Film Image Analysis: Conclusion (Sinister)

When reflecting upon my horror research, my favourite scene is from the film Sinister (2012) directed by Scott Derrickson. This scene has a strong link to the historical context of the time, as it was released shortly after a series of family murders and children abductions. There was a shooting in France that left a young girl alone in a car with her murdered family could be represented by the way the storyline of this film incorporates the idea that one child of the family will be taken by the pagan God ‘Bughuul’.  Similarly the huge media coverage of a child abduction that resulted in police finding the girl had never been abducted in the first place could also be symbolic to the way the children in Sinister are never physically abducted, instead their minds are possessed.

This final scene takes place in the family home which is a common creepy location often used in the horror genre of films. The combination of low-key lighting and bad weather conveys the use of pathetic fallacy in order to create a very dark, ominous and eerie feeling to the setting. After Ellison receives a phone call from his deputy to inform him of the terror that may lie ahead, Ellison is confronted by his younger daughter who seems to be possessed. In this scenario, conventional representations of typical horror characters aren’t used which provides the audience with a sense of shock and revelation as it is revealed that the daughter is about to kill her family.

Some representations of a slow moving monster are present through Bughuul’s character; as a pagan God, Bughuul cannot physically harm his victims but instead he possesses their children, therefore he is seen to be undefeatable. Due to its unsettling nature, restricted narration is used as the daughter uses her axe to kill her family, but only off-screen. This leaves the audience imagining the horrific nature of the killing as they can interpret the extent of the murder in their own way. The point of view shots allows the audience to see through the murderer’s eyes which makes the them feel very sympathetic for the victims as we see close ups of them begging for the lives. The overall pace of the scene and the use of slow montage adds to the general creepy feeling as it conveys a more sick and twisted plot that would have been unimaginable to the audience. The confirmation of an unhappy ending as Ashley is picked up and taken away by Bughuul to join the other taken children demonstrates some key aspects that make it such a strong horror.

Some of the character’s names also have relevance to the plot of the story. For example, the main character is named Ellison which means ‘Son of Elias’. The biblical meaning of Elias is a name given to someone on a quest or someone wanting to fulfil a particular mission. This could connote the idea that Ellison’s mission to not only write a novel but also solve a crime led him to the opposing Pagan God that would be his downfall.

The framing of this scene really emphasized the overall disturbing conveyed to the audience. For example, lots of empty space in each frame often left the audience wondering what is surrounding the character and whether they were more likely to have something happen to them in more open spaces. This could also relate to the director’s auteur style as the majority of his films feature lots of empty space in the framing. This links to Andrew Sarris’ “Auteur theory” that suggest a film can be identified by its ability to portray a director’s style. For example, Scott Derickson’s  Two Eyes Staring (2010) is another of his horror films that includes lots of empty frames to make the characters appear small and inferior. However, sinister was more identifiable for its clever use of an interesting narrative structure and cinematography which relates to Andrew Bazin’s theory “The Genius of the System”.

From all of my research on the horror genre and after analysing many different films I’ve found that the psychological horrors have made more of an emotional impact. For example, films like Sinister and Silent Hill focus mainly on the ability to get into the mind of the audience by shocking them with plot twists, editing and music rather than lots of body horror. These particular films are generally more confusing and mysterious than the gory films that feel more gruesome and disturbing. I’ve found that the camera work and editing plays a big role in these films as the close ups and collision cuts makes the films more suspenseful and edgy; therefore by attempting to create a psychological horror trailer I hope to convey these sorts of emotions to the audience.