GW: Psychological Horror

 This is a sub-genre of horror that utilises character’s fear, guilt, faith and emotional instability to create a tense, unsettling film. These films differ massively from ‘splatter films’ which derive effects from gore and violence. These films tend to be less formulaic, less likely to use many stock characters and will demonstrate features that can be associated with another sub-genre, e.g. supernatural aspects in the films ‘The Shining’ or ‘Insidious’.

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 Characters 

In these films the protagonist is often also the antagonist. The character does not look like a monstrous entity, but instead is a normal human being, whose twisted nature is not shown until deeper into the film or who experiences strange phenomena, such as hallucinations. There tends to be a fairly even mix of female and male leads.

(<Jacob’s ladder focuses on the story of Vietnam veteran, Jacob, using hallucinations) 

The film relies on this character for the plot line, as it centres around emotional, sexual and simply human characteristics. The sub-genre uses archetypal shadowy traits, which embody themselves in the human psyche as a threat, causing discomfort as it exposes common, or universal, psychological vulnerabilities and fears, which are often dark and repressed by the majority of people. Other characters are often friends or family, exploring the destruction of relationships and in a lot of cases the other characters have a sense of vulnerability, to highlight how twisted the lead becomes.

 Setting 

The Overlook Hotel

Often the location is one of two options: Either the film is set somewhere more remote, like the Overlook Hotel, in The Shining or the film occurs in a daily life situation, with key sets being the home and place of work.

 Sound

 The use of non-diegetic sound to create tension is common, using eerie soundtracks. As well as this, the amplification of certain diegetic sounds  is common, for example footsteps or clocks ticking.

 Camera and editing

 Psychological horror films do not tend to stick to completely conventional techniques, with many directors revolutionising or challenging common images. This has included split screens, handy-cam use and complicated shots that involve mirrors and shadows.

Black Swan uses mirrors to demonstrate the issues facing the protagonist

Overall, although it is its own sub-genre, many horror films fit into another- like supernatural, gothic or monster horror, suggesting that elements of psychological horror could easily be mixed in with traits of other styles. This creates a more varied slate of horror films.