When a Stranger Calls

Mise-en-scene

Setting

The film begins with black screen titles; it then shows a house in the dark. The audience automatically thinks that this is a significant building in the film but then the camera slowly moves to show a big colourful fairground. This is an unusual setting for the beginning of a horror film as it seems uplifting and a happy place to be. This may have been chosen as it is so contrasting with what is yet to come later in the film.

Body language

The happy relaxed atmosphere is reflected by the people’s body language.

Lighting

The lighting in this first scene is dark and gloomy as it is the evening. This is not unusual for a horror film as they want the audience to feel out of their comfort zone and on edge. However the light from the fairground rides is bright and colourful, this illuminates people and makes the scene seem a lot happier. The brightness could seem uneasy to some people as it is so disturbing that the bright lights are there in a horror film. When the man is shown the light is coming from behind him, this seems scary as the audience can’t see his face as he walks towards the camera. The colour and excitement at the fairground is juxtaposed with the darkness of the house. The overload of sensory experience could seem threatening because it is the opposite of what would typically be seen in a horror film. The excessively bright lights and noise can serve to mask a multitude of dangers.

Costume

The costumes in this scene are just normal clothing and no one stands out. This means that the villain could be anywhere in the scene and anyone. This is unusual for a horror film as the villain is meant to stand out as evil and menacing. The villains costume usually shows that he is an outsider and he stands out from the crowd.

Camera shots

The first shot shown in the scene is a low angle shot of a scary house as it is in darkness. The shot then pans down to show a fairground. These two images are contrasting as the emotions they bring are so different. Sharply, the shot then changes again to a mid shot showing two children running in the fairground. The shots then seem to carry on focusing on children throughout the scene. This suggests that the villain is focusing on vulnerable and innocent victims. The audience may find this disturbing and really feel for the children that the villain is watching. The camera shots from strange and unexpected angles makes the people seem like they are being watched or observed which makes people appear as prey or as if they are being hunted.

The audience then sees shots which are short and fleeting of people on rides and enjoying themselves. This sets the scene and creates a happy and relaxed atmosphere. Throughout the scene the panning shot is shown of the house and focuses on the upstairs window. The audience assumes that this is a significant place and the main character may be in there.

The high angle shot showing the sign ‘Jesus’ in the top left hand corner of the shot may cause people to take comfort from this religious sign which then may cause them to question their beliefs as bad things start to happen after they have seen it.

The camera seems to stay on wind chimes for a long period of time. This builds the tension and makes the audience wonder what’s happening. Then a dark figure runs quickly across the camera shot. This makes the audience think that something urgent has happened and people may be in danger.

The camera shots and movements create an uncomfortable and confusing atmosphere as the audience feels on edge. There is then another panning shot of the fair which stops at the house again. The low angle shot makes the house seem big and intimidating. A light in the window of the house suddenly turns on; this draws the audience in as the camera is so focused on the window.  

Editing

The black screen titles fade in to show a house. This makes the house seem sinister as the screen was so black before. Most of the camera shots are very sharp and short; this makes the audience feel like they can’t relax as so much is happening at once. It also is quite confusing as some shots are so insignificant to the plot.

Sound

When black screen titles are shown at the beginning a conversation is heard between a man and a young woman. There is no picture so all the audience’s attention is on this conversation which seems a bit uncomfortable and suspicious. The phone call is intimate as you can hear their breathing and hear Stacie getting more scared which causes the audience to become scared. When the man asks for her name it seems intrusive.

The audience hears a further phone call of Stacie’s but there is no answer on the other end.

The music in the background is quite scary which confuses the audience as the shots are focusing on a fairground. The silence that the villain is able to create is juxtaposed with the noise of the fairground.  The harsh sounds and serial bright lights make the audience feel out of their comfort zone. This alienates a familiar setting which is usually associated with pleasure.

We hear another phone call of Stacie’s as the camera shows the house. This shows the location in which Stacy is. A nursery rhyme then begins making the audience feel uncomfortable as the theme of children and the conversation that Stacie has just had is very disturbing.

On one occasion when the camera is focused on the window of the house we see the light turn on and a man jump towards the ground. We then hear a loud scream which is played over other children screaming as they play on the fairground rides. This is scary as they are unaware of what’s happening and her scream just blurred into the background which means no one hears.

It then all goes silent as the camera focuses on a red balloon floating up to the sky. The nursery rhyme then begins to play again.

The setting for this film is a clever idea and we may use a scary house similar to the one seen in the scene. The beginning of the film doesn’t focus much on people although in our beginning scene we are planning on showing a lot of people. The lighting looks good as it is so gloomy and dark, in our film this may difficult as we don’t have the equipment to make the righting like this although we are going to try and make some scenes dark. I feel that the music is the most prominent aspect as it makes the audience mood change the most; therefore we are planning on using music in the beginning of our film.