SCREAM

People flock to horror movies each year. Usually to be scared and another is to solve the question of Who done it? Unfortunately, a lot of these horror movies fail to scare people and some do. Occasionally, there are a few horror movies that stick out. Scream, directed by Wes Craven, is one of them. Wes Craven is always toying with the viewer's fears. Always finding ways to scare the audience at every turn. Everybody's a suspect!" This short discussion will give a brief idea of how Craven uses sound, camera shots, and mise en scene to scare the viewer and keep them guessing as to who is the murderer.

In horror movies, sound is a vital part of the movie. Scream is no exception. From the very beginning of the movie, sound is present. The movie starts out right away with creepy music in the background as Dimension Films slowly comes out of the darkness. A rumble follows it, as if several doors are being shut. While the eerie music is still going on the title of the movie is stretched out and comes back together with a loud crash. A phone ringing follows this, a heart beating rapidly, a terrifying scream, a knife slicing into something, and finally followed by more screams.

This is all done within twenty seconds of the film. It displays what the film is likely to be about. It shows a genre of Thriller and Horror due to the loud fearful yell. This already creates suspension and gets the audience thinking what is going to happen and why is the girl screaming. It also introduces a female victim, which suggests vulnerability and innocence due to a young girl screaming. The screaming noise is being played as a background track while the audience can visually see the title of the film, which flashes up in white lettering with an edgy, scary look to it to representing the genre being a Thriller/Horror. This white lettering soon turns into red lettering, which runs down the page like blood. Along with the girl screaming, a phone is also ringing, this is still being played while the film title is being displayed, and this links in with the film because the first scene begins with a phone ringing.

The more the person rings the more distorted Drew Barrymore's voice gets. It is also interesting how when the female is having a conversation on the phone she sounds willing to hold a conversation and claims she likes to watch scary movies. This is relevant to the film because the caller sounds like he gets excited by the prospect she enjoys watching scary movies by herself this implies to the audience that he is potentially likely to do something similar to her. She also plays with the knives which are in the knife rack, this is highly relevant because it represents murder and pain, which may make the audience think that might happen to her.

The reference to her favorite movie being about a guy whole "walks round in a white mask and stalks babysitters," contrasts with the theme of this film and the image of which may be seen on some film posters. She says it with such confidence which shows that she is completely unaware of what may happen to her. The camera soon focuses on to her popcorn on the oven which looks like it is done, this is to suggest that Drew Barrymore's character is so interested in the conversation that she completely forgot about the popcorn - highlighting danger. The mood instantly changes when the caller says "I want to know who I am looking at," this is known to the audience through the female’s facial expression of shock and the background noise which suggests danger.