Research Of "Shadow Of Fear"

Name Of Film: Shadow Of Fear
Director: Rich Cowan
Date Of Release: 14 July 2004
Tag line: Once trapped inside, it's murder to get out
Production Company: Nu Image Films
Target Audience: Males aged 45+
User Rating: 5/10


The establishing shot is of rain falling into a puddle, the rain symbolizes that that things are getting washed away, for example blood. It also gives off a dull and cold vibe to the audience. The red of the word 'Shadow' represents blood and doesn't stand out as much as the whiteness of the words 'of fear'. This is like it is lurking in the dark, waiting to attack someone installing fear into the audience. The lighting is noir with the only light coming from ahead and reflecting on the water. This makes it seem like there is something waiting in front but the audience can't see it putting fear into them. The sound is of the rain hitting the ground and the soundtrack is quiet tension music slowly building up mystery of what is going to happened.



The low angle camera shot of the main character makes him look big and dominating, and that he is in charge. He is also looking down on the audience showing that he is more important than them and as if they are worthless compared to him. The scenery of the old house gives off a spooky vibe and installs mystery into the audience. It is also a signifier of the upper class. The tension music is still quietly in the background continuing to put mystery into the audience.






The camera angle makes the audience seem like they are sitting at the table and looking over to the main character. The angle is a point of view shot which is slightly looking down on the main character, it tells the audience that he isn't the most important person in the room anymore. The tension music is starting to fade out, gives the sense that something is about to happen. The diegetic sound of the waiter talking to the main character is only just loud enough for the audience to hear giving mystery to what he said and why he is pointing to the camera. The lighting in the shot gets brighter at the top of the screen, so that the main character is in the dark at the bottom and the waiter is towering over him in the light at the top, this shows the class of each character and that the main character isn't that important as the waiter is more important than him.




The sound in this shot is nearly all diegetic, the rain on car windscreen, the windscreen wipers pushing the rain away and the car driving through the water on the road. The non-diegetic sound is the tension music that has started up again adding the fear that something will happen back into the audience. The man from the old house telling him that only the upper class are there on Tuesday nights is speaking in a voice over, this suggests that the man has control over him. The windscreen is blurred from the rain, this is suggesting that his mind is blurred with the voice over going over in his head.




In this a shot a over the shoulder shot is used giving the audience the same view as everyone else. It also makes him look evil the way he's head has been angled. The sound of the brakes puts the audience on edge with the screeching sound, even though they know what is going to happen. A small figure can be seen in the background through the windscreen, the figure looks small compared to the main character. This makes the figure seem powerless and shows his importance again that he showed over the audience. The tiny bit of light on the main character's face gives him an evil look, it seems that he is coming out of the darkness like an evil monster.

The car in this shot seems alone and isolated in the middle of the screen, this makes the car and the main character seem innocent suggesting it was an accident. There is a dark figure flying through the air, this is the person who has been hit by the car. The figure looks helpless in the air, it also seems that he is coming down with the rain and going to crash into the earth suggesting that he is falling from heaven down into hell. The figure also looks like he is crawling or sliding down the screen, this is to scare the audience as if he is some monster crawling down the screen to get them. The sound in the shot is diegetic and very quiet when the car hits the figure and the person hits the ground. This symbolizes that the main character's mind is quiet with shock. The windscreen wipers sound like a heart beating quickly, this symbolizes the shock of the main character is in and his panic of the situation. The sound of them then fades away when he realises the person is dead/the audience have seen the bloody face of the person. The sound stopping also tells the audience that the person is dead as it is like he's heart has stop beating. Tension music slowly fades in and gets louder as the main character starts to worry more about what is going to do next, the tension music is a screechy noise which puts the audience on edge like when the car brakes went on. The rain get heavier as time from when the accident happened moves on.

The high angle shot used shows that the main character isn't in control of the situation anymore. He is also seen as the same size of the dead person showing that he is also powerless now. The main character's shadow is alongside the dead body looking like it is lying alongside it. This goes with the name of the film, 'Shadow Of Fear'. Both characters are dressed in black, this represents death. The lines in the middle of the road stop from where the dead body is and where the car is. This symbolizes that everything in the main character's life has now stopped in that space. The lighting in the shot goes from dark (right of screen) to bright (left of screen), the darkness represents hell and the brightness represents heaven. The main character's shadow is going into the darkness suggesting that his soul is being sucked out and going to hell. The setting is a deserted road symbolizing that the main character is on his own and alone in the dark. The only sound that is diegetic is the rain falling, this symbolizes that his mind is empty and quiet with fear.