Settings:
- Haunted houses.
- Abandoned hospitals/asylums.
- Cabins.
- Confined locations.
- Dark places.
- Night time.
Technical Codes:
- Camera movements: shaky cam, fast panning, tracking shots, etc.
- Fast pace editing to create suspense.
- Framing: close up shots of character’s scared reactions.
- Lighting: low lighting, flickering lights, handheld torches, etc.: Creates a feeling of worry since the antagonist cannot be seen.
- Music: dark and unsettling, sometimes uses complete silence to create the feeling of uneasiness.
Iconography:
- Symbolic themes and content which appears in different horror movies.
- The haunted house or area which the antagonist might occupy.
- Hidden face e.g. mask, disfigurement, off camera, shadows, etc.
- Archetypes: the screaming victim, the brave one, the one who wants to call the police, etc.
- The symbolic (or phallic symbol) murder weapon: knife, meat cleaver, machete, chainsaw, etc.
- Lots of blood and gore.
Narrative Structure:
- A predictable set of plot events.
- A main protagonist who must complete a task within a set amount of time.
- Tests of masculine prowess.
- Linear character development.
- Final showdown between main character and main antagonist.
Character Types:
- The Hero: mostly male, very masculine, show little emotion and are usually the ones who go after the main monster. Has become more of a female role in recent movies e.g. Cabin in the Woods, Evil Dead (2013), Drag me to Hell, etc.
- The Hysterical Character: Usually female, become hysterical after witnessing the first murder in film, wish to stay in a safe place away from danger and are usually one of the first to die. Her character type helps build suspense by relating to the fear the audience is feeling.
- The Non-Believer: Either sex, portrayed as the "funny one" in the group, overconfident, try to think of a logical explanation for why someone could be trying to kill them, etc. Causes the audience to become more scared once their voice of reason is silenced.
- The Antagonist: Can be either a male or supernatural creature e.g. zombie, werewolf, ghost, etc. Possibly wear a mask to hide their identity, mainly to scare the audience and characters. They create suspense throughout the film and use many common horror conventions to do so e.g. phallic weapon, jump-scares, no speaking, etc.
Themes:
- Masculinity e.g. the omega (hero) trying to conquer the alpha (antagonist).
- Psychological horrors e.g. dealing with loss, insomnia, etc.
- Revenge: The ghost of a murdered victim returns in a supernatural way to get back at their killer.
- Serial Killers: Certain individuals with possible psychological problems who wish to murder multiple victims, usually with a motive.
- Gore: A running theme for a majority of horror movies e.g. murder, torture
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