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Drag Me To Hell - Genre and Media Language with Steve Neale
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QUESTION: Explore how the film industry uses genre to attract audiences. [20]
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Explore how the film industry uses genre to attract audiences. [20]As demonstrated by the horror film ‘Drag Me To Hell’ (2009), the film industry uses genre as
a fundamental technique to effectively attract audiences.
Throughout the film, ‘Drag Me To Hell’ makes use of genre codes conventionally seen in
most horror films. Evidence of this includes a demonic character, a goat for sacrifice, the
tombstone for the graveyard, a cursed object and other religious props. This specifically
targets audiences of the horror genre as they have been used repeatedly in supernatural
horror films, and overtime, these codes have helped define the horror genre. The theme of
good versus evil incorporated within the film will also attract audiences. Every story requires
a Proppian Hero and a Proppian Villain in order to drive the story forward because
audiences require someone to relate to and root for as well as someone to hate. A
protagonist who the audiences can relate to will attract them to the film because it provides
them gratification in terms of personal identity, to have someone do good and be a good role
model allows audiences to think about themselves and their behaviour. This mental
engagement will appeal to the audiences more because the story of the film will therefore
feel more meaningful. An antagonist, in this case, Lamia the demon, can cause fear in the
audiences. Additionally, ‘Drag Me To Hell’ also uses setting to not only cause fear in
audiences but attract them towards the film. The use of domestic setting in Christine and her
boyfriend’s home can make audiences feel uneasy, since homes are meant to be a safe
space, but to know that there is the possibility of an invasion of supernatural creatures can
worry people. The use of a graveyard setting further amplifies the suspense felt by the
audiences throughout the film, as graveyards hold many diseased people as well as ghosts
as told in urban legends. To use evil or fear in horror can intrigue audiences of horror as it is
the sole reason to why they watch horror films. ‘Drag Me To Hell’ uses the technique
involving genre codes effectively in order to attract audiences.
‘Drag Me To Hell’, however, also borrows codes from the comedy genre and incorporates
them within the film. In the film, certain scenes that are supposedly gory have been directed
to be less creepy and terrifying but rather more awkward and embarrassing. For example,
when Mrs. Ganush follows Christine to the car and harasses her. It initially starts out as
frightening but then becomes comedic when Mrs. Ganush’s fake teeth falls out during the
assault. This positions the audience to feel unsure how to react although it is likely that they
would have laughed, since people tend to laugh when a character experiences a humiliating
situation. The use of comedic elements is unconventional of horror films, however, the
difference may evoke curiosity in audiences as the choice of the two genres is a fresh new
idea can create interest within the film. Steve Neale, a film theorist, explains and describes
genre with quotations. He states that: A director is able ‘to “experiment, to shape and
refine” within the framework that generic conventions provide’. In relation to ‘Drag Me
To Hell’, this may refer to overlapping of horror genre codes and comedic genre codes,
suggesting that the director of ‘Drag Me To Hell’ capable of experimenting, shaping and
refining the horror genre in order to attract audiences. Neale also states that: ‘repetition is
never simply the return of the identical and difference is never simply the eruption of
the absolutely new’. This may refer to the fact that although comedy is new to the horror
genre, the concept of comedy in itself is not entirely new or revolutionary. Comedy is also
used repetitively with other genres such as romance and drama, it is simply the
experimenting of the two genres that makes ‘Drag Me To Hell’ appealing.
Todorov’s five-part narrative structure in films further assists the film industry in attracting
audiences. From the very beginning of ‘Drag Me To Hell’, it is established that the film does
not follow all the conventions of Todorov’s narrative structure. It begins with disequilibrium
instead of equilibrium, despite equilibrium being the first stage of the cycle. The stages after,
however, do follow the conventions. The audience is presented with the equilibrium, which is
followed by the disequilibrium, recognition and repair. The audience, who are used to the
, repetitive narrative structure, will most likely expect the film to end with the new equilibrium.
But just when we are provided with the final scene, which is assumed to be the new
equilibrium, the audience is forced into astonishment as they witness Christine being
dragged down to the train tracks and to hell. ‘Drag Me To Hell’ never reached the final stage
of new equilibrium but rather returned to another disequilibrium instead. It can be said that
the film uses both conventions and difference of Todorov’s narrative structure. The repeated
pattern of the structure attracts audiences because it enables the film to be more organised
and structured, and therefore more easily understandable allowing the audiences to follow
the plot or story better. The difference lies in the fact that ‘Drag Me To Hell’ has adapted the
structure for the specific horror genre by both beginning and ending with disequilibrium,
which adds an element of surprise. However, although the use of narrative structure is
unconventional for films in general, this particular structure is seen frequently in horror films.
This is mostly because if a new equilibrium is presented, all the tension and suspense built
up throughout the film would have gone to waste. Horror films generally wish to remind the
audience of fear because that is what defines horror as a genre. Horror films, such as ‘Drag
Me To Hell’ uses this specifically adapted narrative structure to attract audiences because
they enjoy the suspense and chilling, fearful endings. Neale’s other quote further expands on
this, stating that ‘desire is always a function of both repetition and difference’; it
involves ‘the initial experience of pleasure’ that this narrative structure provides and
‘future attempts to repeat the experience’ which is why ‘Drag Me To Hell’ uses this
structure.
Steve Neale explains that genres are ‘instances of repetition and difference’, and the film
industry uses both repetition and difference to attract audiences. In ‘Drag Me To Hell’, the
repetition and difference in character representation can appeal to and interest audiences.
In regards to Christine, it can be interpreted that she is an example of repetition due to the
fact that she is blond and conventionally attractive. Female characters like her have been
considered the beauty standard for many years, and therefore have been frequently
represented in the media. The film industry uses such characters in an attempt to attract
audiences of both genders. For the female audience, it is to provide them a role model. For
the male audience, they would likely find her attractive which would make them feel more
inclined to watch the film. Although, it may also be said that this use of repetition is also a
difference, considering the fact that many blonds in the media are stereotypically
represented as idiotic and unclever, especially in the horror genre, whereas Christine is
presented to be educated with a job. This, however, may further attract audiences as it is
new and different and could encourage female audiences to feel more empowered. The idea
that Christine is intelligent, and likely has more agency over her life since she is the main
protagonist, can also drive the story forward. This would interest audiences as they would
then be curious to see how she resolves her problems in the recognition and repair stages of
the film. In addition, Christine’s character can be particularly interesting to audiences
because she is not a Proppian hero but rather a morally ambiguous character. ‘Drag Me To
Hell’ has characterised her to do questionable things that would be atypical of a hero, such
as being unable to help Mrs. Ganush and killing her cat. The representation of Christine’s
character therefore attracts audience as it allows them to sympathise with her situation
more. To know that she has no choice but to kill her cat in order to survive Lamia’s threats
positions the audience to feel compassion, and to have Christine be pitied can even present
her character as vulnerable. A character’s inner conflict through questioning their own
morals adds an element of shock to the horror genre, which can evoke interest in audiences.
When discussing the antagonists, such as Mrs. Ganush and Lamia, it can be said that they
are quite conventional. Characters similar to Mrs. Ganush, who are presented as an old lady
with the connotations of a witch, are frequently used in the horror genre by film industries.
The films have a tendency to illustrate such characters as ugly and evil because the
appearance acts as an additional scare factor. This would attract audiences because
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