References To Other Films and Music

The films “The Ward”, “Identity” and “The Hills Have Eyes” are all films, which could be used as reference points to us. The ideas behind them all link in with our themes. The Ward uses similar techniques to portray madness and identity, as the main protagonist suffers from multiple personality disorder. As well as The Ward, Identity follows a similar plot to this with the idea of multiple personality disorder. Both films are effective as they keep the audience guessing and build up suspense through the film. The use of the non-diegetic soundtrack’s of both films are equally important as well, as they mimic the action and sometimes fuel it.

One of the most important aspects of any horror movie is the music, the score. You might not be aware just how important the score is to the horror genre. As the music in horror and thriller films are used to increase fear levels and tension, music in horror is probably the most important. The fear factor of nearly every horror film, with the exception of “reality horror” films such as ‘The Blair witch’. As with most elements in the horror genre, especially the slasher genre, the importance of music emerged with Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho.’ The music in ‘Psycho’, and in particular - the shower scene music, is fundamental for the evolution of music in the horror genre. The violin in that scene is so effective because it is used as percussion, suggesting knife strokes. 

Props, Costumes and Makeup for Media Trailer

In the film trailer we are going to have to portray a variety of different age groups, people with visual scars and people without faces. To do so we are going to have to use special effects makeup, which includes Old Age Stipple, Foaming Mouth Powder, Psoriasis, Tooth Staining, Dried Blood, Liquid Blood, Eye Blood and Blood Capsules. Although we might not be able to acquire some of the items due to money issues, we can replicate the effects with household items. 
http://www.gurumakeupemporium.com/epages/BT4080.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/BT4080/Categories/SFX

For the costumes the four main characters would be dressed to better represent their character type. Mark, the main protagonist would wear basic clothing, which would appear old and dirty. Lewis, would wear formal sweatshirts and trousers with some sort of tie or glasses. Charlotte, would dress similarly to Lewis, but would appear more casual in certain aspects. And lastly, Sarah, would dress casually, yet alluring, to better portray her character. However as the trailer progresses their costumes would alter to mimic the psychotic behaviour of the patients trying to kill them. This would involve more dirt, sweat and blood added to the clothing.

The costumes of the patients would start out as basic white clothing, which would be dirty and covered in ash from the fire. However after a years time, their physical appearances would also change as well as their costumes The four patients would alter between a policeman, a inn keeper and other villagers.

The only visible makeup used on the patients would be bruising or scars added to the face.

Props used in the trailer would consist of surgical equipment, a scarecrow costume, a straight jacket (which would be made), a knife, a car (already acquired) and a newspaper. 

Media Conventions in Media Trailer (Group Work)

The conventions in our film will include:

• Blood
• Violence
• Weapons
• Sadistic violence
• The unknown
• Fire
• Darkness
• A forest
• A cornfield
• A mental asylum
• A group of teenagers

The use of these conventions in our film will help to define each character whilst adding some sort of emotion. The use of darkness and a village in the middle of nowhere is useful to show the isolation of the characters, as well as using that isolation to play on some of the characters madness. The sadistic violence will be effective, as it will be used to shock the audience and show the extreme nature of the patients. The use of the forest and cornfield also portrays the idea of isolation, however the location can also be used to build suspense. 

The idea of not knowing whom the killer is will be effective as it keeps the audience guessing. The use of masks has allows been effective in the horror genre. Examples of this are Friday the 13^th and Halloween, which have captivated and scared millions of people through the years.

However we want our film to portray two different kinds of masks. A physical one, where the patients remove the faces of another and wear them; and lastly a mask over ones own psyche. The idea of having another identity behind the one you already have which you don’t know about will be effective in keeping the audience in suspense.   

Movie Plot For Trailer (With Group) - Draft 1

Lily, along with a few other mental patients are subject to dangerous experiments in an asylum.

They are desperate to stay alive and leads an escape plan which burns down the building in order to fake their own deaths and escape, they then go to the nearest village which is isolated and kill most of the locals. 

They physically replace these victims as a new form of identity and remain there. Meanwhile the victims, now without faces, are placed as scarecrows as a way to scare people away from the village.

One year later, a group of 4 teenagers make their way to the village. Mark, a bit of junkie who has received help in the past for problems, Sarah, best described as a "doll", not the most intelligent, Lewis, a "preppy", well-spoken young man, in a relationship with Sarah, and Charlotte, the journalist, quite intelligent and bossy, almost opposite to Sarah, who was very keen to investigate Asylum.

They enter the village to stay a couple of nights to explore the ruins of the asylum and decide to stay in a local B&B. Whilst looking around the house, Mark discovers an insane man, later revealed to be his former personality who was an escapee from the asylum, in the basement and warns him that the village is not what it seems and to leave, using riddles to taunt his mind. Mark goes back to retrieve two of his friends and return to the basement, but the local has gone, and the friends doubt him due to his previous hallucination habits.

They leave and go out to find Sarah but can't, and so Lewis returns to the B&B where Sarah is in their room looking out the window, Lewis goes up to hug her and in a strain of suspense, she turns around at the last second with clear fresh scars on her face and a menacing smile and he questions about her scars, meanwhile behind him we see a figure approaching with a scalpel.

Meanwhile, Mark and Charlotte explore the town a bit more and come across a completely empty local newsagent. Whilst Mark dismisses it, Charlotte looks closer at the local paper and notices the date which is the date of when the asylum was burnt down. To discover this, she pulls out the article from another newspaper reporting the event which was published the day after. She tries to think of the connection between the asylum and the village, whilst Mark seems to have flashbacks and falls to his knees. He says that he has forgotten something and can't remember.

Mark and Charlotte go looking for Lewis and Sarah. They find Lewis in a cellar along other bodies with removed faces. Whilst there, Charlotte releases him from the table and explains about the 4 escaped mental asylum patients and the villagers, Mark looks at each of the bodies and suddenly his memories start to come back to him, he then sees the insane man again in the corner of the room and he begins to talk to him. He eventually grabs Mark by the throat and throws him at the wall and is knocked unconscious.

He is awoken by Charlotte and Lewis who appear coy and worried about him. After leaving the basement, Charlotte and the rest of the group go in search for a police officer or local figure. However when they find a police officer, the man kills Lewis. Charlotte and Mark run into a corn field  where Charlotte gets separated from Mark. Unknown to the others is that Mark's old personality has taken over his previous one and is now controlling him. This new personality doesn't know who Charlotte is so instead of trying to find her runs off into a forest. Meanwhile, Charlotte calls out for Mark but is met by silence. She is then attacked from behind and dragged into the corn by an unknown figure.

Mark finds Lewis and plans to kill him as his mental personality has taken over. However Lewis is actually the policeman asylum patient and the two get into a scorpion lock, eventually Mark prevails and slices his throat and afterwards in the mind state of both of his personalities  decides to hunt down Lily.

He finds her on a path in the cornfield. She is now in the form of Charlotte, however the work performed on her face has deteriorated as she could get no assistance as her partners have been killed, explaining her extremely grotesque state. They confront each other about the events a year ago and it is at this point the audience discover Mark is actually the last surviving escapee, along with Lily. 

In a surge for revenge, the good Mark tackles her to the ground, disarms her, and holds his knife to her throat. She taunts him by pretending to be Charlotte, suggesting that he wouldn't hurt his friend that he had feelings for. Mark slowly replies by saying "You're right, I wouldn't.." but eventually continues in his other personality's voice stating "..But I would." and kills her.

The final scene shows the last forgotten escapee, still in the guise of Sarah, finding Mark's car unlocked and begins to hot-wire it. Once the engine starts, the final shot shows her beginning to smile menacingly as she did earlier in the film and then cuts to black.

Evil Dead

Evil Dead is a 2013 American horror film co-written and directed by Fede Alvarez. It is the fourth installment of the Evil Dead franchise, serving as both a reboot and as a loose continuation of the series; the first not directed by Sam Raimi.

The film is the feature debut of Alvarez, whom Raimi selected. It was produced by Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and Robert G. Tapert: the writer-director, lead actor, and producer of the original trilogy respectively. The film had its world premiere at the South by Southwest festival on March 8, 2013. On March 9, 2013, it was announced that the film will have a sequel, followed by a crossover with the original trilogy. Evil Dead was announced on July 15, 2013 to be adapted into a live experience as the first maze announced for Universal Studios Hollywood's and the second maze for Universal Orlando Resort's annual Halloween Horror Nights event for 2013.

The film included lots of close ups and quick montage. There is restricted amount of light throughout the film, with only natural light used, which adds to the realism of the place, as well as the harshness and isolation from technology and the rest of the world.

There are whispers throughout the film from some unknown speaker, adding to the fear created by the atmosphere as well as making us as an audience listen carefully.

There is an establishing shot right at the beginning of the film to show us the cabin, which is where most of the story of told around, and then all the woods next to it. Again this follows the conventions of most horror films, as the idea of setting the film in a forest adds to the atmosphere and creates a sense of danger, abandonment and primalness to the film.

 During the film the cutting rate changes so that it moves from a slow cut then to a quick montage. This makes the scenes more dramatic and plays on the idea of each cut sequence mimicking the pace of a heart.

The possession scene is film in the water, yet the camera angles are used in such a way that makes Mia look small, and the evil spirit look big by placing Mia at the bottom of the screen, and under the water, and then the spirit at the top of the screen making her look big and powerful, and Mia very weak and vulnerable. There was a match on action in the scene in the bedroom of the cabin, when the possessed person looked at the victim, then we see it from both points of view.

A large majority of the film was filmed with point of view shots, which makes us as an audience empathise with the victims, which adds fear, realism and tension to the movie as a whole.

The imagery in the film makes it an effective horror film, as during one scene the sky opens up and almost seems to bleed rain, which in fact is blood. The use of diegetic dialogue of the demons was also effective as it was used to mirror the action taking place and move along the story when needed.

Makeup attempt - Insane Person

Before

After

As a first attempt and having no previous experience and little equipment my first attempt wasn't a complete failure, however there is room for a lot of improvement. In the future i hope to use better equipment, such as dried blood and stipple, which will aid me in creating many different looks.

A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010)

A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 2010 American slasher/ horror film, directed by Samuel Bayer and written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer as a remake of Wes Craven's 1984 film of the same name, which revolves around a group of teenagers who are being stalked in their dreams by an enigmatic man named Freddy Krueger.

Michael Bay and Platinum Dunes produced the remake, as an intention to reboot the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, with the cast of Jackie Earle Haley, Kyle Gallner, Rooney Mara, Katie Cassidy, Thomas Dekker and Kellan Lutz. This production makes it the ninth installment of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise.

The elements used in A Nightmare On Elm Street, which make it such an effective horror film are the idea of dreams being reality, fighting your human nature, survival and fear.
The plot of the film follows similar codes and conventions of that to other horror genres, however due to the fact its a remake, the film maker has had to blend the familiar with the new, so that it appeals to a wider range of people. The conventions in A Nightmare On Elm Street are:

• blood
• violence
• blades/weapons
• a monster-like character
• darkness
• an abandoned warehouse 
• fire
• sadistic violence
• a group of teenagers
• oblivious adults
• most of the film is set during the night

The use of not being safe even whilst you are dreaming is what made the film series so iconic and scary to an audience. The idea behind this is original and frightening as it goes against everything we are led to believe. However the idea behind this could have stemmed from Iranian Folklore as a creature known as the Bakhtak which actually translates to "Nightmare". It is said that it causes sleep paralysis, however this folklore could've been used to create the idea of Freddy.

Discussing his physical appearance, Form and Fuller explained that Freddy would be more similar to a real burn victim. Form later clarified that there was a fine line they did not want to cross when it came to making Freddy look like a true burn victim. The chard flesh makes the character seem less human, making him a better antagonist, as well as his traditional Freddy clothing, which may appeal to an older audience. Freddy is made to look inhuman, so that the audience feels threatened by him, as well as imprinting his imagine into their heads, making his costume and character more effective.

Movie Soundtracks

Without a soundtrack or score a horror film just isn't as effective at scaring an audience. The use of either realistic sounds which are over exaggerated, or scores which build up suspense, create a sense of horror which an audience associates with something scary. From classic soundtracks like Jaws or Friday the 13th, which an older audience has grown up with, to new more modern soundtracks like The Ward or Silent Hill. However these sounds have been shown to imitate the screams of frightened animals, which is reasoning behind our natural instinct to feel scared. Bellow are classic and scary soundtracks from films such as Kill Bill, The Ward and Friday The 13th.

Movie Research - Multiple Personality Disorder

Multiple personality disorder is characterized by at least two distinct and relatively enduring identities or dissociated personality states that alternately control a person's behaviour, and is accompanied by memory impairment for important information not explained by ordinary forgetfulness.

An example of a horror/ thriller where the main protagonist or antagonist has multiple personality disorder is The Ward. The main character, Kristin, experiences attacks from a monstrous almost zombie like ghost, which kills off most of the other characters, however it is later revealed that the ghost and the other girls aren’t real. In order to survive her past torture, she had created different personalities, including Kristin. In fact we also find out that her real name is Alice, the girl who we are led to believe is the ghost. Alice's own personality became so overwhelmed by that of the others that she became lost. Through experimental techniques, Dr. Stringer had the zombie "Alice" killing the other personalities one by one until only her original personality remained.

For my movie trailer, I want to portray someone who has multiple personality disorder, but doesn’t realise this, so instead of being crazy he just sees glimpses of his other personalities who try to warn him, but he doesn’t know that.

The Differences Between Teaser Trailers and Theatrical Trailers

Teaser trailers differ from the main theatrical trailers in many ways theses include:

1. The length of the trailer; the length of a teaser trailer is often far shorter than the theatrical trailer due to the fact its only supposed to show snip-its of the movie so that it titillates the audience into wanting to see it. 
2. Teaser trailers give out less information related to the narrative than a theatrical trailer might. Theatrical trailers will often cover everything you need to know without giving the whole plot away. For example, the theatrical trailer will introduce you to the characters, the plot and confirmed release dates/age ratings, whereas the teaser may not even do any of those but just do enough to spark your interest in the movie without relaying much information.
3. Commonly among well known movies, such as Twilight or The Hunger Games, the teaser trailer is released before the theatrical trailer; in some cases they could be out even a year in advance.Of course this is all part of the film companies marketing strategy to build interest in their product, as part of it they may release more trailers, each with different content, over that long period before the final theatrical trailer and eventually the actual movie.

Makeup – How To Make Someone Look Older

In the film trailer my group is trying to make the age range for the villagers in the film differ between the ages of 18 to 40. To achieve the effect of age I have done some research into makeup and how it can be used to make someone appear older.  By doing this we hope to achieve a look which makes the actor appear older so that we are not restricted in what we can film. Bellow is a link to a website which uses techniques to help someone appear older than they actually are.

http://www.wikihow.com/Look-Like-An-Elderly-Person-for-Halloween

 

Although the images portray someone who is of an older age range than that of what we wish to achieve, it is still useful as certain parts can be used to make someone who is 17 or 18 appear to be 40.

Article For Trailer

 

During our trailer the mental asylum gets burned down, however as a group we do not have the skills or money to replicate the fire. Instead we have chosen a more logical approach and have created a newspaper which will show what had happened. This not only helps the story to be more realistic but also helps to give a narrative to the trailer so the audience will know what is going on.

 

 

 

 

All The Boys Love Mandy Lane

All the Boys Love Mandy Lane is a 2006 American independent horror film directed by Jonathan Levine, and starring Amber Heard and Anson Mount. The plot centers on a group of teenagers who invite a popular but shy outsider, Mandy, to spend the weekend at a secluded ranch house, and are targeted by a stalker who is after her.
Originally completed in 2006, the film premiered at a number of film festivals throughout 2006 and 2007. Notable premieres include Toronto Film Festival, Sitges Film Festival, South by Southwest Film Festival, and London FrightFest Film Festival. It received a theatrical release in the United Kingdom on February 15, 2008. All the Boys Love Mandy Lane received extremely divided reviews from critics, with some dismissing the film as "bogus and compromised", and others praising its "grindhouse" aesthetic and likening its cinematography to the early work of Terrence Malick.
The film went unreleased in the United States after being sold in 2006 by The Weinstein Company to Senator Entertainment, who went out of business shortly after purchasing the rights to the film. On March 8, 2013, it was announced that The Weinstein Company had re-acquired the rights to theatrically release the film in the United States. It is scheduled to be available through video on demand in September 2013, and is due for a limited release October 6, 2013, under Weinstein's subsidiary label Dimension Films.


The elements which are most prominent in the film are deception, drug and alcohol abuse, murder, extreme violence, darkness, madness and teenage lust. The use of the mise-en-scene of the guns, knives, drugs, alcohol bottles, dark areas, natural lighting and dead bodies, all help to establish the genre type. The use of the location is helpful in establishing the genre of the film by creating an area which is isolated and cut off from the world. The use of phones also helps to portray this idea of isolation which is so key to the plot; not only does it show the isolation of the area but it also reflects on the isolation of the characters from themselves. An example of this is the killer, who is portrayed as a damaged skinny teenage boy, who after a tragic accident where a boy jumps off a roof and drowns, which makes the boy a target for abuse from his fellow school mates, which is what we are lead to believe is what made him a killer.

This follows the conventions of horror films as normally the result of abandonment and ridicule from peers, such as Jason from Friday the 13^th.

The costumes of the characters are typical of a group of teenagers. They all dress casually, except for one girl who is dressed to allure the other characters. The main female protagonist is Mandy Lane, who is portrayed as angelic and pure, which is why she is lusted after by her other co-stars.

The promotional poster for the film is an effective form of advertisement as it portrays the main protagonist. It also gives a sense of enigma as we don’t know who the killer is or how far he is willing to go to be with Mandy Lane. The colour scheme is effective in the sense it portrays the type of genre, and is effective as it stands out.  

John Carpenter's The Ward

The Ward is an American psychological horror film directed by John Carpenter, a famous horror film director. He is more well known for Halloween (1978), The Thing (1982) and Prince Of Darkness (1987), all of which are horrors.
The story revolves around a young institutionalized woman named Kristen who is haunted by a mysterious and deadly zombie/ghost. As danger creeps closer, she comes to realize that this zombie might be darker than anything she ever could have imagined.

The film first premiered in the Midnight Madness section of the Toronto Film Festival. The film is set in Oregon in 1966.

The elements which are most evident in The Ward are the themes of isolation, madness, death, darkness, fear and the paranormal. These elements in the film are shown through the locations within the mental asylum, in which it is set.  As well as this the non-diegetic soundtrack adds to the atmosphere of the film.

The plot of the film follows similar codes and conventions similarly to that of other horror films by John Carpenter, such as psychological and physical abuse, blood, violence, weapons, fire, ghosts and isolation. However like with many of John Carpenter’s films, he strays away from other conventions and puts a new spin on his work. An example of this is the ending of the film, which through the use of the Alice’s condition (multiple personality disorder) defines the ending in a way which an audience may not have seen coming. The use of this disorder is extremely effective as it is used to confuse the audience and instead of summing everything up to a ghost, which is what is often used in horror films, instead uses a mental illness to make it appear more realistic.

As well as this the effectiveness of the mise-en-scene and attitude towards the patients is effective in showing how patients were mistreated during this time period, which in reality wasn’t too long ago.  

The characters are portrayed in different styles; for example the main protagonist is shown to be stronger than the others, whereas in comparison Zoey is portrayed as childlike and vulnerable. Each character creates a certain presence which makes us empathise with them due to their likeability and how relatable they are.

Because the identity of the ghoul remains a mystery throughout most of The Ward, the audience derives some of its enjoyment from trying to guess how the filmmakers will reveal the big surprise about who this evil force is. For anyone numb to modern-day horror’s reliance on increasingly “shocking” third-act twists, it comes as a bit of a relief that Carpenter seems to be forgoing that narrative gimmick, instead focusing on ratcheting up the suspense as Kristen’s fellow patients are murdered and she seeks to get to the bottom of the ghoul’s intentions. This leads to a particularly captivating chase sequence that, like so much of the rest of the film, is so affecting because it’s done with such effortless confidence. Eventually, Carpenter does in fact unveil his story’s big twist, but even here the master proves that it’s less about the reveal than it is about the skill with which it’s presented, of which there is considerable amount on display.

The character of the ghost is effective as it portrays the themes of death, the horror genre and creates fear. The costume of the ghost follows similar conventions of the zombie genre as it shows rotten flesh and a lifelessness in the eyes of the monster, which makes it appear unremorseful  which is effective as it makes the monster less human.

Hard Candy Trailer Analysis

•       Hard Candy was released in 2005 at Sundance Film Festival

•       The Film focuses around the idea of dangers facing teenagers on the internet from paedophiles. However the plot turns on traditional connotations as the suspected sexual predator gets tortured by the fourteen year old girl.

•       The film was described as unique and controversial because of its plot

•       Psychological thriller

•       The genre of the film is portrayed through the trailer by the non-diegetic soundtrack, diegetic dialogue/ sounds and the cutting rate.

•       As well as this the trailer creates a sense of tension and feelings of wrongness due to the idea and plot behind the film.

•       The film portrays sadistic violence which is shown briefly in the trailer, helping to portray its genre.

•       By switching the roles between the man and the girl it shows something that is unconventional and for some creates a sense of mystery behind the females character, as the transition from the her first appearance in the trailer as being sweet and innocent to the hard and cold character makes the audience question her motive for targeting this man.

•       The first shot of the trailer portrays the logo of the film company; however the mixture of the non-diegetic soundtrack and the diegetic sound of blinds moving creates a tense atmosphere. This tense atmosphere is also created through the visual effects during this first shot. This also helps to portray the type of genre of the film.

•       It then cuts to a close up of a computer screen with the message “So we should finally hook up, baby?” shortly followed by “NOT a baby, I keep telling you”. This introduces the idea of a flirtatious and sexual relationship which was formed online between a man and a teenage girl; this is made clear through her writing style and user name portrayed “thonggrrrrl14”.

•       It then cuts to a medium close up of a man and alternates from a long angle to a high angle shot through the shot reverse shot. From shots in the trailer, such as this one, the character of the man is shown to represent a seemingly average middle aged male. However as the trailer progresses it portrays him as more of a victim, even though he is the supposed “predator”.

•       The young girl is portrayed as naïve and innocent during the beginning of the trailer, shown through her diegetic dialogue of “I’m reading a ninth grade book”, suggesting that she is trying to impress the man and to seem older than she is. This as well as the dialogue of the man saying to her “you look older than you are and you certainly act older than you are” which in contrast to her reply “really?” makes her seem even more childlike.

•       However similarly to the man, her character becomes more cold and violent, which is mimicked through the non-diegetic soundtrack of the bass gets louder and the cutting rate becomes faster, which seems to mimic her actions.

•       The dialogue of “You thought since we’ve been talking for three weeks you know everything about me” which in the next cut showing a medium shot of her dressed in a grey vest top, makes her appeared hardened, which is also shown through the lighting and her body language.

•       The relationship between the two characters is at first portrayed as happy and slightly sexual, shown through the medium close up of the man touching the girls lips.

•       However in parallel to this, towards the end of the trailer we are shown through a fast paced cut sequence of medium close ups and close ups of her attacking the man. The editing technique used here bridged with the non-diegetic soundtrack portrays the genre and the relationship between the two characters as being violent, as if he was going to kill him.

•       The trailer lasts two minutes and thirty three seconds, which for most movies is the average time given. In that time though we are shown a variety of different shots, which tells us a story without giving away too much information, whilst at the same time promoting the film.

•       The film is an effective form of promotion as the reviews shown in the trailer give positive feedback, such as “will provoke audiences into a debate that will set word-of-mouth on fire.”

•       The poster for the film also portrays the genre of the film, as it shows the small girl dressed in red, similarly to that of red riding hood, with a bear trap around her, symbolising that maybe she is dangerous and is leading someone into the trap.

Locations and Photography for Media Trailer

Silent Hill

Silent Hill is a 2006 horror film directed by Christophe Gans and written by Roger Avary. The film is an adaptation of Konami's survival horror video game series Silent Hill. The film, particularly its emotional, religious, and aesthetic content, includes elements from the first, second, third and fourth game in the series.

The elements which are most evident in Silent Hill are the themes of religion, isolation, darkness, monsters and other worlds. These elements to the film are shown through the non-diegetic soundtrack and the diegetic sounds of sirens, which are used to signify the change in the environment, from a ghost town to a hellish alternate world where demonic creatures would try to kill the people who lived in Silent Hill.

The plot of the film follows many codes of conventions associated with horror films, such as isolation, monsters, blood, weapons, demons, darkness, smoke and fire. However some original ideas were used in the film, which is what made it different from other horror films. The films characters each bring something new to the film as they portray people who are both twisted and sophisticated yet ruled by their raw emotions, which is what makes some of them more dangerous than others. An example of this are the cultists, who are ruled by their fear of the "demon child" and the demonic nightmarish world around them. 

The film is set in a rural mining town, which was set ablaze during the 70's. In the film it states that the fire was so intense that even to this day the coal under the earth was still ablaze, making it impossible for anyone to live there due to the poisonous fumes. The mise-en-scene of Silent Hill is part of what makes it an effective horror film. Many of the buildings are burnt and abandoned, yet they seem to be almost alive. It is described by the police in the film as a "ghost town", which adds to the atmosphere around it.  

Many of the demonic monsters are supposed to be the dead bodies of people who used to live in Silent Hill. Examples of this are the Janitor and the Nurse, shown in the pictures bellow:

These costumes are effective in portraying the genre of the film and the themes present, as their faces are disfigured and their body language is stiff or inhuman, making them more believable as demonic creatures. The general colours used for their costumes appear to be fleshy colours, although slightly exaggerated to make them appear more dead and imhuman. An example of their body movement is shown in the clip bellow:

The non-diegetic soundtrack played during the scene in parallel to the slow movements of the janitor are effective in the sense that they cause a reaction from the audience. The grotesqueness of the character is useful in portraying this genre, as well as following the conventions of monsters in a horror film; however, the dark setting and the rundown, almost equally distorted appearance of the room makes it more effective as a scene. As well as this the point of view shot as an arm emerges from the toilet stall and the bridged non-diegetic soundtrack creates a reaction from the audience.

The promotional poster is a useful form of promotion as it portrays the themes of the film well; isolation, mystery, horror. The title "We've been expecting you" is effective here as it addresses the audience and makes them believe that they are meant to see the film. The fog is useful here as it hides away the town yet creates a sense of ambiguity to the town and the film. The lone woman walking into the mist could appeal to an audience who want to see a female protagonist rather than a man. As well as this it doesn't give too much away about the 'villain' in the film, which other promotional posters do, so we don't know what to expect.