The Conventions of the Horror Genre

The genre conventions that we can use to analyse the genre of horror are setting, technical codes, iconography, the narrative structure, character types and themes. Horror films try to create fear, horror and terror within in its audience. The main themes that are included are death, supernatural elements, gore, psychological and torture porn. There is usually always a central villain or main protagonist.

Starting with the convention of setting, it tells us about the setting and location of the film and how it is used to enhance the horror genre. For horrors they are commonly set in a secluded or isolated area, where nobody will know what is happening and possibly there is a secret kept within a community, and is perfect for the "monster" to commit his or her torturous and murderous acts. This may be a woodland area or a quiet secluded town where nothing much occurs. Houses and hotels which are often used in horror will have different levels with cellars and attics. These often have some history which may be revealed and become part of the narrative. This is seen in "The Shining" where the setting is a hotel which is secluded up on a mountainside, and a past event of a man murdering his wife and children comes back to haunt the hotel and ultimately the main character "Jack". These places are usually quite normal during the day but by night terrible events happen.

On to technical codes, which cover camerawork, editing and sound, they have a major part in understanding the horror genre. In camerawork it is used in an expressive manner often showing a lot of extreme close ups and point of view shots. This is done so we can identify with the character involved for close ups and show us their state of mind at particular stages through the film. With the "monster" these are used to feel too close to the "monster" than would be preferred, so the audience feels uncomfortable with his or her presence. With the victim the extreme close up is used so we can identify with the terror they are experiencing and to keep out the sight of possible danger from the "monster". This in turn makes the audience more hesitant as they don't know where the "monster" is and when he or she might strike. Point of view shots are primarily used to see what the "monster" can see from their perspective and be in the mind of the "monster". Hand- held cameras are often used for this to put us in the "monsters" shoes on looking at the likely defenceless victim.

The use of extreme high and low angle shots gives the impression of confusion of whereabouts and location and produces obscure shadow variations if the scene is dark. This can create more fear towards the pursued victim. Also canted camerawork is sometimes put into a scene to create disorientation usually towards the victim to seem as though the "monster" has the upper hand.

In editing, the speed of the cuts is a very important factor in making a horror film work. This is needed to create suspense and fear of the upcoming action before anything has actually occurred. Also jumping from opposites in shot distance, long shot to extreme close up will disturb the audiences' train of thought and cause them to jump. Occasionally in horror films jump cuts to the past and back to the present day are used to recall on how an event came to happen in the view of the victim.

Sound is what creates a film, without it we wouldn't understand what was fully happening and lose all aspects of tension, suspense and terror. Ambient sound is the key type of sound which makes a horror film what it is. Creaking doors, footsteps and thumping heartbeats all bring a horror film together and give it finesse.

The iconography is what we expect to see in the film. For horror there are certain characteristics that would be expected from the audience. The main obvious indications of horror are the colours black and red as they suggest danger, blood, evil and violence. The lighting in horror is generally low key and comes from different, odd angles to create unknown shadows, usually from below. Props would include bladed weapons, masks, and religious symbols like crucifixes, blood and supernatural aspects such as ghosts.

There are two basic paths taken for the narrative structure of a horror film. The first is normality, enigma, path to resolution and closure. Or hero, agent of change, quest, resolution and closure. Although through Todorov's theory there may be no closure to the film and could be a false closure. This is to continue the film as a sequel or create an unknown mythic story.

The main protagonist is commonly the final girl who plays the role of the hero and the victim as she survives the ordeal of the "monster".

The sub-genre of the "slasher" follows a strict structure, in which there is a psychotic killer created from the past events who returns to a location from a previous time to take revenge on a group of teenagers. The final girl survives as she seems to be not quite as stupid as the group and is often virginal and masculine.

Binary opposition is used, such as good versus evil, known versus unknown. An example is using a setting of a horror film in a fairground but having the evil aspect of the "monster" in that setting. This idea works well as the contrast makes the concept more interesting and powerful in terms of the underlying meaning of the story and needs to be understood in more depth. This gives more variety to the common evil character in a stereotypical place of evil acts being committed.

On to character types in the horror genre. There are only a few main types that feature in horror. The main protagonist, who is often a hero and victim. This is the character who is focused upon through the film and who we identify with. The final girl, who is often shown as displaying both sex characteristics and virginal. Also the "monster", who has a secret or turned psychopathic through past event in his or her life. The police and authorities, they are often ineffective in the narrative and shown to be quite stupid and have no clear idea about what is going on in the narrative.