Textual Analysis Insidious

Textual Analysis

Insidious

A similar film to the one I will be making is Insidious which was released on the 29^th of April 2010 and was directed by James wan. The movie is a supernatural horror.

Todorov’s equilibrium model can be applied to this movie. The movie begins with equilibrium (a state of normality). The equilibrium is the beginning of the movie when the family are spending their first day at their new house whilst the father is at work the mother is looking after the youngest of 3 children. Later on the father returns and the oldest of the three children whose name is Dalton goes into the attic and falls and hurts his head whilst trying to climb a ladder. The next morning when the father tries to wake Dalton up for school he doesn’t respond. The disruption is when we discover that Dalton is in a coma, as a result of the accident he had. After this there is a chain of paranormal events that happen in the house. A lady called Elise is called to try and get rid of whatever is haunting the family then we come to discover that Dalton is able to astral project and is too far from the physical world and that a demon is trying to enter his body. Later we find out that the father was also able to astral project as a child and so in his sleep he tries to rescue his son. The demon ends up entering the father’s body. Todorov’s equilibrium model states that after a disruption there is a new equilibrium. At the end of the movie we realise that the father is possessed as he kills Elise and we are left wondering what else is going to happen.

Binary opposition are a pair of related terms or concepts that are opposite in meaning. Binary opposition is the system by which, in language and thought, two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another. Levi-Strauss theory of binary oppositions can be applied to Insidious as there are the oppositions of reality and dreams. The little Boy who goes into a coma is actually in a dream as he astral projects. Astral projections are an out of body experience therefore again this relates to the binary opposition of reality and dream. There is also the binary opposition of soul and body and good and evil.

The film is in non-chronological order because the father has visions of his past every so often during the movie. Insidious has an open narrative because at the end of the movie Dalton comes out of the coma as he is rescued by his dad. We find out the father wasn’t able to come back to his physical body and that a demon is now in it. He is possessed but we do not know whether he is going to kill his wife and children or even if his son Dalton is possessed too, thus the film is open as there is no clear resolution.

The movie has a restricted narrative as we don’t understand why certain things are happening to the family but later develops to become omniscient as we are told why the little boy is possessed/haunted and not in a coma and why the family are experiencing paranormal activity in their house.

The characters within the film are typical of the genre. Firstly the mother is the one who sees people around the house and witnesses most of the paranormal activity.  She is delicate, sensitive and easily scared this is a typical stereotype of a woman. Also she spends all day in the house. This is because she works from home and also looks after her younger baby daughter. This adds to the stereotype that women should stay at home and look after the children. The hair and make-up on her makes her look tired and gives us a sense that she might be unwell as her skin is pale and she is very skinny. Also the fact that she is the only one to witness the paranormal activity and the husband not believing her again adds to the stereotype that women are fragile and easily frightened.  

Here we can see the mother looking pale and tied as she has bags underneath her eyes and looks sad which suggest she hasn’t been sleeping well or could also suggest she is ill.

            It is typical in supernatural thrillers for women to be the ones who experience the paranormal activity more and are the ones who are most frightened. Movies such as; one missed call, uninvited and the unborn are similar movies that also use women as the main characters and are the most fearful characters

The husband on the other hand is portrayed as strong and courageous. This is shown all the way through the movie particularly in the middle of the night when the house alarm goes off and he is the one who wonders around the house looking for someone who might have broken in; towards the end of the movie he is the one who saves his son and brings him back. This portrays him as a protector and a hero. This again is a typical stereotype that is given to men and also typical of the genre. The father also works outside of the household, this adds to the stereotype that men are suppose to be the breadwinners of a household/family.

The above screen shot shows the father when the alarm goes off. He is in the dark on his own. This portrays males as courageous and fearless.

Again it is typical in supernatural horrors for the males to be the stronger and more courageous characters.  Most movies portray males as the ‘protector’ who is always trying to save the main character from whatever it is they are seeing and experiencing.  A movie that also uses a male as the ‘protector’ is paranormal activity. In paranormal activity the husband is always trying to protect his wife of the demon that haunts her.

The child is the character who is possessed and kept imprisoned by the demon whilst in his astral projection. Children are innocent and small so this adds to the representation of age that children are delicate and weak as the child is persuaded by the demon and then kept imprisoned so that the demon can take his physical body. Childs play for example is a movie that uses a child as the main character who is also the one being haunted.

This images shows Dalton tied up.

This image shows Dalton in a hospital bed this shows his fragility.

The woman who helps them save their son is an elderly woman called Elise. Personally I think that it is effective to use an elderly person as it suggests that she has a wider knowledge on the subject, is more respectable and is taken more seriously. This adds to the representation that elder people are more respectable and wiser.

This picture shows the woman who is the ‘exorcist’ type character. We can see that he is elderly by her hair and face.

 

Although it is effective to use an elderly woman as the ‘exorcist’ type character it isn’t typical of the genre. In other supernatural horrors such as the last exorcism and the exorcism of Emily rose they mainly use males, this could be because priests are often male and they are the ones who mainly carry out exorcisms.

The representation of gender and age are both realist and stereotypical to a certain point. They are realist because for example men do tend to be stronger and more fearless whilst women are more afraid although some women consider this a stereotype.   

During the movie there is lots of non diegetic sounds for example high pitched music. The music is used to created suspense and tension. Diegetic on screen sounds such as the sound of a clock ticking and drops of water falling from a tap in the idle of the night also add to the suspense and tension of the movie. There is also a scene during the movie were the house alarm goes off this a diegetic sound as it is part of the film world. The sound of the alarm is also high pitched and suggests someone is trying to break into the house which instantly frightens the audience. In another scene the mother wakes up from a nightmare screaming. The screams are echoed firstly and then we hear her taking deep breaths. It is typical of horror movies to have the sound of someone breathing deeply as it conveys that the character is frightened allowing the audience to feel scared too. It is also typical of horror movies to include whispers from ghosts. In insidious this happens through the baby monitor although it is unclear at first we then hear the whispering voice say very loudly ‘I want it now’. The sound of the ticking metronome is used to put the father to sleep it gives a sense that he is being hypnotised. This is typical of the genre as some horror movies use ‘exorcisms’ to get rid of the ‘demon’ through hypnosis. Towards the end of the movie when the father is trying to rescue his son Dalton he comes across the demon who is listening to music whilst sharpening his nails. The music used is contrapuntal because the music is calm, peaceful and has a happy feel to it.

Most of the film if not all of it seems to be filmed handheld. This creates a sense of realism. It is also typical of the genre as movies such as paranormal activity use this camera technique too. There are alot of zooms and extreme close ups in the movie which helps to show the characters facial expressions and allows the audience to feel more aware of how the characters are feeling and also feel the same. There are a few tracking shots used to allow the audience to follow the action. Also some of the tracking shots are point of view therefore allowing the audience to see through the characters eyes and feel as if they are also part of the movie.

The lighting within the movie is low key and there aren’t any vivid or bright colours within the movie either. This is typical of horror movies as people normally associate the dark with the evil and so this is a successful technique to use. It also leaves the audience feeling frightened as it is hard to see what is going on and what might happen next. There is also alot of candle lighting towards the end of the movie again this is typical of horror movies as it sets a chilling atmosphere. The movie is filmed in a house. This is typical of horror movies especially supernatural’s that involve ghosts and haunting. Paranormal activity is a similar movie which is also filmed in a home. The blood in shape of a hand print on their son Daltons bed sheets suggests that something is after Dalton. Smoke is also used in the last few scenes of the movie when the father is astral projecting. This is again typical of the genre as it brings a mysterious and strange atmosphere to the movie.

There isn’t much editing used in insidious this could be because it creates an increased sense of realism. Most of the cuts are straight cuts although they use a couple of fade to blacks. The first fade to black is when there is a passing of time and text appears on the black screen saying ‘3 months later’. The following fades are used when the father is dreaming or having a vision of his past. This is typical of horror movies as most of them normally contains flash backs and dreams and a fade to black normally represents this. Shot reverse shot is used when characters are having conversations. Lastly at some points during the movie especially when the demon is chasing Dalton and his father the cuts become faster this is typical of the genre as this creates a sense of panic and suspense.

 The story line is typical of the genre to a certain point. It is typical of the genre in the way that it includes ghosts and demons and uses the theme of fear. On the other hand the storyline is not as typical of the genre as the idea of astral projection is normally used and associated with psychological movies.