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Horror Cinematography

Horror Cinematography is the art of capturing the truly terrifying and heart jumping moments of horror movies and eliciting a response of horror from the viewer. If done well, the cinematography of the film draws the viewers in and creates an array of frightening emotions. Fear, terror, goose bumps, racing heart, screams, jumps, and hair-raising suspense are just a few reactions the horror films will try to create. The key in making the perfect horror film lies in the cinematography of the movie. If done wrong, it is nearly impossible to get the reactions desired. Done right, screams will fill the theater lobby.

In the 1931 movie Frankenstein[[1]], known as one of the world’s most recognizable movie monsters, the directors focused on makeup and plot to elicit the fear reactions they wanted from the audience. The movie, based on the book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, was one of earliest American horror films. This movie was filmed in the early stages of cinematography. The black and white film created a barrier for the director to overcome. Filming in black and white limited the way the directors could interact with the audience. The film scared audiences everywhere. Lighting and angles were used to create scenes of high intensity and extreme contrasts scenes. Although this horror film is very famous, it is not an example of quality horror cinematography. In 1931, it might have been the scariest movie yet produced, but as year has progressed, advanced enough to help horror filmmakers create truly scary horror movies.

Alfred Hitchcock's classic 1960 movie Psycho[2] took the horror film industry by storm. Hitchcock created a film that included sexuality and blood. Although his film was in black and white, his use of angles, lighting, and new aspects of movie making opened the doors for amazing advances in horror films. The most famous scene from this movie, the shower scene, pushed the limits of technology of the movies of that decade. In this particular scene, Hitchcock makes the viewers feel they are actually in the movie. Unlike earlier films that made viewers feel like they were watching a play, Psycho[[3]] began a new era of horror cinematography by bringing viewers into the movie. Alfred Hitchcock made great use of camera angles. In the shower scene, Hitchcock focuses on the curtain until Norman Bates's figure appears. The audience realizes right away that Marion Crane has met her fate. When the camera is on Norman in stabbing motion, it feels like the audience is threatened. Hitchcock made sure we did not see Norman’s face. The lighting was superbly done. The shadowy Norman makes the scene look more terrifying. All you see is gray hair, a dress, and a knife. We are fooled into thinking that the killer is Mrs. Bates until the end. We do not see Marion Crane getting stabbed, but the wielding of the knife leaves it up to the imagination. The thick chocolate syrup flows down the wall like blood. After Marion’s demise, the camera zooms on the blood going into the drain.

In the 1978 horror film, Halloween[[4]], the terror has moved even closer to the viewer. This movie takes place in a quiet street on a normal quiet night. Cinematography is very important in this movie because the shots shown the quiet residential street inevitably bring the viewers into the movie, wrapping them in the familiar context of everyday life. The shots in this film allow the viewer to see what the main character, Laurie Strode, cannot see Michael Myers [[5]]. Halloween[[6]] showed off John Carpenter’s skills. In the first scene, Michael has a mask on wandering around the house. The camera is in 1st person, so the audience is following Michael’s every move. The cameraman in the mask appears tall compared to Michael the child. When Michael kills his sister, Judith, it’s shocking from the view of the killer. The audience has just witnessed a murder from Michael’s point of view. There are also moments in Halloween when Michael pops out of nowhere. The camera pans around the neighborhood just before the surprise. Most of the shots of Michael outside are far away, making the character look more mystifying. When Laurie is in the classroom, Michael is outside staring at her. When the camera pans back to the outside again, Michael is gone. It makes the audience wonder how fast and elusive Michael is. The camera shows the killer just out of her view, the side of his head, hiding in the shadows just behind Laurie. The director wanted the viewers to have emotions of anticipation and dread, knowing what was about to happen and unable to stop it. He wanted the viewer to see and know what Laurie could not see or know. In this way, the viewer would be completely engaged into the movie. The cinematography offered in this film has progressed considerably since the earlier horror films. The cinematography in Halloween[[7]] created the gloomy anticipation and fear of death that had not been possible before.

Films such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre[[8]], The Strangers, The Exorcist[[9]], and The Shining[[10]], Silence of the Lambs[[11]], Freddy vs. Jason, Jeepers Creepers[[12]], and many more have been giving viewers nightmares for the past 30 years. Directors are now trying to target audiences by creating movies plausible to the target group’s life experiences. The 2008 horror film Prom Night[[13]] targets young adults. The cinematography of this film is similar to that of Halloween[[14]] but in a much better and new way. The use of flashbacks, heavy breathing, and hidden makes the hairs on the back of our necks stand on end. Modern horror movies today have taken advantage of camera angles. In Hostel[[15]], there are gruesome shots of severed fingers and split heels. Even though the body parts are not real, the mutilations on screen are nerve wrecking. In Saw[[16]], we witness a man cut his own foot off. When the camera shows the anguish of the man severing his foot, it is disturbing. It almost seems real because of the angles. Movies today push the limits of an R-rated film.

All the horror movies now include more close-ups of decapitations and impaling. The directors are finding new ways to scare people. When a killer pops out, it is not scary after the 100th time. Directors who use the same camera tactics end up with appalling movies. The new directors want to capture a new generation. If the killer is chasing the victim, the camera is usually far from the killer. As the killer gets closer to the camera, the audience gets nervous. The directors know that the closer the audience is to the action, the bigger the reaction. Horror cinematography is a constantly growing field. Directors and producers are trying to find new and different ways to scare audiences around the world.

Sources

Frankenstein. Dir. James Whale. Perf. Boris Karloff. DVD. Universal Pictures, 1931.

Halloween. Dir. John Carpenter. Perf. Donald Pleasance, Jamie Lee Curtis. DVD. Anchor Bay, 1978.

Prom Night. Dir. Nelson McCormick. Perf. Brittany Snow. DVD. Screen Gems, 2008.

Psycho. Dir. Alfred Hithcock. Perf. Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh. DVD. Universal Pictures, 1960.

Saw. Dir. James Wan. Perf. Cary Elwes, Danny Glover. DVD. Lions Gate Films, 2004.

Tamborini, Ron and James B. Weaver. Horror Films: Current Research on Audience Preferences and Reactions. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1996.