Researching Horror/Slasher

 Let's Watch Horror/Slasher

    Hello everyone! Yes, the subgenre I chose for my horror film was a slasher. So, since horror/slasher will be the genre I choose for my film, I thought it would be a good idea to actually watch the opening of two horror/slasher films and see what they have in common and what really makes them a "horror/slasher" instead of just a regular horror film. 

~ Totally Killer (2023)

    The opening scene for 'Totally Killer' starts off fast-paced and strong. The scene opens on a regular Halloween night, where a lady is handing out candy to those trick-or-treating by herself. When reviewing the candy she has left in her bowl, the camera does a slow push-in behind her in order to mimic the illusion of someone coming up behind her. She hears the floor creak and quickly turns around in surprise, only to find no one there. This is meant to put the viewer on edge and makes the viewer wonder questions like "Is there someone in the house?" and "What will they do?"

    For a moment, there is silence, then someone knocks on the door. Doing this disrupts the quiet momentarily, scaring the audience. A masked man is at the door, and the lady answers it. After the lady notices his suspicious behavior, she closes the door on him, but he is able to break in. After an intense and brutal fight scene, it ends with her being killed. Trick or treaters walk in and discover the body, while we are able to hear the diegetic sounds of sirens in the background. 

    This opening scene makes the watcher wonder, "Who is the masked man?" "Who is the woman he killed?" and "Why did he want to kill her?" All these questions build up to the main story. Throughout this scene, the lighting was dark, setting the mood ominously and making the viewer feel unsettled. The scene constantly built tension through sound and camera movements. 

    For example, like when the killer left the house, and the woman was still on guard with her knife up, the intense, unsettling music stops, then quickly returns when the killer comes through the door behind her. The camera angles quickly shift from the killer's POV to the victim's to emphasize the intensity of the scene. All these elements go together to create an intense, frightening, and thrilling scene. Now, what makes this a 'slasher' film is the immediate killing and gore as soon as the movie starts. It follows the same trope of the stereotypical masked killer and vulnerable victim.   

~ Scream (2022)

    The opening scene for Scream (2022) starts off a little slower to get to the action than the other film; however, this helps to build more tension and anticipation of what's to come. We are shown a girl who is cooking and on her phone, then her phone rings. She answers it, and a guy she doesn't know on the other end. The conversation starts normally until he asks her to play a game with him. She hangs up and locks her doors. The phone rings again, and she is threatened to answer it. The guy on the other end then makes her answer questions about a scary movie. After getting a question wrong, the killer threatened to kill her friend. The girl opens the door to her house in an attempt to save her friend, but is met face to face with a masked person with a knife instead. He manages to cut her with the knife, but she closes the door before he can get into the house. The killer manages to get in by unlocking the door and goes into a gruesome fight scene with the girl. It ends with sirens in the back coming to the house and her getting stabbed. 

    At the beginning of the scene, there is no nondiegetic sound, only diegetic sounds like the phone ringing, the music the girl is playing in the background, and the sound of the pot boiling something. However, when things start to get intense, and we figure out the real reason the man called the phone, there is an unsettling slow music in the background in order to put us in the same mood and fear that the girl is in at that moment. The music also changes when the girl meets the masked killer. Instead of the slow, unsettling music, it shifts to a loud, screeching, and intense sound.  Doing this mimics the viewer's brain's natural distress signal and triggers an immediate fear and stress response in the brain. The sudden loud sounds are meant to startle the watcher, interrupting the once slow, low background noise. 

     Throughout the scene, the lighting was also very dark and dimmed. This triggers anxiety in the watcher, heightening the suspense. By doing this, it creates an atmosphere with a moody tone, reflecting the character's fear. Behind the girl, we can see that the doorways and hallways are dark, almost making it impossible to see what's in that spot.  By restricting the visibility of some spots in frame, it makes the viewer on edge or in suspense about whether something or someone is hiding there 

    There are many close-up shots of the girl, which makes the audience focus on the character's emotions and what she is feeling. Through the fight scene, the camera angles switch fast, and there are random camera movements to make the watcher feel the chaos of the scene. 

    When the girl was watching the door after being attacked by the killer, there is a POV shot of the door. There is also another POV shot when the phone rings again, and she picks it up. She looks around the kitchen, making sure no one is there. By concentrating the camera on the door, it makes the watcher wonder if the masked killer will break through or not. This really immerses the audience into the shoes of the victim, making it feel like you're in the movie.  

~ Conclusion

        Overall, after looking at the openings of Totally Killer and Scream, it is clear what separates a slasher from other horror films. Both scenes had things in common, like the slasher tropes with a masked killer, an isolated victim, and an immediate sense of danger, while using lighting, sound, and camera work to constantly build tension. Whether it’s the fast-paced start of Totally Killer or the slow and suspenseful buildup in Scream, both openings hook the audience right away. All these factors work together to create fear, suspense, and excitement.