We immediately find out that the film is a horror as there are few conventions such as loud dramatic sound and also the phone call when she is home alone. The non-diegetic sound is very dramatic and gradually builds up tension and gives the audience an impression that something bad is going to happen. The fact that the sound gets louder as it goes on, makes the audience feel agitated yet keeps them on the edge of their seats. When she picked up the phone the first time, she didn't seem to bothered like it was just a random call. However he repetitiveness of the call seems to make it more intense as she said "you've got the wrong number" the first time yet she is still receiving them. At this point, as the audience, we know it is a prank and it becomes more suspicious.
The first shot that has been used is a close up of the phone ringing, it is then slowly panned upwards showing Casey's (Drew Barrymore) face as she picks it up. Close ups tend to be used to tightly frame a character's face or in this case an object. Not long after this we find out that she is alone when they use a partial long shot of the house and all we are able to here is the diegetic sound of the trees rustling, followed by a panning movement of the camera downwards showing an empty swing which, strangely, is swinging and slowly creaking. These kind of establishments are good to use in horror films as it makes it more intense and slightly exciting audience as we are yet to find out what is really there. The setting of the film is exposed to us when Casey is on the phone to this man and she threatens to call the police. The man says that 'they will never make it in time and that she is miles away from any other house'. This is significant, as the setting fits the typical idea of a location for a horror. The setting of a scene is a key factor within the film as they partially define the genre as well as making it more thrilling for the audience.
During another one of the calls, Casey is seen to be quite flirtatious up until the point where he asks for her name. She questions why, and he says 'Because I want to know who I'm looking at'. Straight away they use a close to show the immediate change of her facial expression. At this point, it becomes more engaging for the audience as you automatically know to expect something. She then looks outside to see if anyone is there, at this stage they have used a point of view shot to put us in the position of her and make us feel more engaged. The darkness makes it more intense, as the audience, we would focus more as we know that something is going to appear and when it does it is more of a shock.
Another significant point of the scene is when she is on the phone talking about what she's doing and what her favourite film is. When she says that she likes the film 'Halloween' to the unknown voice she slowly pulls out a kitchen knife with a slight grin on her face. This could possibly suggest that there are going to be graphic future events.
No comments:
Post a Comment