Research Essay: Codes and Conventions of Existing Horror Films

Codes and conventions are methods of conveying a meaning within a piece of media text. There are two types of codes; technical and symbolic. Technical codes are all the different ways equipment is used , for example camera angles. Symbolic codes include all of the aspects of mise-en-scene; for example a character who is wearing red could be interpreted by the audience as being a dangerous character. Some codes fit into both categories: music is both technical and symbolic.

Conventions are the generally accepted ways of doing things. There are general conventions in any medium but conventions are genre specific therefore a common convention used in horror films is characters having no signal on their phone to contact help. Much like evil dead where a character is certain they have escaped, until they realise their phone is dead or has no signal.

The specific films I will be analysing are; Dead Wood, Dead Mary and Wrong Turn.

Dead Wood

The titles used in the opening of the film are compiled very well; fading from white to red this suggests they are trying to communicate (or foreshadow)to the audience the amount of blood and gore to expect. The film starts with an high angle crane shot (establishing shot) of the setting (a secluded woodland far from society) in addition to the fact that there is a very eery atmosphere which is created by soft piano music. A convention of a jump scare used, and then the music drastically changes to a jumpy track which makes you feel on edge about what is going to happen. By using a high angle the impression that is given is one of vulnerability as it is such a vast amount of land the characters will clearly struggle to escape, which is shown by a tracking shot and point of view shot of a character running away from an unseen threat. A tracking shot was the most effective within terms of editing as it gives the audience a look from the characters point of view and makes you relate to them more. The editing speeds up as the opening continues and can be related to the characters mindset and how scared they are. Mise-en-scene already suggests this particular character has encountered danger because of the blood on his face whilst racing through the woods whereas the female character seems oblivious to any of this as she is in safety of the tent. If we analyse the use of mise-en-scene the character we see is wearing a colourful Hawaiian shirt, this has the connotations of being on holiday so therefore he is not prepared, or perhaps he is a very eccentric character which.  This may also suggest that he is a fun person and this is countered by the fact that he seems to be extremely terrified. There are two characters; one male one female. The male character whom was being chased reached the end of a cliff, but on the other side is his tent and female companion. The female characters in all of the three films are exposing a lot of skin and are dressed very minimally; yet the female character in this specific movie is wearing all black, which has the connotations of death and darkness. The props used seem to be very basic but also used effectively within conventions; you are able to see that he is so close to safety (the tent) but is still not able to make it.

Dead Mary

The films starts with extreme close ups of old rusty chains, and the diagetic sound seems to be creeking sounds and outdoor noises which makes the character assume something sinister is going on. The female character also adds diagetic sound by tapping her fingers on the roof of the car; this suggests she is waiting, but this could also be interpreted as creepy . The tapping goes from quiet to loud: which makes you think that this is a symbol for the danger slowly approaching her. Again the location is a secluded one, the car has conveniently ran out of petrol and the characters are 800 miles away from the nearest anything! A convention used in many horror movies is also used in Dead Mary;the female character is clearly in a vunerable position accompanied by the fact that she is nor prepared as she has no shoes on, as mise-en-scene shows. There seems to be no sign of any help, this is reinforced by the convention of her having no phone signal, but the characters seem to have a flare gun which could come in useful. There are also two characters, male and female. The woman is wearing very minimal clothing which could suggest that the climate is very humid, therefore not suitable for escaping from a threat. The threat is unseen (a convention used in all 3 films) much like the other two films, but there is a point of view shot from it examining the woman whilst hidden in the woodland.

Wrong Turn

The establishing shot is a crane shot,.showing the immense amount of land where the film is set, establishing how far away from civilisation they are; this is a common convention used in films to translate to the audience how far away the characters are from the rest of the world. This is accompanied with sinister sounding music; this is very intimidating because the audience know that there is no escaping and there is something coming to get them. This is highlighted by the use of music; string instruments and the beat of drums..Again there are two characters, male and female. Richard clarifies they are isolated by telling the female “We’re 50 miles from anybody who are you screaming for?”, the female replies “you!” which is a symbolic code that she is clearly dependent on him much like all three female characters in the different films. The pace of the editing is used effectively in all three openings but this specific opening is a good example of how editing has been used to captivate the audience. The male character seems to be the most domineering and the strongest of the two, this is shown by the phrase “come on slow coach” directed at his female accomplice. The male character ‘Richard’ reaches to top of the climbing wall but then all is silent. The female character seems to be weaker (and easier to manipulate) this is shown by the editing of close up and long shots of her struggling to climb the mountain. We hear no non-diagetic sound until this happens. Another convention used is that the female character is screaming out for Richard to help her… but Richard is dead and was killed, by again, an unseen danger. His body is thrown from the top of the mountain by someone and they then try to pull the woman up but she cuts herself free. Terrified she runs to what she thinks is safety, yet the treat is seen rustling the tree branches and running away with a creepy laugh. We then see a final shot of her safety (the car) which signifies how close she was to escaping.  In conclusion I believe that wrong turn used codes and conventions the most usefully in the opening of the film.

Overall I believe wrong turn challenges codes and conventions and mise-en-scene the most accurately however all three films use atleast three conventions in common; For example conventions used are: a helpless female victim, a victim almost escaping, a secluded location. The general location used was a forest, forests are usually quiet and related to nature. There are not many means of communication near (especially in the horror genre) therefore this is why I believe ‘wrong turn uses the most technical and symbolic codes, conventions and mise-en-scene to create an effective and sinister opening; it helps the audience foreshadow any more terror to come.