media studies
genre is always changing...
Although the conventions are often the same, the way the genre works with these conventions or subverts these conventions changes. We can see this in the convention of the final girl in the horror genre.
psycho- how did this film set up this convention
Film makers were exploring new ways of showing sex and violence.
moving from 'creature features' to...
the monsters were now ourselves
At the time – they’re very strict rules about what you could and couldn’t show in a film. Psycho went someway towards breaking these rules by...
Seeing a lady in bed with a man to whom she isn't married to was knew.
Key Scene: Marion Crane gets stabbed to death in the shower by Norman Bates dressed as his mother. Scene was shocking at the time for...
its violence and for the way the film was structured to make us believe that Marion was going to be a main character.
psycho was made in what year and directed by who?
1960 and directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Halloween - how did this film use this conventions and take it further?
The monster was likely to be a member of your family. - Halloween reflects this in Michael Myres and the way he murders his own sister. - a film that uses the traditional conventions of the horror genre, but has some conventions of its own – such as the ‘final girl’.
- Led to a wave of popularity of the slasher genre
what year was halloween made and directed by who
1978 Directed by John Carpenter
how much did it make in box office sales
$172.3 Million
Scream - how does this film draw attention to this convention, but at the same time use it?
Scream marked a Self-reflexive and self-aware take on the genre. Designed to play with audiences that already knew the rules.
Comment on the effect horror films have on society:
“Movies don’t create Psychos, they make Psychos more creative.”
Scream does a good job at reflecting the state of society at the time with its more cynical and depressing outlook on life. This can be seen in the way...
it portrays the youth as narcissistic, angry and all around horrible people. It also portrays the more aggressive role that the media has taken on, willing to do anything for a scoop, completely detached from the lives and emotions of those involved.
scream was made in... and directed by who?
1996 and Directed by Wes Craven
how much did scream make in the box office
187 million
Cabin in the Woods - how does this film deliberately subvert this convention?
theyset ut up like a typical horror film but subverts the audience to completly change the idea of the final girl.
Get Out - how has this convention been altered to meet a modern audience?
Here we have a film that took a fresh approach to horror by reversing the roles