4/19/2023 0 Comments Hell on kitty jump scare![]() The key difference here is that Lewton knew how and when to employ this technique. This Lewton Bus scare established an essential jump scare technique that's been emulated countless times in the decades since the slow build-up with a sudden, shocking release via misdirection and a loud burst of sound. As Alice's frantic watch seems to stretch out long enough to make her death seem close, the tension bursts with a fake-out scare – while Alice looks to screen left for her stalker, the bus barrels in from screen right and screeches to a halt. It naturally instills an expectation that Alice faces imminent danger. By this point in the narrative, the audience expects Irena to transform into a panther at any moment. That the scene is devoid of sound, save for the footsteps, enhances the tension. Edited together masterfully by Robson, the wide shots capturing Alice's vulnerable exposure out in the open are intercut with close-ups of her walking cadence as well as her expressions of mounting fear. The camera captures the stalking at every angle in this well-choreographed scene. ![]() It builds atmosphere instantly with the camera following Alice's every move as she darts in and out of the shadows. This scene is saturated with shadows, with the glow of street lamps piercing the pitch black night at regular intervals. The lighting, pacing, camera work by Nicholas Musuraca, and editing are crucial to crafting this significant scare. The startling noise marks the sudden arrival of a bus, not Alice's stalker, effectively breaking up the tension with a significant scare. What sounds like a rumbling growl of a cat builds into a roaring hiss, delivering a massive jolt to both Alice and the viewer. Panic sets in, and she sprints to another streetlamp before daring to turn around once more. Unnerved just the same, Alice walks at a brisker pace, checking behind her to spot her pursuer. The faster and louder clacking of high heels clues Alice into her presence as she pauses to listen. Irena closes in, picking up speed to catch up to Alice. She's unaware that she's being followed, at first. The clacking of Alice's heels breaks up the eerie silence. Alice begins her journey home on the empty, darkened street, moving in and out of the warm glow of street lamps. She declines his offer to walk her home and heads for the bus stop alone. Irena sees the pair at the restaurant and, with jealousy, decides to follow them. Alice then confesses to Oliver that she's in love with him while out to dinner. When Irena learns of this, she takes it as a betrayal. Judd attempts to convince Irena that her fears are unfounded and stem from childhood trauma, while Oliver divulges his marital woes to his confident and beautiful assistant Alice. At first, Oliver is patient with his new bride but eventually persuades her to seek professional help from psychiatrist Dr. Irena refuses to consummate their marriage, though, fearful that the physical intimacy will trigger her curse and transform her into a panther. Oliver chalks it up to silly superstition, and he proposes marriage soon after they fall in love. Irena believes herself to be descended from this evil line. Namely, of the belief that some villagers turned to Satanism and their evil gave them the ability to transform into cats. ![]() He walks her home, and she invites him inside for tea, where she regales him with stories of her village in Serbia. While sketching a panther at the Central Park Zoo, Irena catches Oliver's eye. Lewton's brand of building tension out of nothing is perfectly encapsulated in Cat People's most famous scene, featuring a scare so potent that it birthed a new jump scare technique lovingly dubbed "the Lewton Bus." Operating with a minuscule budget, Cat People is constructed entirely out of fear and implied dread. Lewton's first assignment under RKO Pictures was 1942's Cat People. He was inspired by Universal Studios' monster movies' massive success but felt he could achieve similar success with a fraction of Universal's budget by building fear of the unseen or suggestive horror. Among the early pioneers and masters of scare crafting is legendary producer Val Lewton, whose first mission once hired by RKO Pictures was to run a new unit dedicated to horror B-pictures with A-picture quality. If you're a regular reader of this column, then you know the most chilling and memorable moments of fright take a lot of time, planning, and forethought to prepare. There's an artform to the jump scare, though. Overuse of them renders them ineffective and impotent. It's understandable when used liberally for cheap thrills, the jump scare comes across as an easy crutch to create unearned horror. In this edition: Cat People delivered the first significant jump scare of the sound era and created one of cinema's most enduring scare techniques the Lewton Bus.) The jump scare gets a bad rap. (Welcome to Scariest Scene Ever, a column dedicated to the most pulse-pounding moments in horror. ![]()
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