Med 6 Revision

Scream

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTWf9QGdJCQ

Media language

Loud music with high beats-creates suspense for the audience keeping them entertained in the film.

Phones ringing is shown-a convention of a slasher film by the killer ringing the victims before he kills them.

Scream mask is shown on the window as a reflection but not the actual face creating suspense.

The protagonist is shown alone-vulnerable and looks like she is worried making the audience sympathise with her.

Close up of top story written in red- red connoting blood.

Authority figures is shown carrying a gun- this could be seen as a phallic object, theory by Laura Mulvey.

While she is on the phone to the killer, she is mentioning the main plots of the horror genre such as big breasted person getting killed and while she is saying this clips of her friends are shown reflecting what she is saying.

Character talks about the rules of a horror and in the background there is a horror movie being shown with a phallic object of a knife.

Eerie music is being played parallel to what is being shown to vreat enigma and suspence.


Institution

The institution for scream is the same institution for scary movie. =dimension films

Genre

Horror
Slasher
Thriller


Representation

First victim is a blond female- represented as a bimbo as she has the correct characteristics.

The top story on the jacket could be connoted as a major story, exclusive and keeping audience engaged as they might want to find out what the story is.

Protagonist is outlining the main plots of a slasher/horror film and images of her finds come up reflecting what she is saying.

Audience

Appeal to teenagers who like horror/slashers films
Who are fans of the actors in the film

Ideology and values

Patriarchy because phallic objects are used to kill the victims, a substitute of a penis. This providing pleasure for the killer and visceral pleasure for the audience.

Feminism-she is fighting the killer alone and with no weapon, has courage and strength to beat the killer.

Narrative

Intertexuality because it makes reference to scary movies and this is a scary movie itself being mentioned.

The voice over is narrated by a male to create a understanding for the audience and so they don’t feel alienated when they watch the film.

Scary movie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwES8yUgAls

Media language

A blue tint to represent the past used with slow motion as the start so the audience can get used to the film.

Flashed are used from scene to another

Towards the end they use flash to dark repeatedly, this effect is like blinking and the character is saying I see dead people, this being like they are watching a film

During this same part of the trailer the sound of the heart beat is heard, this sound iconography is the visceral pleasures the audience get when watching a horror/slasher film.

Institution

Dimension films
Hollywood

Genre

It is a parody of many other films such as I know what you did last summer to mocks it to create humour. Scary movie be categorised in the genre of comedy.

Representation

Objectification of the victim-women as she is in a bra and getting soaked in water= reinforces the male gaze, theorised by Laura Mulvey.

The police are shown in the film so authority figures are present.

Audience

Teenagers are the target audience.

Ideology and values

Reinforced patriarchy as the killer uses a phallic object to penetrate the victim’s bodies. =uses it has a weapon.

A male vice narrates the film in a voice over instead of a women reinforcing patriarchy.

Narrative

Tells the audience the rules of a horror/slasher genre so they understand the film better. = this is intertexuality from scream as the funny character is re telling the rules.

Also makes reference to scream with the funny masks and the phone calls and the fake voice to scare the audience.

Similarities

Ø These tests both belong to the same genre and assumes an active audience who get to decide themselves what they want to watch and different people have different reasons for viewing this text such as for pleasure. These two texts both follow is the uses and gratifications theory.
Ø Both tests make use of intertexuality such as in scream, the film Halloween is shown and in scary movie, uses ideas from other slasher texts to create humour out of them for the audiences.
Ø Both texts provide the audience with visceral pleasure such as in scream they have the rapid heartbeat when something is about to happen and in scary movie as visceral pleasure such as laughter due to the spoof.
Ø Both use the repetition of rules to tell the audience what is a convention of a slasher film so they don’t feel alienated when they watch the film.
Ø Both of the films include teenagers as the target audience; this could be because teenagers can identify with them as they are themselves teenagers in the films.
Ø Both films make the use of having parties and a perfect location for the killer to come and kill the intended victims that pass their way.
Ø Both films have similar iconography such as the cream mask, the fake voice, the Halloween outfit and the knife seen as a phallic object.
Ø Both the films are post-modern texts.

Differences

Ø Scary movie is a parody of scream and some other horror films and not really a horror film but a hybrid.
Ø The visceral pleasures of scary movie are different to scream. For scary movie the main visceral pleasure is laughter as it is a comedy as well however the visceral pleasure for scream is to scare the audience and create enigma in which they start feeling tense and have rapid heartbeats.
Ø The main character in this film is shown as dopey and a bimbo whereas Neve Campbell is not dominant and independent.
Ø The killer in scary movie is not shown as scary as in scream and is seen shown in parts where he is doing what other teenagers are doing. This creates identification with the killer.