Halloween shows the codes and conventions of the slasher horror sub-genre with the camera work, setting and locations, characters and sound paradigms. Camera work such as establishing shots, hand held camera and point of view shots are all codes and conventions of slasher horror films. For example, a point of view shot is used at the start of the trailer. These are used as a way of only letting the audience see what the character can see rather than the audience being able to witness what is going on behind and around the character; this creates a tense feel.
At the very beginning the narrator introduces the film ‘Halloween’ with the words, “the one, the only, the classic, Halloween”, which in the 1970s would have followed the codes and conventions of horror films. Throughout the trailer the narrator tells parts of the plot and at the end tells the audience, “the night he came home”. And so the audience know that the killer is going back to his roots to take revenge.
As the actual trailer begins, the camera pans to the left from behind a tree and then moves on to the establishing shot of an isolated white house. This creates the feel that someone is spying on the house. Again this follows the codes and conventions of a horror film because an isolated house is a classic location as no one will hear or see anything. The audience can tell that it is night time, again making it harder for people to see. A point of view shot is used showing someone is in a mask, because as the audience we can only see through holes that are cut out for the eyes. This makes it unclear to the audience what is happening and so makes the audience feel tense, although every now and then you can see quick movements of a knife and diegetic sound of a woman screaming. Continuity editing is used as the point of view shot is carried on of the killer walking down the stairs of the house. The camera shot now changes to a medium shot of the killer, a young child called Michael, dressed in a clown Halloween outfit holding a large knife. This instantly creates a contrast between what is meant to be dangerous-the knife, and what is meant to be innocent-the child, although this is not the case here. A two shot is used of the victim, (a girl), and the masked killer behind her, who is dimly lit. This shows the codes and conventions of a horror film because the audience are able to work out the relationship between the two. The girl is oblivious to the killer being behind her and so the audience can interpret that the girl has become increasingly vulnerable. Low angle shots are very popular in horror films because it identifies who has the most power. For example, in ‘Halloween’, a low angle shot is used of the killer shown only as a silhouette at the top of the stairs. Metaphorically, he is higher up in status, meaning that he has more power than the girl at the bottom of the stairs.
Locations and settings are again a very important part of the codes and conventions of a horror film. As previously mentioned, an isolated white house is a classic location of a horror film. No one is around to hear or see if anything occurs and so the character instantly becomes more vulnerable a there is no people there for back up. Inside the house the killer can hide from the victim in a variety of places but at the same time can keep the victim to one place, which creates an anxious setting as the audience know that the killer is going to be within the house but are unsuspecting of where. In another scene in ‘Halloween’, a car is used with the girl inside. A car is very enclosed and hard to move around in. This is a perfect setting for a horror film because it lets the killer become more powerful and able to confine the victim to one place within the car.
Props such as a knife and mask are used within the film and so again this follows the codes and conventions of a horror film. The penetration of the knife to the skin connotes with sexual imagery, which makes it a more personal weapon. Michael, the killer, uses this on his older sister at the beginning of the trailer and tries in a failed attempt with the girl when he is twenty-one. Although, this may not relate to sexual imagery with his sister, it may be a weird way of feeling closer to his sister with which he may not have been able before. The mask hides the killers face and so conceals his identity from the audience and his victims. A gravestone is also used above the bed of the murdered girl. This is a biblical image and so this is put here to represent the girls ‘deathbed’. A pumpkin is also placed next to the bed in the same shot and represents Halloween night. This is used as the night Michael committed the murder was Halloween and so it is something he obviously leaves behind as his mark.
Throughout most of the film it is set during the night time when people are most suspicious because they are less aware of what is going on around them. For example, a close up of the girl in the car and the killers hand is only slightly lit by the streetlight. The audience now knows that the girl is the victim but is unable to see and know who the killer is because it is too dark to know. The slight lighting ever used exposes only parts of the body, so in the example given, it only exposes part of the girl’s face and killer’s hand. In the car scene, a person is shown dressed in white clothing but is illuminated by red lighting. This contrasts with the colour white which is seen as ‘innocent’ and ‘pure’ and the red lighting being a symbol of ‘danger’. This red lighting is a way of presenting what is dangerous and what is not, being the girl that is dressed in a white top. A scene in daylight is also shown which immediately makes the audience feel that it is a safer time of day because everyone is awake and would normally be out during the day. These are the common codes and conventions of horror films that are used in ‘Halloween’.
Sound paradigms that are used within ‘Halloween’ are diegetic sounds such as screaming and the voices on the TV. An example of this is when a hand held camera shot is used of the girl falling down the stairs and she starts screaming. This creates a distorted image leaving the audience unable to know what is going on. From the diegetic sound of the girl screaming the audience instantly know that she is afraid. Diegetic sound of the TV in the over the shoulder shot is used to differentiate between the horror that is happening outside the house and the safety in the house. Non diegetic sound of piano and other instruments is used over the trailer. The crescendo at the end of the score of when a hand held camera is used of the girl running builds tension and the audience unknowing of what has happened because the trailer has come to an end.
Character paradigms are used in the film. A girl, Laurie Strode, is the typical innocent girl in the horror film. She wears a white top throughout most of the film which means she is innocent. White symbolises innocence and purity, and this is why, as an example, brides wear white because they are meant to be innocent. The killer is seen wearing a mask when he is older and as a child killer he wears a clown outfit. These are conventional horror props because a mask conceals the killers identity and a clown outfit also does this. Another reason for wearing a clown outfit is that clowns are a common phobia of people and so this creates an almost frightening experience for some people.
In conclusion, ‘Halloween’ successfully uses the codes and conventions of horror films. Camera shots such as point of view shots, low angle shots and close up shots are all ways of showing the emotion and power of the characters. Locations and settings that are used are the typical isolated houses and enclosed cars which are always the hardest to get away from for the victim. And sound paradigms are things such as screaming and eerie music that are used within the film. These again build up tension and let the audience simply know that it is a horror film because screaming and eerie music is the typical sounds to use when in a dangerous situation. There is one example of when ‘Halloween’ doesn’t follow the codes and conventions of a horror film when the girl is murdered and placed in a crucifix position. From the high angle shot before the girl gets murdered she is shown filing her nails with her white cover up to her neck with bows in her hair. The audience will think that she is innocent because of the colour of her clothing, but from prior knowledge I know that the promiscuous girl is always killed first, whereas this girl is portrayed as innocent. This shows that ‘Halloween’ has not followed the codes and conventions of horror films in this scene.
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