I have chosen to review ‘The Crazies’ which was made in 2010 by Breck Eisner and it is a Action Horror. The Plotline of this film is that there has been a toxin that has been put into the water supply of Ogden Marsh which sends the people of the town into crazy psychopaths. David the sheriff and his wife join up with the deputy and a local friend in a bid to escape the crazies and avoid the toxin to survive. They are Heading to Cedar Rapids and along the way, they must survive the Crazies and the Army who are trying to contain and destroy the residents.
The scene that impressed me the most was the carwash scene, this was mainly because I think that it was particularly well filmed. I think that the Quick shots that swapped between close up’s and point of view shots that quickened the heart rate and draws the audience into the chaos and confusion of the scene. I really liked the use of the car wash as the location for this scene as I personally find them creepy, the shot of the wax on the windscreen with the silhouette of the ‘crazy’ barley being seen was a very effective form of restricted narration to create enigma. I also thought the pitchfork scene was good because of the collision cutting which enhanced the quick attack of the crazies. The low key lighting and the scenario was aptly terrifying with the mixture of body horror and the suspense as well. I also liked the use of realistic dialogue of ‘Oh Shit’ when Judy gets the Crazies attention. Overall I found these scenes the most scary and impressive.
Through watching this film it has helped me understand what is needed within a horror film to make it successful. I think that the main thing that the horror film needs is the body horror, in ‘The Crazies’ body horror is used in the scene with the pitchfork murders and the scene when David’s hand gets Stabbed into the floor. The use of Low key lighting in creepy locations is very effective especially in this film with scenes in abandoned farmyards, empty high schools and the abandoned service station. The use of point of view shots and close ups are also incredibly effective as it makes the viewer feel like they are inside the scene especially in the carwash scene. The typical character profiles within this film are also something that I think was effective. The Male Hero David is a very rugged but good looking man of power and this is a very typical make hero however the final girl and the female victim are not as typical the female victim has brunette hair and this is something that is typically associated with the final girl, she is also not overly sexualised or stupid she is just younger than the other characters. The Final Girl is blonde and this is not typical as this hair colour is usually associated with the female victim however the final girl is typical in the way that she is a doctor and is very clever and kind. Isolation is also a very important theme through horror films and in this horror film Ogden Marsh in in the middle on nowhere and therefore isolated. Another theme that is important is the fear of death to you and family this is shown through the fear of David and Judy loosing there baby that she is pregnant with. The film contains Historical context through the fear of the army and this may be due to the US desire in 2010 to pull out of Iraq and the middle east. The film Ends with an open ending as the next town that Judy and David get to starts to be targeted by the army. This is effective in horror films as it leaves you feeling unsettled.
The aspects of this film that I would be interested in including in my own trailer would be the use of a human antagonist rather than a mythical monster as I feel that this makes it more realistic and therefore scary to the audience as they can identify with the film better and it seems more feasible that it could happen to them which would scare them more than say a fantasy monster would. I would also make my horror film a Action/ thriller horror as I think that the added element of action into the film in scenes such as the babies bedroom scene with the two crazies and David, make the film more interesting and entertaining, it also attracts a broader target audience as action fans would also be interested in coming to see this film. I think that the concept of human beings being the cause of the illness is very interesting and something that could be developed into something terrifying as the use of drugs or illness is very realistic and relatable to for the audience which would make the narrative of the film much more accessible and believable which would therefore make a better, scarier film.
I would avoid creating too many antagonists within the plotline as this film did, I think that by adding the army into the mix of the narrative alongside the Crazies themselves overcomplicated the narrative of the film and detracted from the horror of the film by making it a bit too political. I personally feel that a straightforward Good vs. Evil structure is better for the audience to follow.
The most enjoyable aspect of this film for me was definitely the carwash scene simply because of how fast it was cut and the physical effect that this had on me. I could re-create something similar by using lots of very fast shots in a montage with lots of close-ups and point of view shots to place the audience into the action and evoke feelings of fear, confusion and horror. I also think that I would do a chase scene rather than an attack scene as I think that the added movement would make the scene more dynamic and threatening.
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