Becca Case
A2 Media
Iconography of horror genre- Both
Horror films are usually focus on the juxtaposition between normality and abnormality. Which can be conveyed through the setting therefore many horror films use abandoned houses contrasted with a stereotypical house to depict this. The stereotypical houses convey normality and they are usually shown at the beginning of the film to create a sense of equilibrium and the audience are supposed to be on the side of those who live in this house and they seem to be the victims. The abandoned house creates an eerie and menancing atmosphere within the film. We associate this house with antagonistic features and it has connotations of danger therefore we associate abandoned house with something bad that will most probably happen to the protagonists.
Many horror films use makeup and prosthetics in order to emphasise the abnormality that horror films aim to create. The antagonist is mainly the one who has these prosthetics and it shows the contrast between the normality of the victims and the abnormality of the horror that they encounter. Having the antagonist in prosthetics also allows the audience to see the difference between the characters in the film and they will have a distinct look therefore the audience is able to identify them as the other characters in the film can change throughout.
Possession is usually used in horror films, possessed children have become commnoly used in horror in recent years. Many of them are possessed through an evil spirit that they have come across due to the fact that children are quite inqusitive and because of this they have found secret doors/places where these evil spirits are. The use of possessed children is interesting as children are seen as vulnerable, innocent people and they end up being overcome by these demons that turn them into horrific creatures.
Dark forests are another location that are commonly used in horror films as it shows the theme of the unknown and it helps to create or build tension.
Blood and gore is still used in some horror films such as Saw. However recently horror films have moved away from blood as this doesn't seem to scare as many people any more unlike demonic and psychological horrors because they seem to relate more to the audience and makes them feel like this could happen to them
Graveyards are not used as much in horror films now as they do not really bring as much fear to the audience as they may have some years ago with people coming back from the dead etc. However crows are used still usually as a motif throughout the film. Crows can symbolise death and therefore there are shown sometimes surrounding a house signifying that someone in the house is going to die at some point in the film.
Animalistic figures are used in horror films to empahsise abnormality. This can be seen in the film Mama where the two girls begin to act in an animalistic way because they have been living with a demonic creature who acts like an animal therefore they are shown to be uncivilised. Figures such as this one tend to create an uneasy atmosphere among the audience and therefore they are more terrified.
Fire is sometimes used in horror films with the theme of demons or evil spirits. For example in Case 39 the protagonist attempts to burn down her house with the demonic child Lillith still inside hoping to kill the evil spirit. It is used to remove the demon in order to restore some equlibrium however it is not frequently used.
Witches were used in horror films a long time ago as they were seen as supernatural beings and were believed to be real therefore this created a lot of fear among the audiences. However over time the fear about witches has declined and they are no longer seen as an aspect of terror.