10 favourite horror/thriller screenshots

This close-up is from the film Quarantine, and this shot type makes the woman seem very vulnerable.  She appears to be hiding from something or someone, and with her being on the floor she appears to be defenseless and weak.The lighting is almost non-existent, apart from the use of night vision camera, and the darkness adds suspense as the audience cannot see what is behind her. I like the  extremely dark lighting in this shot, and i may choose to take ideas from this to put into my final film.

'The Last Excorcism' follows the story of a priest trying to excorcise a possessed girl, and this long shot demonstrates the demon's grip on her. The scene is very dark in the foreground, where the characters are positioned, and the only source of light is from behind the girl, emphasizing her figure and dominance. Her stance is powerful, and the audience fears her as she appears to be in an unnatural and dangerous state.

I chose this 2 person medium close up shot from 'Sorority Row' as it shows the main character being stalked by the killer. It links with the conventions of horror, as suspense is built from the girl being unaware of her unsafeness. There is a contrast in lighting between the pair, as the girl is shown in warm colours, whereas the villain is shown to be wearing a red shirt, linked with death and blood. He is also caught in a bright headlight, and this could symbolise his crimes being unveiled.

This close-up shot is from '28 Weeks Later' and is a very stereotypical scene from a horror film. The girl is placed in a dark room, peeping through a gap in the wall with the light shining on her eyes. Suspense and tension are built as we wonder if a zombie will appear. Similar shots appear in many different horror films, and i may use similar shots in my own film.

In this close-up shot from 'Black Christmas', there is a girl undressing in the bathroom, getting ready for the shower. As she moves her foot, a gap in the floor is unveiled, and the killer is revealed to be watching her from underneath. This gives an immediate sense of invasion, and horrifies the audience as they realise that the man is going to watch the girl in the shower. The man's identity is not revealed completely, however, so the audience is left guessing as to who the villain is.

This shot is from 'Skeleton Key', and it is a P.O.V. shot from the perspective of someone watching this woman through a key hole. Key holes feature in many films of the thriller genre, and can represent mystery and secrets that have been locked away. The woman appears to be rather anxious, creeping down the hallway slowly. 

                                                                                         

This shot is from 'The Ruins'. It is a long shot, with the majority of the screen completely black. The only source of light is from the lantern, and I like the sense of mystery created due to this. In my final film I may decide to use similar lighting, with an item such as a torch being the only main source of light.



This is from 'The Descent', and again has similar lighting to some of my other favourite shots. There is some sort of creature behind the character in the foreground, and it is only visible due to the light reflecting off of the torch being shone at them. I think this works well, as the shadows don't reveal its identity straight away and i may use this technique in my own film opening.

                                                                                       
This is a worm's eye shot from the film 'Sucker Punch'. In the film one of the characters has just been killed, and subsequently her childhood photo falls off of the mirror in which it was placed. I like the way that the violence is left to the viewer's imagination, with the photo symbolising her death rather than it being shown. The colour yellow, often associated with optimism and hope, contrasts the dark events to have just occurred, but could also symolise that she is now free and not in pain.

This is a high angle shot from the film 'The Hills Have Eyes'. The villain in the foreground is dressed in red, which's connotations are that of blood or death-linking with the horror genre. The villain is watching and stalking the character on the ground, and their identity is hidden creating mystery.



I am hoping to incorporate the factors that work well from these 10 shots into my own horror opening. I am going to use close-up shots of the victim's to emphasise their vulnerability in my film, which is displayed in some of these shots above. I am also going to try and use dark lighting in my opening, with the use of a torch being the main source of light. This will hopefully create a great sense of suspense and will establish a tense atmosphere, which all horror films should have.

Sound

Mise-en-scene

Editing

Camera work