American Horror Story- Why is this a horror?

American horror story covern-

What shows this is a horror within the first look?

Costume- The black costumes immediately scream horror and darkness to the audience. This is because this colour is seen as a dark and depressing colour. Hence the fact it is worn at funerals. If the costumes of the girls within this were white or pink then it would immediately scream purity and innocence, something that the directors did not want.  Also the mask used within one of the shots is iconography for horror therefore the directors will have included this to put across to the audience that it is a horror film. Masks are a way of hiding who you really are and in the show the fact that the person who has a knife has a mask on could symbolize to the audience that they are wanting to remain hidden and reserved. This could suggest that they are the bad person within the show as appose to all the other characters.

Set and Mise-en-scene- The set used and the mise-en-scene is a very important aspect. We can see in parts of this first look that it is set in a big house. This belittles the characters to the house and makes them look smaller as appose to it. This can also symbolize wealth too, meaning that the girls who live in the house have got a lot of money. The house inside looks beautiful and everything is placed perfectly and in the right places- again showing that they very well may be posh.

Character- Each od the characters have got different characteristics to make them them. This is important to have in a film as it makes everyone different to one another and allows the director to show a variety of personalities and traits in each person.

Era- The way in which this show jumps from era to era is very important as it allows the director to include a variety of props, costumes and characteristics within it to set the scene. The big dresses and overdramatic hairstyles are important as they show that some of the scenes are set within an old era.

Cinematography- The shots used within the show is extremely important. A mix of long shots and close ups can show the significance of certain events and items. Also a stedicam is used on certain parts to make you feel as if you are in the characters shoes and it uses a POV shot to make you feel like this.