CODES & CONVENTIONS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR

Psychological Horror is one of the most popular and up-and-coming sub-genres of horror. They tend to create discomfort and fear amongst audiences through use of common psychological fears and vulnerabilities. It is argued that the psychological sub-genre is more relatable to that of the thriller genre, however the main intention when making these films is to scare the audience mentally, and making them question every-day things- thus not being a thriller.

In Psychological horror films, the 'weapons’ used are less physical objects, and tend to be more supernatural and manipulative. For example, a killer’s distorted minds and ways of manipulating their victims act as weapons of fear against the protagonists in the film. Characters’ visions and jump scares are also used as weapons of fear, instead of an antagonist actually possessing a knife, or gun etc.

It is very often that an audience will see an eerie and often abandoned setting or scene when watching a Psychological horror film, such as large gothic houses, forest and dark woodlands, abandoned schools and other (usually thriving) public facilities including hospitals etcetera. These types of settings create both a sense of fear and realism for the target audience as they are able to relate to the setting of the film as they have seen or are currently in these settings. 

This makes the audience more afraid as it is easier for them to picture themselves in these positions, and makes said settings more frightening to them when thinking about what they have witnessed as a member of the audience. Quite often within psychological horror films there is use of flashbacks which make the audience aware of why the killer is the way he/she is- disturbed; they are used to explain what happened to them previously in their lives that has lead them to become mentally distorted.

Some well renowned psychological horror films include:

•Jacob's Ladder (1990)

•The Shining (1980)

•Black Swan (2010)