Angelina's Media Studies Blog: Research- Color Theory in Slasher Horror

Core pallete of slasher horror:

- Red: Dual-edged sword (serves two distinct purposes)

~ The killer: commonly represented through the color red (red lighting/clothes). This signals danger and aggression.

~ Life force: Red represents the blood of the victim. When red floods a scene, it signifies a "point of no return) has been reached.

- Blue/Cyan: Cold isolation (makes environment feel inhospitable)

~Night scenes: Film makers use deep blue's rather than black to create a "clinical" feeling

~Moonlight: Moonlight being blue compared to naturally being white provides enough visibility for the viewers to see the killer in the shadows and it keeps the "temperature" of the scene.

- Yellow and green: sickness of the setting (commonly used in "grammy" slashers)

~ "Uncanny" feeling: yellow and green mimic the look of mold, decay, and infection.

~ Anxiety: Psychologically, yellow is associated with caution and anxiety. When a room flickers with yellow lights, it signals that something is wrong before anythings actually happened

Color contrast strategies:

Contrast Pair	Psychological Effect	Example
Blue vs. Orange	Highlights the vulnerability of the human body against a supernatural or alien environment.	Prey: The orange firelight of the Comanche camp provides a desperate contrast to the cold, blue-tinted forest where the Predator hunts.
Green vs. Red	Creates a sense of biological wrongness or extreme visceral violence.	Pearl: The hyper-saturated green of the farm fields clashes with the bright red of Pearl’s dress and the ensuing gore.
Black vs. White	Uses "negative space" to create to emphasize a ghostly, unnatural presence.	Barbarian: The white flashlights of the protagonists struggle to cut through the pitch-black "void" of the hidden basement tunnels.