Scream Analysis (Hartt)

Scream

The thriller film Scream has used cinematography such as a close ups to highlight the audience that she is the victim in the situation. It also make the audience see her facial expression which helps build suspense. The close up was used when drew was on the phone to the killer and she realised he has broken into her house. This technique is conventional because the audience can see the panic on her face allowing them to sympathise for her.

In the death scene, to show that the victim had been stabbed they used the high angle camera shot. This is effective because it portrays a sense of weakness to the audience making her even more vulnerable for the killer to catch her. In thriller films women are usually seen as the weaker sex and the camera shot helps portray this.The effects of this is it builds anticipation and keeps the audience engaged in the film. The high angle is conventional because it make the victims look powerless and small.

Another cinematography technique used was fast panning. This was used when the victim was running from one room to another trying to escape the killer. This is effective because the fast paste makes the audience nervous for the victim allowing them to relate and sympathise. It also helps the audience to build a relationship with the characters but getting an understanding of the settings around them. This is conventional because it creates a tense atmosphere.

The aerial angle was used in the scene when the victim was being dragged along the grass by the killer. This highlights the victims helplessness to the audience making them pity her. The camera shot is bird eye view making the audience see the victims facial expression and body language highlighting the fact that she is defenceless. The cinematography camera shot is conventional because the innocent victim was murdered by a masked killer.

The zoom in camera shot was used at the end of the death scene to emphasise the victims murder. The victim was hung on a tree once she has been stabbed and the camera zoomed up to her face. The speed of the camera zooming in was fast to match the sound of the victims mothers scream. This is effective because it alarms the audience making them shocked. This is conventional to the thriller genre because it shows the death of the victim and the facial expressions of the victim.

The settings of the film was based in the victims house. This is conventional because it highlights the the audience that the killer is tresspassing on the property which builds suspense. It also creates an element of susprise because people associate their homes and a safe place and the film contradicts this. The house was in the middle of the countryside this shows that it is an isolated location. This emphasises that she is alone and it is harder to escape.

The victim in the film was wearing white trousers and a cream top. These colours connote her innocence and purity and highlights to the audience that she is the victim. Her clothing also show the audience that she is justs and ordinary person which builds tension.The killer however, is wearing all black. The colour black connotes death which forbodes a potential death creating a level of anticipation. This is conventional to the thriller genre because the narrative contains death, victims, and murderers.

The costume of the characters are also conventional to the thriller genre. The killer is wearing a mask which hides the persons identity. This is effective because it creates an enigma which is a key factor in creating a good thriller film. It aslo hides the facial expressions so the audience are unable to build a relationship with the character.