Horror Movie Conventions

By Paige Livingston

Sub genres

• A sub genre is a smaller category within the genre itself, they then perform a specific work for the larger genre.

Eg:-extraterrestrial

-slasher-monster

-supernatural-gore

Horror hybrids

• A hybrid is something of a mixed origin or composition. Two film genres are combined together to create a new mix of both genres.

Eg. Combination of extra-terrestrial and supernatural

Slasher films

• Involve a psychopathic killer, that usually have a killing line of victims, this then gets done in an extremely violent manner with a particular weapon that gets used every kill.

• Various weapons used, lots of gore involved.• Numerous low and high angle shots used to

display fear and vulnerability. Close ups are then used to show emotions, reactions and facial expressions.

Supernatural films

• Unusual events that occur that appear beyond normal expectations of daily life.

• Villains then have unbelievable abilities that are definitely not normal for a normal human.

• Plenty of special effects to portray the abilities of the villain.

• The lighting used is not natural and can be very expressive.

2 films of same sub genre but released different times

• The Tenant (1976)• Babadook (2014)• These two films are the same sub genre (thriller/horror)• They both involve either the main character or the next

in line, to experience paranoia or hallucination of spirits or imagination.

• In Babadook, the presence around her is from within the book ‘Babadook’ that is read to her son every night and he then becomes obsessed and drawn to it by the presence.

Was the sub genre re-invigorated?

• The sub genre that I picked before hand (thriller/horror) is popular within horror films so therefore it will always be a popular sub genre with numerous films released a year in this particular sub genre.

• As the films in this sub genre all follow a similar idea, the directors and producers need to think of different way to present this in narrative styles.