Films are not all the same, they travel down different rabbit holes which are called Genres. There are the traditional core Genres e.g. Romance, Comedy, Science Fiction etc. Within these Genre’s there are  Sub-Genres; these are a more specific niche of a wider genre e.g. “Rom-Com. All these Genres can evoke an array of emotions inside the audience’s perception. When an audience watches a Romantic film they could vicariously feel the characters’ connection. In this report, we’ll explore the ways in which Genre captivates an audience, what visual, auditory and psychological factors are used to create an atmosphere when viewing a film.

The films I will be dissecting are both from the genre of horror; the first film I will be dismantling is 2013s “The Conjuring”. The film is based in the early 70’s, this means that their clothing was slightly more bohemian than today’s clothing. The lighting is key when it comes to the ambiance of their environment. The scenes where there was hardly any lighting (low-key lighting) elevated the dread and uneasiness in view of the obscure in the murkiness; this is a convention of horror films. Also at the beginning of the film, the sun is the main source of light however as the threat amps up after multiple attacks we see the lighting become darker. This can be shown when closer to the end of the film there is a thunderstorm and the characters are in a basement. This film isn’t afraid to pay homage to cliche horror tropes and this is another convention in horror films. It did begin a little cliche as the family in the film move into a house and are unaware of its sinister past. Also, it doesn’t shy away from the typical fake scare; a sudden noise that evokes unnecessary fear due to it being something mundane. The main characters, specifically the family hold the traditional tight-knit family values of the time. The mother who is seen as somewhat of a protagonist. At the start of the film we see that she is somewhat feeble, this intensifies as the threat rises and it peaks when she gets attacked by a demon. This makes the audience have more of a fear for the protagonist and makes them emotionally attached. This is especially evident when Carolyn shows demonologist Lorraine a photo frame of the family and Carolyn re-cans that day. This helps us empathise with the family. A key convention in all horror films is the battle between good and evil. All in all the family is saved when love prevails, yet another cliche but never the less effective.

The next film I will be analysing is called The Ring. This is a modern day film set in the early 00’s when it was made.  This is an obvious shift from the bohemian style of the 70’s. The lighting; much like in the conjuring it’s very dark, this is seen throughout the film, however, we do see lights when outdoors and the dull glow of a tv. The protagonist Rachel lives as a single parent which is a shift from the family values of the first film I Investigated. Also, the real horror like most films under this genre derives from the unknown which is a convention of horror and gives a sense of uneasiness; this happens in the first half of the conjuring however they do fall back on the generic scare. The films scare tactics are more psychological than in your face. Stephen King a well-known horror novelist claims that there are 3 types of terror.

“The 3 types of terror: The Gross-out: the sight of a severed head tumbling down a flight of stairs, it’s when the lights go out and something green and slimy splatters against your arm. The Horror: the unnatural, spiders the size of bears, the dead waking up and walking around, it’s when the lights go out and something with claws grabs you by the arm. And the last and worse one: Terror, when you come home and notice everything you own had been taken away and replaced by an exact substitute. It’s when the lights go out and you feel something behind you, you hear it, you feel its breath against your ear, but when you turn around, there’s nothing there…”
― Stephen King

The ring, in my opinion, falls under the last type.

To conclude the codes and conventions in horror apply to every film within the genre and the sub-genres regardless of time or context. It is the bread and butter of film.