Be honest, it’s your least favorite part of horror movies. Whether you are easily spooked and hate how often quick, loud noises and a monster/killer flashing on your screen, or you just hate how often quick, loud noises and a monster/killer are flashed on your screen, it’s just a cheap trick to get an easy scare, right? Kinda. I’ll be honest, I usually don’t like jump scares. I like horror movies. I tend to scare relatively easy and I’m definitely the kind of guy to move with a purpose after turning the light off behind me (So what? You do it too and you know it!), but at the end of the day though, I like a good scare. I don’t like horror movies that don’t check a lot of boxes in terms of good story telling, characters, really all the things that fundamentally make something a good movie, that then have cheap “scares” littered out. I like horror movies that draw me in using world building and intense atmosphere.
I recently watched the movie Sinister and I like how the horror was done. Slower burn movies like this one that remember “oh yeah, I’m supposed to be really ******** scary” and compensate for 90 minutes of horror in the last third of the movie are generally pretty enjoyable for me. Sinister did that really well. *Obligatory Spoiler Warning for the 12 year old movie* The premise is that a True Crime writer who royally messed up in the past moves his family into the home of a family that was recently murdered in the backyard and the youngest daughter is now missing. Using amateur detective skills and the clues at his disposal, he works to solve this murder, put it in a book, and reclaim his good name and the fame that came with it.
I love this movie. I think the plot is engaging and uncovering the layers behind who Ellison really is, how he got to this point, what impact his actions have on others, super fun stuff! I like gory horror movies, and there is some intense gore and kills that are SOOOOO much more scary without a single drop of blood. The evil is scary because we don’t know what it even is until we learn that it’s far too late. Everything about it comes together well. I wish I could speak on it more but I truly believe you need to see it and enjoy it if you haven’t already.
To me, a good jump scare has laid the foundation long before the scene where the scare occurs. The plot is driving along and the scare occurs in the flow of the narrative. Characters (and therefore the audience) are supposed to be preoccupied with the task at hand whether it be searching for answers or trying to escape. The audio buildup for jump scares can really make or break a scare. The biggest problem with jump scares is that they are SUPER easy to telegraph. Too much build up? The bad guy is gonna jump out from that corner. Complete silence staring down the empty hallway. Be SO for real, we all know what’s coming. Too much sound on the actual scare? Now I’m more focused about my ears still ringing. So, what makes a good jump scare?
Jump scares have 3 parts. The build up for the character, the build up for the audience, and the scare itself. The character buildup is simple. What are they doing? Why are they doing it? What’s the situation they are currently in? In the clip I’ve provided (one of my favorite scares ever. There’s another scare in this movie people hail a little higher, but I prefer this one), Ellison is woken up in the middle of the night by whatever was holding the flashlight. His investigation leads him to the attic, where he originally found the films. upon looking inside, he finds the missing kids watching the home movies. As they turn to look at him, the demon that Ellison’s been seeing appears on the film. To me, this is perfect buildup. Ellison is only now really starting to piece together the mystery he’s been trying to solve. This scene has him facing the realization that he is woefully under equipped to deal with the true horrors that have been hiding from him, and
The audience buildup has been occurring for really the whole movie. We’ve seen the shadows and glimpses of these ghosts ducking around corners since the start. We just knew that the paranormal activities messing with Ellison weren’t just in our heads. Now we really for real see these kids in the attic. The sound as Ellison creeps from his room to the attic is minimal. Minor soundtrack in the background that does not dare get louder than it needs to. We hear every step, we hear the keys jingle, and we hear the projector running as these ghosts turn to face Ellison, and us. What’s important here is that the sound never truly cuts out. As mentioned earlier, audio, or the lack thereof, is the typical culprit of a bad jump scare. Noise being too loud as a giveaway or a complete cut is a dead giveaway that you’re about to be scared. The audio doesn’t change once Ellison enters the attic. The music stays the same, the audio from the set doesn’t cut out. We don’t know what’s gonna happen next. Are these kids gonna do something? Is Ellison already so scared he peed a little? Does something get him from down the ladder? While you’re worried about all of that, the villain is actually now staring you straight in the face holy **** you gotta run before he gets you.
The scare itself is the fun part. The audio doesn’t scream at you, but it’s suddenness and it being louder (but notably NOT too much) than the audio before it catches you slipping. I think what I love about this specific scene so much is the secret fourth part of jump scares, the aftermath. You feel like Ellison after he falls down the ladder. What. Happens… Next? Frozen, catching our breaths, we sit paralyzed with fear. As Ellison stares at the attic, the movie box falls, followed shortly by the projector. This… thing, it doesn’t like us. Ellison, once he regains a sense of composure, *has* to act before the horrors in the attic leave their confinement. What makes this scare so good is that it instantly changes Ellison, and as it progresses into the final act of the film, we’re stuck on that moment in the attic. The kids watching the film, the slow turn, the faceless demon that stared through your soul.
In order to keep jump scares from feeling cheap, the audio cannot let you know you’re about to be scared, nor can it be what scares you (unless it’s a scream of sorts). The buildup has to stay in its lane and the impact shouldn’t leave your ears ringing. Jump scares are most impactful when you don’t expect it. That’s why they’re called that, because they jump out at you. As tension builds, it can be hard to find the right time to get that big hit. Going too soon, too late, or at the wrong time can really dampen the impact. Get it right, however, and you’ll never forget what you saw in the attic, the dark hallway, or in that ******** lawnmower film…