OPENING SCENES IN THE FILM

ANNABELLEBY PAULINA FRACKOWIAK

ANNABELLEJohn Form has found the perfect gift for his wife called Mia - a stunning, rare vintage scary doll in a pure white dress. But Mia’s delight with Annabelle does not last very long as the audienceexpect. One horrific night, Johns and his wife Mia’s house are invaded by members of a satanic cult who violently and brutally attack the marries couple. Spilled blood and terror are not all they leavebehind. The satanic cultists have conjured a superhuman entity knows as Annabelle.

Horror thriller –

Characteristic Thrillers today depend on highly used special effects, explosions, high tech gadgets, and chase scenes. It is a genre that aims to create a sense of fear, dread and panic for the audience. These films are often unsettling and rely on scaring the audience through a portrayal of their worst fears and deadliest nightmares. Horror Films usually center on the arrival of an evil force, person or an event. Many horror films include mythical features such as ghosts or vampires. Traditionally, Horror Films incorporate a large amount of violence, gore and bloodshed into the plot. They often overlaps into Fantasy, Science-Fiction genres even though they do have their own styles.

Annabelle is a horror thriller as it follows the stereotypical format of a horror movie. In the move you have the stereotypical antagonist (The demonic doll called Annabelle) and they have a protagonist (Mia). She fits the stereotype as she is pregnant, vulnerable and injured, when she gets stabbed in the stomach and is scared when the demon doll seems to be following her.

Psychological thriller –

Psychological thriller is a fictional thriller story which emphasizes the psychology of its characters and their unstable emotional states. Typically in a psychological thriller, the characters are exposed and very vulnerable to danger on a mental level rather that a physical one. In Annabelle this is shown, when the lead woman Mia is being tormented throughout the whole entire movie and when she tries to explain what is occurring in the house and to her, people do not believe her.

Motifs in Annabelle -

In Annabelle there are plenty of motifs in recurring items or themes which help tie a movie together, which are used to enhanced the movie, such as lighting, camera angles, spacing, settings, sounds, props etc..

Lighting -

In Annabelle the lighting used, creates a big impact in the movie, for instance in the scene where the lead woman- Mia, is in the basement then she hears a baby crying the lighting used is directly in the middle of the ceiling creating shadows as she walks down the narrow hall. Also the lighting creates a spooky atmosphere in the elevator scene when she is trying to run away from the demon and the light starts flashing in the elevator, this effect causes the viewer to become tense and very aware of there surroundings. Also when the demon is chasing after her as she is running up the stairs of her apartment and then the lights darken which leaves the feeling of suspense but then the light flashes on for a brief moment and we see the face of the demon which makes everyone scared. 

Sound-

In Annabelle the sound is another important aspect of the movie, because in several parts of the movie where the Mia is running or she suspects something surrounding her the music becomes very thick and slow, and in some scenes the music speeds up, for example when she was running from the demon in the basement the music, but once she enters the elevator the soothing elevator music starts to play which is ironic considering she is being chased by a demonic entity.

Colours-

In Annabelle the colours used through the movie are also coordinated to add to the movies scary atmosphere. For instance through out the movie dark and pale colours are used. It could be because of the nature of the horror film or the fact that it was set in 1969. Even down to the costume, Mia was always dressed in pale and dull colours, even when she wore blue or yellow they were very pale, again I believe to add to the tense atmosphere of the film.

Last Girl In Annabelle Mia was the last girl, typically in horror movies there is always a final girl, it refers to the last woman alive to confront the killer, basically the last one left to tell the story. The final girl aspect in movies is typically the same because it refers to a girl being tormented psychologically throughout the movie and no one believing her, and that’s what's happens in Annabelle to Mia, she knew that she was being tormented but she didn’t think her that her husband will believe her.

ANNABELLE