Horror Genre

Me and my partner Dan have decided to base our movie opening around the horror genre. I will research different horror movie opening scenes for inspiration and ideas. Horror is mainly meant to scare or impose fear into the viewer. Horror films generally involve themes of death, the supernatural or mental illness. Horror films can be divided into different sub genres such as creature features (vampires, zombies etc), Paranormal, comedy, survival or slasher. Horror films can also incoporate other genres into them such as science/fiction, black comedy, mockumentary and thriller.

Some Horror films that i particularly like include:

Alien


Alien is a sci-fi/horror that is so affective due to how the monster is not revealed to the audience untill the end of the film. It moves the typical haunted house slasher into an even scarier setting; outer space. The alien creature spends the film picking off each member of the crew who have no weapons and are seemingly defenceless. The main character Ellen Ripley survives untill the end and remains a hugely popular heroin in the modern world of film.

Wolf Creek

Wolf creek is a slasher horror film however it differs from the traditional rules of a slasher. It tells th story of 3 british backpackers travelling in the outback of australia. I particularly like this film because of the location used, the outback is extremely remote and if you become lost then it is highly unlikely you will be found. This adds alot of tension to the film and adds a very creepy atmosphere to each scene. The film tends to focus on the fight for survival of the two girl characters against the sinister bad guy Mick Taylor. However it is the man character who survives the ordeal. The film doesnt show alot of gore, however when it does it is extremely realistic and gruesome. I think the film works well at being a horror film and includes many moments tat stick in your mind long after the film is over.

The Thing

The Thing is a classic horror movie that is set in an American Antarctic and depicts a group of men trying to fight an extra terrestrial organism that inhabits hosts bodies. The fact that the creature could be inside any of the survivors, meaning each character becomes more paraniod and less trustworthy as the film goes on. The clastraphobic feel of the antarctic location keeps the audience on the edge of their seat, and wondering where the creature is. The films strongest factor is the use of mechanics instead of CGI, making certain scenes scarier and more realistic.

Paranormal activity

Paranormal activity is a much more recently released horror film, that was made on a very small budget. The film follows the story of a couple who are being haunted by a demon. As the film progresses we see the haunting get worse. It was filmed mainly with a hand held camera, however does feature alot of footage using a stationary camera when filming the night time scenes. The film is scary due to its realistic appearance and use of sound, for example at night the couple are woken by loud noises caused by the demon.

I would also like to research into the particular horror sub-genre of zombies/post apocalyptic to get ideas for my film opening. To do this i will watch openings from films such as I am legend
and 28 days later. This will give me inspiration for the film opening.