Scary for Halloween

Hi Mom and Dad! How are you guys? I think this is very weird, but I just want to say that your son is still fine. Half of the semester has passed, and I somehow still doing okay, and have not been kicked out of the school. I am just kidding because when I write these words to you guys, I really miss you. This week, I have a requirement to write a blog about Netflix's movie to my parents.  I know that this month is an important month for you, Dad; your birthday is on this month. Coincidentally, your birthday is matched with the Halloween, and it gives me an idea for my blog. I decide to write a blog about a Halloween's cartoon because you know that your son still loves cartoon.

 Because, when I was a kid, you and I used to watch Shrek with each other, so I chose to write about scary factors in the movie The Ghost of Lord Farquaad. This movie is from the series DreamWorks Spooky Stories which has three different scary cartoons. At the beginning, the filmmakers start with the sunny scene with a lot of light. How brilliant is that when you start a scary movie with a peaceful, lovely scene. When the audiences watch this scene, their feeling will be steady and enjoyable. Watching a romantic background with some hilarious action of Shrek and Donkey finding the way to the Honeymoon Hotel, the viewer cannot predict what will happen next. Then suddenly, the camera turns quickly to the completely contrasting scene. Shrek finds a shortcut to the Hotel; the way with spooky trees on the two sides of the way and absolutely dark at the end of the road. Have you ever seen a tree with the red devil eyes on it? If an adult has never seen it, how does a child supposed to see it?  Even a teenager like me also feel startled, so this quickly turn must scare the children to death.

            After a breathtaking chasing to recapture Fiona from a kidnapping, Shrek and Donkey enter a deadly graveyard. What is better than a graveyard for a scary Halloween night? Furthermore, this is a graveyard with fog floating around with free-flying ghost. This scene may not scary for a teenager like me, but with the kids, they have to sleep with their parents for a few days. Imagine you are going to the graveyard with your friend in the Halloween. You do not have any equipment to light thing up, and the only light resource which you have is the moonlight. The filmmakers understand the audiences' psychology very well. When people enter the place surrounds with mysterious creatures, they begin to visualize them with their imagination, especially for the kids who have an unlimited creativity. Importantly, the more they imagined the scary creatures, the more frightened they were. Psychology has pointed out that we actually do not afraid anything. The thing we are anxious the most is our imagination.

            When I watch this movie, I really missed you, Dad. Now, I have grown up, gone to the university, suddenly I realize that the time I spend with you and family is one of the best time I have ever had. I know your birthday is coming, and I cannot be there to celebrate with you. However, I still want to tell you: "Happy Birthday, Dad! I love you!"

Shrek's Swamp Stories

This week, I have met an awesome guy Nick Toti who was a graduate student at Truman State University and now has a wonderful job in the film industry in LA. Throughout his discussion, he has mentioned one statement which I impressed the most: “Horror is an accessible form of surrealism.” This week, I decided to watch the first episode of Sherk’s Swamp Stories. At first, people will think that what is the connection between a cartoon movie and element of horror which I referred above. Do not underestimate a movie through it outlook until you actually experience it. Like me, when I choose this series, I did not imagine that I would pick Nick’s statement about horror. However, when I saw it, this episode had changed my perspective. Although this is cartoon movie, they all include horror materials in a well organized.

The first element in every scary movie is sound effect. With the support of enigmatic music, the audience can easily understand the main theme of the movie. Introduce the movie with the wind whistled and the wolf howled, the movie seems to create a door which leads the audience to the world of mystery. Nothing is more effective in panic the people than the wind whistled and the wolf howled. By watching a movie in a dark room or watching alone, these elements bring to the viewer the image of he or she is standing in the open area with no human activities. All he or she can hear is the sound of the animal which is represented by the night and the scary sound of nature. This will bring a slightly cold feeling along the back of the audience. Another sound which is very useful in getting people attention is thunder sound. Noisy, combined with lightning, and happened after the silent scene, thunder sound brings to the audience the surprise element. Similar to jump scare, the thunder is a wonderful tool which may cause people a heart attack. 

Besides the sound effect, the visual image is a magnificent material which is also crucial in conveying the horror movie. Furthermore, by associating with the sound effect, the frightening scene at that time can convey its full potential. In every horror movie, especially cartoon (I think), mysterious jungle and haunted castle are very useful. In the magnetic jungle, there will be many unexpected things which the audience cannot predict, and that is the most interesting part in horror movie. People’s imagination is magnificent. The more they want to know something, the more they will imagine it in an ugliest and scariest image. Moreover, combine the scene with the thunder sound, it will be scarier. Similar to the jungle is a haunted castle which also contains many scary elements. Another detail in the movie which is also adequate is the torch when Sherk and his friend enter the castle. The light from the torch is very weak and can only illuminate a narrow area. To the audience, it pretty normal, but if you imagine you are the character in the movie it is another story. Visualize you are entering the haunted castle, and the only thing you can use to see things around is the torch. You cannot see everything clearly, and you will imagine that there will be something come out of nowhere. The filmmakers are very intelligent when using this material because they understand the audience’s psychology: they scare what they do not know.