Overview of the Horror film genre

The horror genre is created with the intention to scare or startle the audience. The horror genre can take many different forms, some of these are shown in the photo below.

One aspect of an opening which I noticed a lot during the opening sequences I watched was, the red lettering which was used usually in a large bold font. As well as the font being bold, the words would usually be in block capitals. I believe that they have made the lettering red in order to give connotations of death and blood. This would lead the audience to believe that they should be prepared to see gory scenes. 


Furthermore I also noticed that a lot of the opening scenes were set during the evening. This had evidently been done in order to create a mysterious and spooky undertone to the film as, this means that the audience is more tense as objects in the frame become a lot less clear and means that tension is built throughout the scene.


Also, instead of revealing a complete story the opening scenes of the horror films that I studied set out a mystery that the characters must resolve and discover in the most part. Whether the mystery will be an action taken by a certain character in the film or just an evil spirit or creature, the director will always leave us wondering how the dilemma will be resolved. 


As well as the visuals, the music plays an integral part in building up tension and suspense in order to entice the audience and keep them on the edge of their seats. The music is usually very high pitched and slow which gradually builds up which makes the viewer aware that the film is building up to action. 


Furthermore, a certain item such as a knife may be used in a horror film as it connotes pain and suffering- this is called iconography as we relate the specific object with a certain action/feeling.


Finally, the mise en scene is a key element for action/adventure films as what is on screen can change the perspective of the film. For example, if the film is shot during the night and is dark this means it seems more mysterious and gloomy than if it was shot during the day.