B- The Ring - Psychological Horror

'The Ring' (Verbinski, 2002)

• This film is a psychological horror and is an American remake of the Japanese horror 'Ringu' (Nakata,1998)

• The opening of the film reflects this genre and camera techniques are used to do this, The first is of a track in of a large house which is in the dark to give a sense of spookiness and connotes the idea of bad things happening at night which follows the typical stereotype of horror films. Another camera technique used to portray this is the MS of the girls face when she realises that she has watched the film, her reaction is of sheer fear which then creates a strong impact on the audience increasing the horror factor of the film. Here is a still image to show this...

• The use of editing also reflects the genre of the film, quick cuts are used to create tension and keep the audience on the edge of their seat. An example of this is the cut form the outside of the house into the bedroom. The use of shot reaction shot is also used to connote the theme of horror and again is used to keep the audience interested and highlight the facial expressions shown by the two girls. Here is a still image to show the cut into the bedroom..

• Sound creates a massive impact on the opening of the film, the sound of rain is prevalent in the very beginning of the film which connotes the idea of the typical horror film. This automatically gives the audience a feeling of anticipation and draws their attention to the location. The sound of the TV and the 'fuzz' from the disturbance also creates a sense of fear and makes the audience feel part of the action therefore creating an even scarier experience.

• The use of Mise en scene also connotes this idea, the location is large spacious giving the impression of isolation. The lighting is dark following the stereotypical horror movie lighting and creating a scary effect. The costume of the girls also follows the stereotypical clothing of girls which reinforces the fear of the audience and makes it seem real. The characters being female also creates a stronger sense of fear as women are stereotypically weaker than men therefore helpless.

• The narrative is slow and quiet reinforcing the idea of something spooky happening, when the girl is telling the story is an example of this. This is used to draw in the audience and again create a sense of horror.