Lesson 1

[Donna Donna Hoke Hoke]

Is it too extreme to put a pregnant woman in danger in a horror? Most of the ones I’ve seen/read about involve the baby as the monster. Is there a taboo about this?

[CJ Lyons]

isn’t it actually a fairly common trope–going all the way back to Rosemary’s Baby?

or consider The Quiet Place where the mom was pregnant as the monsters gathered.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 3 months ago by  CJ Lyons.

[Donna Donna Hoke Hoke]

Right, but the pregnant woman wasn’t terrorized.

[CJ Lyons]

Lesson 1: Horror Conventions

What I learned from this assignment was the need to add the moral element—something to place all the blood and gore into context for the audience.

Watch the movie and as you do, note its conventions:

Title / Concept: DON’T BREATHE: A girl and her friends are desperate enough to escape their dismal homes that they decide to rob a blind man but are trapped inside his house as he hunts them down one by one.

Terrorize The Characters: total darkness, huge labyrinth of a house that they don’t know the layout of and that is filled with booby traps, crazed madman determined to kill them

Isolation: locked into house

Death: one by one killed and discover the man has killed before

Monster/Villain: blind man starts as “innocent victim” morphs into relentless killer

High Tension: in the total blackness the killer moves close to his victims and their only choice is to be silent including not breathing

Departure from Reality: grounded in reality except for the incredible lengths the killer goes to and his brutality—until you learn his real secret at the end

Moral Statement: some people’s lives are so bad they’d do anything to escape, even rob a blind man; but others will do anything, even kill, to protect their secrets

3. Anything else you’d like to say about what made this movie a great horror film? The almost real-time pacing added to the intensity and unlike many horror films there were no real logic holes in the plot, making it feel more real.

4. With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story.

Concept:

THE HOUSE KEEPER: a woman’s online date turns into a nightmare when she’s taken captive in her own home by thieves determined to steal everything, including emptying all her accounts when the banks open the next morning, then burn the house with her inside, forcing her to reveal her true self to the hapless men who have no idea who they’re really dealing with—a woman who killed for this house once already and who will do anything to keep it

Terrorize The Characters: mansion filled with secret passages, unseen hazards; lone woman set upon by several men knowing she only has hours to live; the men suddenly at her mercy as she takes them down using her house as a weapon

Isolation: trapped in remote mansion

Death: first the men torture and taunt her with her death; then she turns the tables and has no mercy as she hunts and kills them via various gruesome “homemade” methods

Monster/Villain: is it the home invaders or the woman? Two sides of same coin, only one wants to take and the other wants to protect/keep, but all are killers at heart

High Tension: the men have weapons, she must improvise; hide n seek scenes through house along with chase scenes—can she escape? Will she live? Will they?

Departure from Reality: woman capable of killing to get house she loves and then keep killing to keep it

Moral Statement: if we’re honest with ourselves, we all have something we’d kill for

[Donna Donna Hoke Hoke]

THE RING

Concept: if you watch a certain video, you will die in seven days
Terrorization: weird sounds, hallucinations, feat of imminent death
Isolation: Not so much. She was working with someone
Death: Just the four to start (and we only see one), and one at the end
Monster: The undead Samara
High Tension: the ticking clock
Departure from reality: The whole thing. I have too many questions…
Moral statement: Don’t neglect your children

[Leslie Danon]

What I learned from this assignment:

The concept I have formy horror script is not strictlyI horror, it is also satire, so I need to really figure out how to carve out more specific elements like the method of terrorizing the characters, drilling down the isolation, high tension.

I broke down two movies —

CONVENTIONS OF HORROR

“Ready Or Not” A Bride must survive her first night of marriage in her husband’s family estate while they hunt her down for a sacrifice to the Devil playing a game of Hide And Seek.

TERRORIZE THE CHARACTERS

The family members hunt down the new bride in a game of Hide And Seek in their mansion using archaic looking weaponry.

ISOLATION

A huge estate far from any other homes.

DEATH

Stabbing. Choking. Bow and arrow. Mallet. Implosions.

MONSTER/VILLAIN

The Groom’s Family that sold its soul to the Devil for wealth and who violently hunts her down for a sacrifice.

HIGH TENSION

The Bride is forced to fight back and kill the Groom’s family members in a series of bloody attacks before sunrise.

DEPARTURE FROM REALITY

A family that is willing to grotesquely and flippantly kill people, even their new family members to pay debt to the Devil.

MORAL STATEMENT

Money is the root of all evil, especially when it comes to in-laws.

CONCEPT

“E Conde” A Vampire fakes his death during the time of Marie Antionette’s beheading and becomes the dictator of Chile in the 70s. He fakes his death again and escapes to a remote island with his Wife and Servant when authorities investigate his ill-begotten wealth and human abuses. After 250 years he loses his will to live until he falls in love with a young and crafty Nun who is hired by his adult children to murder their vampire/ex-dictator father so they can finally inherit. The Vampire’s unknown mother, Margaret Thatcher, shows up to thwart the young Nun and the Servant beheads the Nun. The Vampire then kills his Servant and his own Wife. In the end he and his mother, Margaret, rejuvenate by eating their hearts and then move on to a happy new life as child and mother.

TERRORIZE THE CHARACTERS

The Vampires murder victims by removing their hearts, putting them in the blenders of their victims, and drinking them like slushees.

ISOLATION

A remote island the family lives on alone in exile in shame.

DEATH

Guillotine. Throat slitting. Blood draining, blender, mallet.

MONSTER/VILLAIN

A murderous vampire, who is also the disenfranchised dictator of Chile and long lost son of Margaret Thatcher spawned from a Vampire assault.

HIGH TENSION

The Vampires eat the hearts of people that get in the way of their fascist crimes. The Vampire’s children want their inheritance, and finally, will the Nun kill him or vise versa?

DEPARTURE FROM REALITY

The dictator of Chile is a 250 year old vampire and the son of Margaret Thatcher who is also a vampire.

MORAL STATEMENT

The dictator of Chile might be dead but his fascist criminality lives on like an undead vampire.

[Donna Donna Hoke Hoke]

I’m finding mine is also a combo of thriller and horror. If you’re choosing, the bride one seems more this model.

I can’t reply to you on Lesson 4 for some reason, but no, Kenny is not the killer. She’s being tortured by a man she got put away for murder who thinks he had a very justifiable reason for doing it but being jailed ruined his life.

[Tasha Espinoza]

Tasha’s Horror Conventions

What I learned doing this assignment is that the conventions of horror can really start to shape your story even at just the concept phase.

ASSIGNMENT

Analyze a HORROR movie to discover how the conventions were expressed.

• Title: The Hitcher (1986)

• Concept: While transporting a car from Chicago to San Diego, Jim Halsey picks up a hitchhiker named John Ryder, who claims to be a serial killer.

• Terrorize The Characters: Jim Halsey is doggedly pursued by a disappointed serial killer who will continue to kill the people that come into contact with Jim until Jim figures out how to stop him.

• Isolation: A long stretch of lonely, desert road in 80s Texas with only a handful of gas stations and diners along the way, half of which are not operational.

• Death: Dismemberment, Beheading, Explosions, Shootings, Vehicular Manslaughter, Child Murder

• Monster/Villain: John Ryder, The Hitcher, a phantom-like serial killer who relentlessly torments Halsey into the final act of stopping Ryder.

• High Tension: Every place of sanctuary Halsey seeks is visited by Ryder where he racks up a high body count. Halsey’s not even safe at a police station surrounded by cops.

• Departure from Reality: Ryder corners Halsey at every turn and Halsey is forced to break the law i.n order to seek help.

• Moral Statement: Stranger Danger! Never pick up a Hitchhiker! Also, driving solo across the country isn’t just dangerous for the driver.

3. Anything else you’d like to say about what made this movie a great horror film?

This movie is an excellent horror film. Not only is it very effective in delivering the horror by isolating characters, creating the fear of the unknown with the enigmatic Hitcher that is a lethal, phantom-like serial killer and driving characters to the point of hysteria and fear for their lives as the body count mounts and the kills become more gruesome, but it was written with budget decision in mind as it kept characters and locations to a minimum and had a trim running time. It is super effective on all fronts.

4. With your concept, fill in each of these Conventions for your story.

• Concept: A vengeful spirit kills off the group of guys that refused to rescue her from the serial killer that tortured her to death.

• Terrorize The Characters: The vengeful spirit guides the serial killer to hunt down and pick off her prey.

• Isolation: Most of the deaths occur in the abandoned rural shack where the serial killer operates.

• Death: Supernatural torture and the serial killer’s MO of performing weird body modification “art” that leads to fatality.

• Monster/Villain: Vengeful Spirit and the Serial Killer

• High Tension: The group is being pursued by a serial killer they can’t fight against and a supernatural force they can’t appeal to.

• Departure from Reality: Serial Killers are in normal life, but a serial killer guided/manipulated by a spirit is a departure from reality.

• Moral Statement: Empathy in crucial to maintaining humanity and protecting against the dangers of becoming too desensitized to the suffering of others.

[Tom Carroll]

The film I am responding to is one that I have watched numerous times – a black-and-white B-horror film called “Fiend Without a Face.”

“Fiend Without a Face” is a British-American science fiction horror film released in 1958. It was directed by Arthur Crabtree and produced by Richard Gordon. The film is notable for its inventive special effects and atmospheric black-and-white cinematography. “Fiend Without a Face” follows the story of an American military base in Canada that becomes the target of mysterious attacks, leading to the discovery of invisible creatures responsible for the killings. As the creatures evolve and become more powerful, the base personnel must find a way to stop them before they unleash further destruction. The film received moderate success upon its release and has since gained a cult following among fans of classic horror cinema.

What I learned doing this assignment is that even the strangest horror presence is made very effective when it is invisible and sucks the brains out of unsuspecting victims!! This makes even a black-and-white B-movie into a winner.

“FIEND WITHOUT A FACE”

Title / Concept: The title, “Fiend Without a Face,” immediately sets up the concept of an unseen, mysterious menace. The idea of a “fiend” conjures up images of something monstrous and terrifying, without necessarily revealing what it is, creating intrigue and curiosity. A fiend without a face pays itself off right away when the monster strikes out of nowhere in a form that can’t be seen.

Terrorize The Characters:: Throughout the film, the characters are terrorized by an unseen force that attacks them both physically and mentally. The tension builds as they try to understand and combat this unseen threat, heightening the fear and uncertainty among the characters and the audience.

Isolation: The setting of the film, a remote military base in Canada, provides a strong sense of isolation. The characters are cut off from the outside world, surrounded by wilderness and snow, which amplifies their vulnerability to the unknown terror lurking in their midst.

Death: The film doesn’t shy away from death, as characters are gruesomely killed by the invisible fiends. These deaths are sudden and shocking, adding to the sense of danger and unpredictability in the story.

Monster/Villain: The invisible creatures that stalk the characters throughout the film serve as the monstrous villains. Their invisibility adds to their terrifying nature, as the human characters are unable to see or anticipate their attacks, heightening the suspense and fear.

High Tension: “Fiend Without a Face” maintains a constant atmosphere of tension and suspense, as the characters are relentlessly pursued by the unseen fiends. The pacing of the film, combined with the ominous soundtrack and eerie atmospherics, keeps the audience on edge throughout.

Departure from Reality: The concept of invisible creatures feeding on human brains is a departure from reality, pushing the boundaries of scientific plausibility and delving into the realm of speculative fiction. This departure from reality adds to the sense of dread and unease, as the characters grapple with a threat beyond their comprehension.

Moral Statement: While “Fiend Without a Face” doesn’t have an explicit moral statement, it does explore themes of scientific experimentation gone wrong and the consequences of tampering with forces beyond our control. The film serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked scientific ambition and the potential consequences of unleashing unknown horrors upon the world.

“REQUIEM OF FAITH”

Title / Concept: “Requiem of Faith:” The title evokes a sense of solemnity and religious undertones, hinting at themes of redemption and spiritual warfare. The concept centers around a priest’s harrowing journey from the ground floor of a haunted hospital to the top floor, all the while confronting demonic forces intent on destroying his faith and unleashing hell on earth.

Terrorize The Characters: The characters are terrorized by relentless demonic entities that prey on their deepest fears and insecurities, manifesting as grotesque apparitions and tormenting them with nightmarish visions. The demons exploit the characters’ vulnerabilities, driving them to the brink of madness as they struggle to maintain their sanity in the face of overwhelming evil.

Isolation: The characters are isolated within the confines of a desolate hospital, cut off from the outside world, and trapped in a labyrinth of corridors and shadowy hallways. The sense of isolation amplifies their fear and paranoia, as they realize they are completely alone in their battle against the malevolent forces that seek to consume them.

Death: Death lurks around every corner, as the characters are stalked by relentless demons hell-bent on claiming their souls. Each encounter with the demonic entities brings them closer to the brink of death, as they fight for survival against overwhelming odds. The threat of death looms ominously throughout the film, heightening the tension and uncertainty of the characters’ fates.

Monster/Villain: The primary antagonist is a powerful demon known as the Vorago aka The Wraith, a malevolent entity that embodies darkness and despair. With its ability to manipulate reality and prey on the weaknesses of the characters, the Vorgo emerges as a formidable and terrifying adversary, driving the priest to confront his deepest fears and confront the darkness within himself.

High Tension: The film is filled with moments of intense suspense and dread, as the characters navigate through a nightmarish landscape haunted by demonic entities. Each encounter with the monsters ratchets up the tension, as the characters struggle to survive against impossible odds and uncover the truth behind the demonic invasion.

Departure from Reality: The film blurs the lines between reality and nightmare, as the characters are thrust into a surreal and otherworldly realm where the laws of physics and logic no longer apply. The hospital becomes a twisted labyrinth of horrors, where the characters must confront their darkest fears and confront the demonic forces that seek to consume them.

Moral Statement: At its core, “Requiem of Faith” explores themes of redemption, faith, and the struggle between good and evil. The film poses profound moral questions about the nature of belief and the power of hope in the face of despair. Through the characters’ journey, the film ultimately delivers a message of resilience and the triumph of the human spirit over darkness.