TheBiscuitBlog: The Conventions of the Horror Genre

Our society is driven a lot by fear. The fear of government, fear of unknown, and the fear of ourselves are just minor examples of this drive. Hence, media also portrays fear. One genre of media drives on fear for its storytelling. That genre is horror and is what I will be researching about.

Audiences come to see the horror to feel a sense fear or unsecurity, through a form that does not directly danger them. In horror, fear is instilled in the audience through a variety of measures. For instance, the act of suspense creates an uneasy feeling for audiences. Suspense can be created through a rise in music, unesasy atmospheres, and more, but honestly just depends on context. Suspense is found everywhere in horror. Many horror media shows a negative side of humanity, often showing disturbing killers, clowns, aliens, dolls, ect. Fear may be felt in a scene not even intended to be scary, but the genre makes it easy to generalize fear as "bad". Horror films tend to be negative.

Typical horror productions use a variety of techniques to communicate their story. For instance, darker lighting is used to communicate their dark messages and create a sense of insecurity within audiences. Shots and angles which portray gore and disturbing content in a gruesome manner can be a way a director tells their narrative. In the world of sound, an overload or even a mute scene may create a sense of suspense or fear, making it a production technique used in some films of the genre. Other sounds like stings, screams, or blood splatter also create an increased sense of fear, a common trope for the genre.

During marketing, horror films target a younger demographic since they may be more involved in the thrill of fear. Trailers for horror films typically include much more intense scenes from the movie to entice the audience into watching the movie since they see the film as much more intense than it actually is. Typically, trailers exaggerate the intensity of the films.

Nope (2022)

In this horror film by Director Jordan Peele, two siblings attempt to record and get evidence of a strange living creature in the sky. However, the creature is extremely dangerous and causes harm and trauma to characters in the fim. This film often uses its sound design to create suspense for intense scenes. Some shots also show the gruesome nature of how the creature kills. For instance, one shot displays a variety of humans being sucked up through the stomach of the creature, instilling fear in the audience through this disgusting scene.

A Quiet Place (2018)

In this horror film directed by John Krasinski, a family must survive in a post-apocaliptic world where any sound created by members alerts monsters to hunt down and kill them. In this film, the abscene of sound creates an uneasy atmosphere, since typical films create multitudes of sounds, but, this film does not, instilling fear into the viewers. The plot also amounts to a great amount of fear, as the mother must deliver a baby during this apocalyptic time. This film is a great example of unique techniques to create an uneasy atmosphere.

Other examples of horror films include:

Hereditary (2018)