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.