Main Task research: Film openings

There are many conventions in the openings of teen horror movies, some of them used too much in horror films e.g secluded location, phone losing all signal/ battery power or car running out of petrol in the most inconvenient of places (places where a serial killer is most likely to be waiting for their prey).


Dead Wood (2007)
Dead Wood is about four friends who ditch city life for a few days to go and relax in the woods. Events take a sinister turn when a strange girl appears looking for her boyfriend. The nightmare then commences and they find themselves in an endless wilderness stalked by a deadly force.
Some of the conventions portrayed in the opening:

• Secluded Location 
• Someone gets killed in the first 5 minutes
• Victim close to safety before death

Dead  Mary (2007)
Kim and Matt travel to a lake to spend time with their friends even though they have only just recently broken up. As a game the teens play "Dead Mary" and they end up summoning a deadly witch who possesses some of the kids, they fight for survival not knowing who is evil and who is not...
Conventions portrayed in the opening:

• Secluded location
• Car runs out of fuel in the most inconvenient place where the character is most likely to get murdered.
• Fake scare
• Phone loses all signal.

Wrong Turn (2003)
Six people find themselves stranded in the woods of West-Virginia and being hunted by cannibalistic hillbilly maniacs grossly disfigured through generations of incest.
Conventions portrayed in the opening:

• Secluded location
• Death in the first few minutes
• Victim dies very close to safety (E.g. a getaway vehicle)