In Fair Verona, Where We Lay Our Scene

“In fair Verona, where we lay our scene”

Romeo + Juliet (Luhrmann, 1996)and the colour blue

Identity can be an ambiguous subject in Horror but increasingly, Horror narratives are turning towards the theory of the “Other”. The Other acts as the antagonist, one that the spectator cannot identify with and that the spectator realises in quintessentially different from themselves. The Other often takes on the form of the foreigner in Horror, thus increasing the xenophobia in modern horror and furthermore, exploiting current xenophobic social fears.

The three films above, The Strangers (2008, Bertino), Funny Games US (2007, Haneke) and The Purge (2013, DeMonaco) all feature the “Other”. All three films use this technique as it places the audience as the vulnerable voyeur, enabling the spectator to fully engage in a cathartic experience with the protagonists. If the spectator does not understand the motives of the antagonist we are forced to constantly ask questions and therefore, continue to become engrossed and interpellated into the film.

The Lobster (Lanthimos, 2015)

”I just have this limp, which is also my defining characteristic. My wife died six days ago. She was very beautiful and I loved her very much. She had a limp too.”

Se7en follows the story of Detective Mills and Detective Sommerset trying to find a serial killer committing his crimes in the way of the seven deadly sins. This screenshot beautifully examines the films theme of the relevance of religion in modern day society. 

The establishing shot highlights the dominance of electricity pylons in relation to the empty desert. The desert immediately has religious connotations, the story of Jesus spending 40 days and 40 nights in the vacuous space. The desert should connote spirituality and a location in which religion could potentially flourish. However, the mise-en-scene makes it impossible to see the desert alone. The spectator struggles to find a glimpse of the desert through the pylons. The shot draws into question the importance of religion in modern day society. Religion no longer holds the relevance that technology does. The only desert the spectator can see is the road in which a serial killer is driving on. 

Some of the most beautiful shots I’ve ever seen:

1. Drive (Refn, 2011)

2. Requiem for a Dream (Aronofsky, 2000)

3. Se7en (Fincher, 1995)

4. Shaun of the Dead (Wright, 2004)

“Au Revoir, Shosanna”

Inglorious Basterds (Tarantino, 2009) and the colour red