HORROR FILM GENRE

Narrative Structure

• Standard Chronological Structure with beginning, middle, end (Conflict, Struggle, Realization)
  
• Often there is heavy foreshadowing to build tension
• The problem the protagonist faces is caused or exacerbated by being isolated, unprepared, or naive
• The narrative is built to cause tension, anxiety, and fear in the audience
• Story plays on standard human fears: the dark, strangers, isolation, death, violence, insanity, creepy monsters

Themes

• Good vs. Evil
  
• Religion and the Supernatural or Beyond
  
• Death
• Nightmares, Madness, Insanity, Suicide
  
• Childhood Fears and Issues
  
• Revenge
• Science gone bad
• Murder, Death, Hate
• Darkness, Demons, Satanic Ritual
  

Setting

• Hospitals, Insane Asylums, Mental Institutions or Hotels (long hallways and lots of rooms)
  
• Graveyard or Cemetery
• Churches or Convents
• Isolated communities or remote locations (cabin, abandoned mansion, haunted house, ghost town, farm field, dark woods, tunnels) deserted places
• Basements, Attics, Science Labs
  

Characters

• Hero (protagonist usually lives) fights villain
  
• Victims (protagonists usually die) often are immoral teenagers, stupid beautiful young women
• Villain (antagonist evil force aliens, vampires, creepy children, monsters, ghosts, demons, zombies, clowns, possessed toys, scary creatures)
• Police or "helpful" authorities may be good or evil
  

Iconography and props

• Dark colored clothes, costumes, settings
  
• Weapons (rarely guns usually a stabbing or cutting weapon like knives, scythes, axes, chainsaws)
• Religious or Demonic Symbolism
• Blood. Lots of blood.
• Monsters (vampires, evil scientist, werewolves, zombies, possessed people, mass murderer)
• Lots of black and red
• Mirrors, masks, peepholes, stalking, chasing
• Running and then tripping and falling (being chased)

Cinematography and Editing

• Unnatural camera angles very high, very low, canted (to show dominance and innocence and power relations)
  
• Extreme Close Up to show fear
  
• Long take with a sudden jump cut to frighten viewer
• Point of View (POV) shots from the view of the villain
• Handheld camera adds terror
• Shallow depth of field makes whatever is behind the protagonist blurry to build suspense

Sound and Music

• Ambient Diegetic sounds (footsteps, chainsaw, breathing)
  
• Orchestral (violin)
• Silence used to build tension