The director uses various techniques to create tension and fear in this film clip from Crimson Peak. Through the woman's costume, pale appearance, and the darkly colored house, a sense of the paranormal is established. Unnatural creaking and groaning sounds from the house add to the eerie atmosphere. Low lighting, flickering candles, and shadows build an unsettling mood. A bloody-faced creature appearing and disappearing behind a door leaves the audience wondering what threat may be present. Intense music cues heighten the scares, though providing momentary relief before a jump scare. Ultimately, the director skillfully manipulates visual and audio elements to invoke a sense of dread and mystery in the viewers.
The director uses various techniques to create tension and fear in this film clip from Crimson Peak. Through the woman's costume, pale appearance, and the darkly colored house, a sense of the paranormal is established. Unnatural creaking and groaning sounds from the house add to the eerie atmosphere. Low lighting, flickering candles, and shadows build an unsettling mood. A bloody-faced creature appearing and disappearing behind a door leaves the audience wondering what threat may be present. Intense music cues heighten the scares, though providing momentary relief before a jump scare. Ultimately, the director skillfully manipulates visual and audio elements to invoke a sense of dread and mystery in the viewers.
Original Description:
Analysis of a clip from the film 'Crimson Peak' . Specifically the mies-en-scene and sound.
The director uses various techniques to create tension and fear in this film clip from Crimson Peak. Through the woman's costume, pale appearance, and the darkly colored house, a sense of the paranormal is established. Unnatural creaking and groaning sounds from the house add to the eerie atmosphere. Low lighting, flickering candles, and shadows build an unsettling mood. A bloody-faced creature appearing and disappearing behind a door leaves the audience wondering what threat may be present. Intense music cues heighten the scares, though providing momentary relief before a jump scare. Ultimately, the director skillfully manipulates visual and audio elements to invoke a sense of dread and mystery in the viewers.
The director uses various techniques to create tension and fear in this film clip from Crimson Peak. Through the woman's costume, pale appearance, and the darkly colored house, a sense of the paranormal is established. Unnatural creaking and groaning sounds from the house add to the eerie atmosphere. Low lighting, flickering candles, and shadows build an unsettling mood. A bloody-faced creature appearing and disappearing behind a door leaves the audience wondering what threat may be present. Intense music cues heighten the scares, though providing momentary relief before a jump scare. Ultimately, the director skillfully manipulates visual and audio elements to invoke a sense of dread and mystery in the viewers.
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Kira Moore
Crimson Peak Clip Analysis
The director of this film, Guillermo del Toro, clearly wants the audience to gain a sense of tension and fear from this short clip of film. This is done through a combination of things; mainly sound and mise-en-scene. At the very beginning of the scene we see a woman awake with a start. That she gasps as though in pain immediately puts a sense of danger and tension in the scene. It is clear from her clothes, as part of the mise-en-scene, that the film is set in the past. The fact that her nightdress is white and billowy creates almost a ghost like way to her movement. Her pale skin and white hair also adds to the ghostliness of her appearance. Immediately this creates the subconscious association of something paranormal taking place. In addition to this, it shows the woman in stark contrast to the rest of the house which is very darkly coloured and appears almost black. The fact that only her and her dog have any form of light colour also suggests theyre out of place in regards to the house. This creates tension as they dont appear to belong in the scene yet it revolves around them; a convention of the horror genre is that those out of place are the first to get hurt. At the same time as this there is a general groaning and creaking of the house as though it is alive. This creates fear as it sounds paranormal and ghostly. In addition to this the low key lighting creates a sinister look to the house with the only source of light coming from candles. These candle flames flicker and, as the woman moves long the corridor, cast changing shadows on the wall again adding a ghostly atmosphere and adding to the tension. The fact that we can hear the flames flicker adds a mild sense of fear for them going out because darkness is also generally associated with fear and danger. This adds to the tension and begins to create the fear the director is trying to get the audience to feel. After a door opens by itself with a large amount of creaking (diegetic) we hear a whistle of wind. This suggest the house is cold and draughty. This adds to the desolate and dark atmosphere of the house which has the gothic style generally associated with a haunted house. The groans continue to the point where they sound human and after a presumed door slam the dog stops barking. This creates tension as it was the only sound indicating any other life than the woman herself. We then hear a muffled human-like voice coming from behind a closed door which the woman presumes to be the dog growling. The dog then starts barking again from beside the door. This immediately creates a sinister tone as it leaves the question if the dog is in the hall what is behind the door? This question is soon answered as a bloody face with huge eyes appears behind the door and pulls it closed with a sort of screeching noise. The use of this red face in pair with some previously red lighting (mise-en-scene) in the hallway all connotes danger and blood. The expression on the face paired with the screech is used to dehumanise the creature. We immediately assume it cant be human because the door is opened again to reveal nothing there. This creates fear because we see a creature the woman doesnt that then disappears. We dont know where it has gone which creates tension and fear of this gaunt figure. After the door is pulled shut an intense high-pitched non-diegetic music starts (classic horror film pitch to suggest something bad is about to happen). It starts fairly quickly suggesting an imminent scare at the climax but then it stops when the door is opened to show nothing there. This gives a slight relief which the director uses to lull the audience into a false sense of security so the jump scare of another red creature climbing out of the floor screaming has the desired effect of invoking fear. Kira Moore
This is all the more effective with the addition of the high-pitched music again to add to the moans of the creature. The creature is shrouded in a black mist (an example of the use of mise-en-scene) and is skeletal without eyes. This, again, is done to dehumanise it and make it seem all the more frightening; it looks as though it is a rotting corpse. The completely unnatural nature of this creature creates fear in the audience as it is unknown. The director plays on the primal fear of the unknown more for the woman it drags itself towards than themselves. The tension and fear that has been built throughout is relinquished only after the elevator ride where it becomes more mysterious. The red in the chamber reflects that of the creatures which means some tension still remains but the dog barking means relative safety. It is then more mysterious as there are questions left unanswered. Where is Thomas? What is this chamber? Who does the inscribed trunk belong to? Therefore, through a combination of mise-en-scene and sound throughout the clip tension and fear are created by the director.
