1. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE, BUILDING AND DESIGN
THE DESIGN SCHOOL
FOUNDATION IN NATURAL BUILD ENVIORNMENT
NAME: CANISIUS BONG WEI PHENG
STUDENT ID NO: 0318914
FILMS SELECTED:DARK WATER AND OUIJA
WORD COUNT:1081
ENGLISH 2 (ENGL 0205)
WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT 1:COMAPRE – CONTRASTESSAY
LECTURER:CASSANDRAWIJESURIA
SUBMISSION DATE:5TH
DECEMBER2014

2. Horror movies are my favorite as it is the only type of movie that I can’t keep my eyes
off when it starts and especially during the climax of every horror movies. Horror films
attempt to find some sort of trigger in the audience mind and develop it to create horror. An
effective way of keeping the horror fresh would be to break the cycle, by breaking certain
convention. The isolated setting in the two films is a key device used to establish a
threatening and goofy atmosphere. Reminiscing about the horror movies I watched, I was
thinking which horror movies leave an unforgettable impression in my mind.. There were two
horror movies that I personally think that interesting constantly are “Dark Water” and
“Ouija”. In these two horror movies, there are many differences in term of characters,
settings, iconography and many more.
In “Dark Water” the movie uses an old dilapidated block of flats as the main setting
for the horror where Dahlia and her daughter, Cecilia who had disliked the place, desperately
have to live there. This kind of location is widely used in horror movie and it isolates the
characters, and renders them vulnerable to the inevitable horror that threatens them. Whereas
in “Ouija”, there is a different setting in the movie where it does not have a main setting even
though the story started in a young lady house named Debbie who many have accidentally
unleashed something sinister form the past tenants, Doris loved together with her mom, Mrs.
Zander and her sister, Paulina. The setting of this movie in the town is not quite as isolated or
claustrophobic as the setting for “Dark Water”, it is far from outside help, and this makes it
prone to the horror. Both film’s psychological horror is present which is essential to both
films in gaining the audience attention and developing their own horror. This is portrayed
effectively by the use of bland and settings.

3. Other than that, narratives can be used by a director to distort a film of the horror
genre and to confuse or help the audience understand the plot. The use of narratives is a
commonly used in term, and is portrayed in different effects with many ways. In “Dark
Water”, a crucial part of understanding the plot, is watching the narratives within the film. At
certain parts in the film, the director uses anti-linear narratives, or flashback. The flashback of
the yellow rinse of the scene is given deep impression towards me. The rinse gives the scene
a sense of abnormality, and is instantly recognized as a scene that is not in the same time
frame as the other clean scenes. For examples, Cecilia has a flashback of her and her mother,
Dahlia who had drowned to death by looking at their pictures together. However in “Ouija” I
do not witness any flashbacks instead it is some sort of vision, and the director uses this
technique to give the audience instant anticipation of what is to come. For instance, the scene
when all of the friends in the movie received a similar unknown message, “Hi friends” which
makes the movie kind of goofy and curious. The movie also express using set conventions or
individually using a range of camera angles and effects such as special effects and sound
effects on the movies to be more successful.
In addition, both of the horror movies have totally different storyline that has
intrigued its viewers. Each movie got their own unique way to express the horror story to
audience by using different language. In “Dark Water”, the storyline of the horror movie is
basically about a lady named Dahlia Williams and her daughter Cecilia move into a rundown
apartment after divorce with her husband, Kyle. It all happened in the apartment. Mysterious
noise, persistent leaks of water causes Dahlia imagination to run wild. Meanwhile, Cecilia
develops a strong bond with her imaginary friend, Natasha who happened to control Cecilia
and wanted Dahlia to be her mother forever so, to rescue Cecilia, Dahlia has to sacrifice
herself that lead her die from drowning. On the other hand, “Ouija” is a supernatural horror

4. film about an ancient board and it turns out spirit of a girl named Doris murdered in Debbie’s
house decades ago with dark powers of an ancient spirit board. It also shows a group of
teenagers who play with an ouija board to find closure after the death of their friend.
However, they accidentally unleash a vengeful spirit during their game, and must now find a
way to stop the ghost before it kills them all. They make contact with someone who identified
as D who they thought is Debbie. Upon further interaction with the board, they discovered
that the spirits is not Debbie. The whole main thing of this horror film is about Doris, with
her mouth stitched closed by her mother to prevent the dark powers going wild and not to
harm others. So based on the above, both storylines of the two films contrast one another.
In contrast, both horror movies have totally different characters in I t. The pivotal role
of Dahlia Williams from “Dark Water” is to show audience a recently separated young
mother who is determined to make a loving home for her six-year-old daughter – despite her
estranged husband’s custody demands. The character, Dahlia also brings an exquisite blend
of strength and fragility to the role. She has an ability to convey rage and sadness,
hopefulness and fear with a delicacy of emotion that is riveting. The character also able to
lure audience into the performance and makes audience want to reach out to her with help.
It’s very compelling to watch Dahlia on the film, to watch her physical and mental drive to
protect herself and her daughter. However in “Ouija”, the movie is solely carried by the main
character Laine Morris. The character Laine is to portray a teen-ager she seemed to be wise
beyond her years. The rage in Laine strive her to find out the mystery behind the death of her
friend by leading a group of people.
To wrap things up, the two horror movies have their own interesting part. Despite
the differences in it, nothing can change the scariness of both movies which still stuck in my

5. head. I personally think that all horror movies are different as everyone has their own
perspective in seeing things. So i really enjoyed both movies as it give me excitement and
thrill of emotions.