Genre Investigation

I researched into the different sub-categories that are included in horror films and also the common conventions found within urban drama films.

Horror

Slashers.

• usually involve a psychopathic killer.
• stalking involved.
• killing a sequence of victims in a violent manner. 
• often has a tool/weapon of choice.
• the killer is usually masked.
• lots of blood and gore.
• Examples: 'Friday the 13th' and 'the Texas chainsaw massacre'.

Gothic.

• may have a romance that develops within the horror film.
• elements of both goth and horror.
• Examples: 'Let me in'.

Psychological.

• relies on characters' fears, guilt, beliefs, emotional instability.
• eerie sound effects.
• 'facing demons'.
• mystery contained which builds tension throughout the film.
• emotive.
• contains plot twists.
• relies heavily on the main characters' psychological state.
• Examples: 'shutter island'.

Supernatural/Paranormal.

• demonic presence, e.g. demons, ghosts.
• possession.
• usually stars a 'normal' family at the beginning or 'normal' characters.
• mystery and suspense.  
• lots of non-diegetic sounds e.g. doors and floorboards creaking. 
• themes including ghosts, spirits, demons etc.
• Examples: 'Insidious' and 'the exorcist'

Thriller.

• narrative to create enigma and make the audience jump.
• quiet scenes with sudden diegetic and non-diegetic sounds.
• suspense and anticipation.
• may be located an isolated place.
• a mix of slow and fast paced editing to create tension.
• Examples: 'the cabin in the woods'.

Science Fiction.

• often deals with paranormal elements.
• not just limited to scientists and experiments.
• can deal with the fear to technology.
• Examples: 'alien and the mist'.

Zombie.

• portray viral, reliving corpses or mindless humans.
• tension and suspense.
• apocalypse. 
• Examples: 'night of the living dead' and 'day of the dead'.

Urban Drama.

• drugs and weapons e.g. knives, guns etc.
• main character will usually be from a troubled background and/or dysfunctional family.
• gang violence.
• lots of tracking shots. 
• typically filmed in a run down, urban area e.g. London estates.
• main character is typically young and male.
• lots of diegetic sounds.
• colloquial dialect spoken between characters.
• non-diegetic sound used mainly for transitions of fade as memories or flashbacks.
• Examples: 'adulthood' and 'fighting'.

Children used within Horror Films

I researched into why children are so commonly used in horror films. A lot of my research led me to paranormal films and the element that children are seen as innocent and so the fact that children are used as the antagonists and usually embodying a sense of evil flips this expectation of them being the face of innocence on its head and this subversion in conclusion usually shocks and scares the audience.

In films such as 'Orphan' and 'Insidious' both use children in their films to display demonic presence to the audience through children to give a underlining innocent tone to the film up until the children are shown as not innocent and quite the opposite.


In some cases children are also used to connect with the audience if the target audience is of an older group as the audience may be able to relate to the parents of the child if they have children of their own.











In conclusion the main reason that children are commonly used in horror films is to shock the audience with the stereotypical idea that children are innocent and placing them in horror films flips this idea around and has a bigger impact on the audience rather than an adult being shown as the main antagonist in horror films.