Horror films are very popular among all audiences. Adults watch them and teenagers watch them of both sexes. Fans of horror look for the same techniques in their films and expect to get the same reaction from them all.
Most horror films have similar settings. They are set in houses in the middle of nowhere, houses where people have previously died and a new family has moved in because the house is so cheap, like The Amityville Horror or houses in the woods. These particular setting are used because they scare the audience more as the houses are normally big and old where you never know what could be hiding around the corner. A setting on a farm is also cliche, where machinery and tools can be used as murder weapons. These desolate settings also add to the scare factor for the audience as there is no neighbours around and nobody to hear the victim scream.
In many horror films the victims are often annoying, spoilt and mouthy. These kind of characters make the audience want them to be killed, and when they are nobody is particularly bothered as they deserved it. If there is a pretty, blonde model type character you can almost guarantee she will be the first person to be murdered, again the audience doesn't really care as they were jealous of her anyway. These kind of deaths break up the suspense of a horror film as the audience can find themselves laughing at there deaths. However, typically many horror films include children as evil beings. They are often possessed by the devil or evil spirits in films as this seems to scare the audience more because children are normally portrayed as sweet and innocent.
All horror films will use the discorded tension building music. This builds tension within the audience as they are expecting something to happen, but at the same time don't want it to happen but cannot pull themselves away from it. However sometimes this music is played and the moment elapses into
nothing. The moments are know as climax and anti climax moments. Horror films would not be complete without these moments as they create expectation among the audience.
Another cliche in horror films is the 'did you just see that' moments. This is normally when something may appear in the background of the main scene, but then disappear, or it may be a flash of something the audience sees out of the window. These moments add suspense among the audience and it makes them expect too see the 'bad guy' make an appearance very soon. The bad person is also not immediately introduced. Throughout the film we will see glimpses of them and as the suspense grows we are waiting for the big moment where he shows himself to the unexpecting family.
Lots of Horror films often have the cliche moment of bathroom scene. This can include a character putting their head down to wash their face in the sink and when the resurface and look in their reflection there is somebody standing behind them. Another cliche bathroom scene is when a character takes a bath or shower and the evil spirit visits them and tried to drown them, or something along those lines. Many traits in horror films focus on the fact of not sleeping at night as this is when they will be killed or going to bed is where they will inevitably be tortured all night. 'A nightmare on Elm street' focuses on the fact of not sleeping, you are safe as long as you are awake. Another thing you should never do is answer the phone as you find yourselves in a conversation with your potential murderer.. This makes the audience expect something to happen when these moments do actually come around in the film.
Jeepeer Creepers - opening scene
This film has an opening which is very cliche of the horror genre. It starts of with establishing shots of fields which shows the audience that this film is set in a desolate place wherre there is nobody around. There are two people driving in the car, we can assume these two are the mian characters. The main character says 'I haven't seen a car in 50 miles' this adds to the isolation of the situation. Although there is no music to build the tension, the drive where they are still the only ones on the road in a way builds tension as the audience are waiting for something to happen. When the strange vehicle appears and swerves around behind the car it builds suspense within the audience as they are waiting for something to happen and as the swerving around continues the suspension increases. However, as the chase turns into nothing it becomes a cliche anti climax moment. The car then later drives past a house where this suspicious vehicle is parked in the drive. Typically this house is a large country house in the middle of nowhere. This opening scene draws the reader in as they are still waiting for something to happen, but they have many questions they want answered. Such as where are they? and who is driving this suspicious vehicle?
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