Essay On “Suspense In Horror Films“

9 Pages 2292 Words

ressions of Norman’s secret desires and guilt. The camera shows us a close up of the birds, to let us know how strange he is. While Marion and Norman are having their conversation, the camera shots are usually low angle because it shows how unbalanced Norman is. While they are talking, Marion appears to be sitting next to a lamp, which makes her face and body glow. This tells us that she has a lot of warmth and is very kind person. The framing here is very regular.The conversation between them seems very innocent and friendly, until Marion suggests that Norman should put his mother in a home. The camera then shows us an extreme close up of Norman’s face, showing us his angry eyes and face. This makes the audience realise that his mood and feelings have now changed.
At this point Norman is still unaware that he is sitting with half of his body in a shadow and half of his body in the light. This is done deliberately by the director to point out that he has a good and bad side.
When Norman then asks Marion "What are you running away from"? the camera shows a medium/mid shot of Norman with a very devious look on his face. This makes the audience think that he might have figured out that Marion holds a secret.
When Marion gets up to leave the camera looks down at Norman. This shows us that Norman is being weak and vulnerable. The audience then gets a quick glimpse of Norman’s house in the distance. It is very shadowy and creepy. Hitchcock uses this image to let the audience have an insight to the evilness of the film, and what is about to happen.
We then see Norman suspi...