‘What Makes a Movie Scary?’: Question Answered by Now You See It (Video)

by: Joseph On  Tuesday, August 9, 2016

What Makes A Movie Scary?

Almost everybody likes scary movies, which means everybody likes talking about scary movies, which in turn means you may have encountered the perennial conversation regarding what exactly makes a movie scary. It’s that question, and several technically precise answers, that form the subject for Now You See It‘s new video What Makes a Movie Scary?

A neophyte’s answer to What Makes a Movie Scary? might be stuff like serial killers, or ghosts, or zombies, or whatever, but the guy behind Now You See It knows that the real answers are much more mundane: Editing, music, composition, lighting, and so on. And he breaks it down beautifully using a handy comparison between two versions of the exact same scare—one from the trailer for Lights Out, now in theaters, and the short film of the same name that the movie was adapted from.

You can see What Makes a Movie Scary? below. And for more cool film analysis from Now You See It, hit up the NYSI YouTube channel right here.

Make sure you’re not watching this in the dark, by the way: