Analysis of Film

Insidious.

The film that i am analysing is Insidious. I chose this film because it is similar to the film that our group is creating as it is a supernatural horror, and it uses some of the same elements for example, a flashback at the beginning.

The film starts of with a long shot showing a boy's bedroom, This is a flashback of went he main character was younger. There is some non-diagetic music in the shot which is there to build tension. The lighting in the shot is dark to give a sense of mystery. A dolly shot is used to move the camera around the room and then moves out of the bedroom into the kitchen.

In this shot, a shadow can be seen on the window, as soon as the camera goes into the kitchen, the music gets louder and faster which makes it more sinister and shows the audience that something is going to happen.  The shadow then moves from the window and the camera follows it into the next room. A shadow is used as it keeps the audience in suspense as to who the person is as it creates mystery.

This shot shows a ghost of an old woman in medium shot. The frame is dark which is stereotypical for a horror film as it connotes mystery and makes it more scary . There is non-diagetic music in this shot which is loud and fast, the music is used to build up tension and shows the audience that something is going to happen. The camera zooms into the woman's face until the shot fades to black and the music fades out.

The next shot quickly flashes on and the music come back in loud again. This is done to try and scare the audience and make them jump as they are not expecting it. Red is a stereotypical colour to use on a horror film as it connotes danger and blood which is often featured in horror films. The black background is also stereotypical as it is dark and mysterious.

Then the title sequence begins, also using red writing and a black background. It shows black and white images of the house with clues to the audience that something is going to happen for example, in this shot the chair moves out from the table on its self. This show the audience that something out of the ordinary is going to happen. There is also some non-diagetic music in the title sequence to build tension.

After the title sequence, it cuts to a living room which is filled with boxes, this is shown in long shot. The camera then pans around the room, this is done to set the scene and show the audience that the characters have just moved to this house. In this shot, ambient sound is used to make the audience believe that the characters actually live in the house, and to set the mood for example, a clock ticking can be heard and the stairs are creaking.

A women then comes down the staires and starts unpacking the boxes, this is shown in medium long shot. Diagetic sound can be heard as she unpacks to make it sound more real.

She then puts some books on a shelf, a medium close up is used to show what the books are. the first book is called "Self Healing Through Music" this gives the audience some clues about what the characters are like and helps to get to know them better. The book is also red which connotes danger and could suggest that something will happen with the book.

She then begins to look at a photo album and her son comes to look at it with her. They are shown in medium long shot. The fact that they are sat on the floor reminds the audience that they have just moved into the house as they have no chairs to sit on.

They are then shown in medium close up to show their facial expressions when talking about the photo album.

They are then shown in the kitchen as the camera slowly zooms in. There is lots of ambient sound in this shot for example, the baby is crying, the kettle is boiling, a video game can be heard and the children are arguing, whilst the mother is on the phone. These sounds all make it sound hectic and gives the impression that the women is struggling.




It then cuts to a man who is getting ready in front of a mirror, this is shown in medium close up. This contrasts with the last shot as all of the ambient sounds have gone and it is now quite, this is done to highlight to the audience that his morning is different to the woman's morning. It suggests that he doesn't look after the children as much as the women and doesn't help out as much which could be seen as stereotyping.

In this shot, the outside of the house is shown in long shot, this is done to show the audience that it is now a different time of day and it splits up the scene. Piano music can be heard as well as a clock ticking, this is used as a sound bridge onto the next shot.

The women is then shown sat at a piano singing, she is shown in medium shot. The sound of a baby crying can then be heard and the camera then pulls focus to the baby monitor on top of the piano, this is done to make the audience notice it.






The women hears a sound in the attic and goes to see what it is. She is shown in long shot, in this shot, a hand held shot is used which suggests to the audience that something is going to happen.

A close up is then used to show that the ladder in the attic is broken, a close up is used to make it stand out to the audience and to show that it is significant.

After this, the child is shown playing on his own upstairs in the dark whilst the rest of the family are downstairs in the light, this contrasts the two shots and suggests to the audience that something is going to happen to the boy. He is also wearing a red cape which connotes danger and also suggests that something will happen to him.