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Fajer Al-Kaabi

Anne Schmalstig

ENGL 104

6TH February 2023

Experience Of Horror

In this visual analysis, I’ll examine the film “Scream 5” its visual composition, and rhetorical

appeals to understand better how they serve the film's purpose of conveying its message. The

study will center on the interplay between these parts. The picture was released in 2021 and was

directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. One of the most successful horror film series

of all time, Scream now has a fifth installment. The film follows a group of teenagers in the

made-up city of Woodsboro as they try to survive after becoming the target of an unnamed killer.

The film uses several different visual components, along with sound and music, to create a

visually striking and emotionally engaging atmosphere. In order to capture viewers and create a

strong sense of suspense and terror, the film employs several rhetorical strategies. This paper will

analyze the movie’s visual composition, use of sound, and rhetorical appeals to convey its

message. In this particular scene, the movie used intercutting and close-up, and shots from a low

angle to make the audience feel and experience the horror that every horror movie fan want to

experience.

The author of Scream 5 is Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, who also wrote and directed

the movie. Since the movie was shown in theaters all over the world, the film's intended audience

consisted of individuals from all over the globe, especially people who have seen the previous
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Scream movies, or who particularly like horror movies. The primary purpose of the movie is to

entertain its audience while at the same time instilling a feeling of dread and anxiety within its

watchers at the same time. The movie employs a range of rhetorical appeals to convey its

message. First, it employs ethos by using well-known actors and everyday settings. The film is

established as a sequel by using similar characters and settings as the previous ones. This gives

the audience a feeling of comfort and familiarity with the story, as they know what to expect

from the characters and the setting. Second, the film uses pathos, to feel by establishing a tense

atmosphere and employing music meant to keep the audience on edge throughout the film. To

create a sense of anxiety, scream 5 used a range of cinematic techniques, including color, sound,

and camera angles. They used suspenseful music, abrupt cuts, and camera movements, to

indicate danger or impending violence. In the scene that I’m analyzing the music that was used

was fast horror music that was used to make the audience feel tense and keep them on edge. For

this reason, the spectator experiences a great deal of tension and anxiety, which aids in their

absorption of the film's emotional content. By building up mystery and suspense that isn't

resolved until the film's end, the movie employs logos. With this, the reader is more invested in

seeing how the tale ends. The viewer feels like they're racing against the clock to work out what's

going on, which heightens their curiosity and sense of urgency.

The movie uses various visual elements to convey its message. Throughout the beginning of

the movie, a variety of different camera perspectives are used. This is done so the audience will

have a suspenseful and anxious experience watching the movie. The filmmakers intend for the

spectator to experience a sense of unease and dread by strategically employing techniques such

as close-ups and shots taken from a low angle during the film. In the scene I chose the camera
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was filming in low angles and for two times the camera was focusing on the knife that the

Ghostface was holding.

Additionally, intercutting is used throughout the movie, especially in the scene that I chose

where Sam was talking to Ghostface on the phone the scene was shifted back and forward during

the call, to generate a sense of immediacy and to contribute to the sense of suspense that is

generated through the course of the film. This is done to make the movie as suspenseful as

possible.

The movie also uses color further to enhance its visual composition. Utilizing dark and muted

colors is one way to generate a sense of foreboding and horror in a person. In addition to this, the

lighting is designed in such a way as to incite feelings of dread and anxiousness in the audience

members. The scene that I chose the scene had dark lighting, and the hospital had few lights that

were turned on which made the scene tense, scary and dark. The lighting in the movie is meant to

be gloomy and disturbing on purpose to elicit feelings of mystery and draw attention to the

frightening aspects of the film.

In conclusion, “Scream 5” is a visually effective and emotionally intense movie that uses

various visual elements, sound, and music to create a sense of suspense and horror. The film

employs several rhetorical strategies to please viewers' interest and build up a sustained

atmosphere of suspense and terror. These disagreements drive the remainder of the events in the

film. The film employs these components to heighten the suspense and tension it creates for its

audience and to complement the visual composition it has produced. If you look at the film

critically, you'll see that it makes you experience the tension and fear that the writer and director

intended to infuse the story with. Feelings of suspense and dread were meant to be conveyed by
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the film and successfully communicated to the audience. The film's production, aesthetic design,

and rhetorical reasoning might have all affected this result.

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Citation

“Scream 5 .” YouTube, YouTube, 25 Apr. 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=aAWsJxG7UVU . Accessed 4 Feb. 2023.