Objectives:
- Analyze the unique aesthetic qualities of horror art.
- Understand and utilize some basic principles of film and television analysis.
This chapter was an examination of the aesthetics of horror and how they are used to create a thrilling experience out of the intended audience. The artifact below was a reaction to an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in which there is very limited digetic sound. We were called on to describe how the mise-en-scene, digetic sounds, and non-digetic sound of the episode contributed to the horror aesthetic.
Artifact:
In this episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I was particularly drawn to the use of non-diegetic sound through mood music. One thing the episode does particularly well is use pacing to create the mood. In high tense moments, the music begins to speed up, with more orchestral runs, simulating the quickening of the heart beat and the raise in stakes for the characters. In lower moments, the music slows and the audience is given time to breathe. In addition, the mood music plays with pitch to play with the mood. Notes increase in pitch and chords become more unharmonious in moments of high risk. During happier moments, the music becomes more melodic with lower base notes in the chords. This contrast distinguishes moments of imminent tension from moments where the audience can relax.
The most noticeable strategy of diegetic sound found in this episode is the use of creaking, sirens, and other interrupting sounds to break the lulls of silence. There is a moment early on where a glass is dropped and it shatters. This sudden disruption is an example of the chaotic environment that the characters are forced to live in. This feeling is also established with sirens and dogs barking in the background when characters are roaming around in this state of silence. The creaking plays an important role in giving a feeling of deterioration and the world seems to be decaying into total chaos.
The mise-en-scene choice made in the episode that I thought had the most important effect on the overall mood was the utilization of hallways. Many times we find the characters stuck in confined hallways where there seems to be only one way to go and no escape. This assists in making the audience also feel confined, victim to the voice-stealing vampires that now seem to have complete control over the audience as well. The hallways also have an interesting ability to produce long shadows and weird lighting.
All of this contributes to the horror by forcing the audience into a confined and chaotic environment. Anyone watching the scene can feel the monsters coming for them, while they see no way of escaping. Meanwhile, the music speeds and notes become more discordant, creating a sense of danger and random chaotic diegetic sounds portray a world where order is falling apart.
Reflection:
Before this assignment, I had never really considered the artistic value of the horror genre. I have never been a huge horror fan, instead finding aesthetic pleasure in other places. However, when I was asked to observe the ways in which horror works, I found that there’s a delicate art to constructing memorable and haunting horror that is more than just gore and pop up screams. The way in which a director of a film or television episode uses mise-en-scene and sound can manipulate the tension of the viewer. I was shocked by how little things like being set in the limited space of a hallway or the sound of creaking could make me feel anxious and scared.
Once I thought about the things that affected me in the Buffy episode, I realized their prevalence and understood that, much like other forms of art, techniques are studied, replicated, and utilized. It is even more crucial that, because of the effectiveness of the aesthetics of horror, the genre is one of the most popular venues for exhibiting one’s art. This assignment gave me an entirely new perspective on horror. It was the first time I had ever looked at horror with any kind of critical eye. But having done so, I am impressed with the construction of genuine horror.
This chapter not only changed my perspective on the horror genre, but will influence the way I look at all television and film from here on out. My experiences with television and film will not only be about enjoying the aesthetics of what I am watching, but also thinking about why those aesthetics are eliciting the emotions they do. By doing this, I will better understand the art that I expose myself to.
Artifact One – Understanding Values
Artifact Two – What is Art For?
Artifact Four – The Art of Personal Adornment
Artifact Five – The Appeal of Horror
Artifact Six – Creative Spirituality
Artifact Eight – Remixing Culture