an abandoned cemetery, they get lost and it gets dark. The friends start to disappear until the ghost finally comes for her (the one with camera); at that moment the camera falls on the floor and allows the girl watching the movie to see that it’s actually her. She stops the film since she is freaked out and goes out for a walk.

Meanwhile a family member comes into the room and accidently turns on the movie again (sits on controller) she then begins to watch the film, where the main character eventually dies.

After the movie ends the main girl who was walking around aimlessly, realises that she has somehow ended up in front of the same cemetery in the film.

She walks into the cemetery and then stops, at that moment a hand comes from under the soil and grabs her feet. After that we only hear her scream but  then the camera focuses on the soil with looks messy to indicate that she has been pulled underground.

We wanted our film to leave a deep impression on our target audience, which are mainly teenagers not only from our local community but other parts of London too.
So we decided to pick locations which our local audience regularly pass by or have been to before, which are our school, local cemeteries and park. We want our film to scare them to the point of them remembering our film whenever they walk pass these locations at least for a short while.
Teenagers from other parts of London can still relate to our chosen film locations as they are places which they most likely have been to or passed by.

BBFC Classifications

The BBFL are the British Board of Film Classification, they decide whether a film is appropriate for the public to watch and determine what age group it is most suitable for. 
Their tag-line is "film ratings you can trust" this is because they provide the public with knowledge regarding the movies contents since each rating has a set of characteristics that a film needs to have in order to full under that category. This informs parents and give them more power to make the right decisions when choosing what film to show their children.

Universal – Suitable for all

In order for a film to be rated U (Universal) it must contain the following characteristics:

-The movie scenes should not display any discriminatory behaviour towards characters. However it can be accepted, if it is being used to show that discrimination is wrong and that can be clearly seen by the child.

-Scenes that contain references to illegal drug abuse are not accepted unless they are harmless and infrequent. They can also be used for educational purposes.

-Scary scenes that risk causing unnecessary anxiety to children are not allowed. Therefore they must be mild and brief.

-The film should not contain any negative or unsafe behaviour that could be imitated by young children. (e.g easily accessible weapons.)

-The language used should only contain mild swearing which is rarely used.

-Natural nudity may be used infrequently, but with no sexual context.

-Only mild sexual behaviour (e.g kissing) and references (e.g making out) is acceptable.

-The problematic themes can be included into the movie. However the way the issue is dealt with should be sensible and suitable to the younger audience.

-Minimum violence only, but it must be in the form of small threats and danger.

It is important for the film to meet all of the above in order to minimise the chances of children (4 years and other) who watch the movie from becoming upset and from the movie having a negative effect on the these children. Overall the film should have a positive moral storyline and offer the child reassurance to any kind of threat faced by the characters.

PG-Parental Guidance

PG refers to films which can be viewed by the general public including children aged 8 and over. However parents are still advised to consider whether the issues rose can upset their younger children.

A PG film must meet the following requirements:

-The film must not contain scenes discriminatory behaviour towards characters especially if the children are able to readily identify. However it can be accepted, if it is being used to show that discrimination unacceptable or within a historical context.

-Harmless references to illegal drugs can only be accepted if its purpose is to carry an anti-drug message.

-Scenes which contain frightening content must remain relatively short. These scenes can be justified with the use of fantasy settings.

-There should be limited detail to potentially dangerous behaviour which children are likely to copy.

-Violent scenes should not contain references to potential weapons which can be easily accessed. These scenes should also only contain moderate violence, but it must be justified by its context (e.g history, comedy).

 -The language used should only contain mild swearing.

-Natural nudity is acceptable, but with no sexual context.

-Sexual activity should be discreet and infrequent.

-If film features more serious themes such as domestic violence nothing in their treatment should condone unacceptable behaviour.

12-Suitable for 12 years and over

Films that are classified as ‘12A’can only be viewed by those aged 12 and above. This is because the movie’s content may include material which parents might find unsuitable for the younger viewers. However Children under 12 are still able to watch the movie if they area companied by an adult, in this case the adult is responsible for judging whether the film is suitable for that child.

A 12A film most have the following characteristics:

-The film may contain discriminatory behaviour. However it cannot be approved by the film as a whole. In cases where that behaviour is aggressive, it must be clearly condemned.

-Scenes containing drug misuse should be uncommon and with no instructional detail.

-Frightening scenes can offer a reasonable amount of physical and psychological threat. However disturbing scenes should be infrequent and relatively short.

-Scenes containing dangerous behaviour which can be copied by the public, such as self-harming and suicide should be short and not provide too much detail. These scenes cannot show these issues as harm free and painless. Weapons that can be easily accessed should not be glamorised.

-The language used can include moderate swearing, but strong language must be infrequent.

-Scenes where nudity is used in a sexual context should be brief and discreet. References to this type of behaviour should be suitable for young teenagers.

-The film can include mature themes; however the way these issues are dealt with should be suitable for younger teenagers.

-The film can include moderate violence however these scenes should not dwell on detail. Gory moments can be included if justified by its context. However there should not be an exaggerated use of blood and focus on injuries suffered by characters. Sexual violence can only be implied or briefly and discreetly indicated with strong contextual justification.

15-Suitable only for 15 years and over

If a film is rated 15 it can only be viewed and rented by those who are older than 15.

A 15 rated film must have the following features:

-If the film contains discriminatory behaviour, it should not support that type of behaviour over all.

-Scenes where drugs are being taken are acceptable however they must not promote or support the misuse of drugs. On the other hand misuses of dangerous substances such as aerosols or solvents are unlikely to be accepted.

-Scenes containing dangerous behaviour which can be copied by the public 9e.g hanging,suicide) should be short and not provide too much detail. These scenes cannot show these issues as harm free and painless. Weapons that can be easily accessed should not be glamorised.

-The film can contain frequent use of strong language. (e.g fuck) However the stronger terms such as ‘cunt’ can only be used if justified by its context, if they are repeatedly used then they are unlikely to be accepted.

-Sexual activity can be included but without strong detail. Strong verbal references to sexual behaviour are unlikely to be accepted.

-There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.

-The film can cover any type of theme as long as they are treated in a way which is suitable to 15 year olds.

-The film can contain strong violent scenes; however these should not focus on the infliction of pain or injury. Sexual violence must be discreet and have a strong contextual justification.

Horror sequences can include strong threat and menace, but they must not be sadistic or sexualised.

Genre:Drama

 Outline of genre: 
-It is often focused on human conflict.
-The tension is often between the protagonist and forces in the characters life such as themselves, the environment they are in prison/society and another character.
-It provides the audience with a visual and aural experience in order to generate some kind of emotional response from the viewer and cause them to think about the issues focused on.
-There is usually a protagonist and an antagonist.

There are four main genres of drama:
Tragedy: The story-line is told through action rather than narrative. It is focused on the serious consequences faced by the character as a result of their actions. The story often deals with themes around sensitive topics which are seen as a human problem universally. The protagonist of the story usually has a tragic flaw such as too much pride. However they only realize how serious that flaw is when it has already caused their downfall. During the drama the audience is meant to feel pity and fear for the protagonist while still leaving the theatre uplifted and enlightened from how the events have been resolved.

Comedy: The story-line is supposed to give a sense of renewal and rebirth which is why they usually end in a marriage and the birth of a child. This genre (dark comedy) allows the audience to be left with a grim truth through more playful and humours methods such as having the characters behave in comic and absurd ways. A romantic comedy acts on the idea that people do crazy things when they are in love.

Melodrama: Different from a tragedy, the problems faced by the main character is due to forces outside their control, they don’t feel responsible or guilt since they are often just victims of circumstances. There is also a clear difference between the good and bad characters. The overall story ends with a strong moral judgement where the good character is reward and the bad character is punished.

Tragicomedy (hybrid of comedy and tragedy): The story-line tries to picture human life as realistic as possible, by having character change their minds and act out of characters and end the story at unpredictable times. The characters and plots or not absolute but nonjudgmental. This is to illustrate the complex dynamic of human behaviour and that society is constantly changing.

Shawshank Redemption 
The genre of the movie is drama because it covers universal human problems such as rape, suicide and the injustice of the law that are quite sensitive and generates an emotional response from the audience.
When the old man committed suicide the scene was quite strong and caused us as an audience to feel sad and pity him for having to go through such extremes as a result of not being able to adjust to the new environment. Despite the fact he was not the main character, his interaction with the main character helped the audience to build an emotional attachment with him.

http://www.ehow.co.uk/info_8528738_characteristics-drama-genres.html