Case Study 1 - 'Tell'

Case Study 1 - 'Tell'

 

'Tell' (2012) is a short psychological horror written, directed and edited by Ryan Connolly, who primarily operates independently releasing films online. This horror short follows many cliches found in the genre and its plot has obviously drawn inspiration from literature such as Edgar Allan Poe's short story 'The Tell-Tale Heart'. The plot of 'Tell' follows a charcter named Taylor who is having some-kind of mental breakdown and argues with his girlfriend Jenny whom he kills with a hammer.

The director Ryan Connolly has used the single camera to create a creepy atmosphere which shows Taylor's mental breakdown without the use of dialogue, an example of Connolly using the camera to create a paranoid feeling to the film is the use of voyeuristic shots that make it seem that Taylor is being watched. The dialogue in the film is perhaps the weakest element of an otherwise well made horror short, thankfully Connolly has used little dialogue as the actual camera-work and Taylor's facial expressions can tell more than the dialogue.

 

The character Taylor does not fit in with Propp's character theory, although he is the character in which the audience is following he does not have any of the characteristics of a protagonist, the audience are not "rooting" for Taylor to get away from the murder, however, the writer has allowed the audience to see Taylor as a character descend into madness. 

The audience are immersed into the world of  'Tell' by the use of certain shots and angles for example over the shoulder shots  allow the audience to see things from the perspective of certain characters and make it clear how certain characters are feeling emotionally by focusing on their facial expressions.

Unlike many modern horrors that choose to use graphic violence to 'shock' the audience 'Tell' has been made in a way that the psychological elements of the film are more frightening than visual gore. 'Tell' follows the old horror archetype "What you don't see is actually more scary than what you can see". One example of Connolly following this is the scene in which Taylor murders Jenny, the actual violence is off-screen and the diegetic sounds make the sequence feel very unsettling. The camera slowly pans into the kitchen counter and Taylor's arm appears with blood on it, this sequence is very slow paced, this has been done so that the tension builds.

The editing is very subtle throughout the film, many of the shots linger therefore breaking the 5 second rule, the rule has been broken because the audience are able to see the characters thinking, this creates a feeling of uncertainty and highlights the fact that Taylor is all alone in this situation and is losing his grip on reality. Quick shots are used to show Jenny who appears to be haunting Taylor, these shots are quick because the director wants the audience to begin to question whether Taylor is going crazy or Jenny really is haunting him.

Close-ups are used to show significant objects, for example a close-up of a knife and a saw signifies the fact that Taylor is going to cut-up the body, Connolly has successfully alllowed the narrative of the story to flow without the use of dialogue.

The non-diegetic soundtrack follows the conventions of a typical horror soundtrack and is used to great effect. The soundtrack has build-up moments where the audience are waiting in anticipation of a jump moment however they are decieved.

The lighting is very dull, the source of the lighting is natural in the way that the house lights are used, therefore the film has high verisimilitude in terms of its setting.

Overall 'Tell' is a well-made independent production that has safely followed what has been done in past horror films and has created the ultimate cliché ridden film.