Presentation


Investigation topic
My investigation topic is How children are represented in films in modern day horror and what character archetypes are portrayed in these films. I have chosen to study this for my research project because I think that in modern horror, children are only represented through two different character types that set out the whole film. These are; innocent victim and/or the antagonist. This interests me because I want to explore other archetypes that are portrayed in horror films and if any film challenges these characters. Not only this but I also want to look back on older films and how much they have changed compared to our modern day horror films.


Focus film
My focus film is going to be 'The Babadook' directed by Jennifer Kent (2014). I have picked this as my focus film because not only does this relate to my investigation, it also portrays the boy as a rare character when he becomes the hero at the end of the film. 'The Babadook' links to my topic because it is a modern horror film that is different compared to other modern day horrors, this is because gives the spectators a different view on horror through their chosen characters (e.g. the mother starts to become the antagonist, the child goes from victim to protagonist) As not that many children end up becoming the protagonist in horror films, they are usually victimised or play the antagonist. Whereas 'The Babadook' goes against 'the norm' by switching these archetypes.


Scenes
The scene I have chosen to analyse is towards the end of the film, the mother is being gradually possessed throughout the film and her son manages to save her/help her get away. The reason I have chosen to study this extract from the film is because in this scene the son goes through a rapid change from the innocent victim to the hero, this is effect because it creates a twist in the story as children usually rely on adults for protection.


Secondary material

• Websites; top ten movies with creepy children and why children are so creepy in horror films. This is because children are represented as innocent and cant do anything 'bad' because of their age.