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17 Clever Clues And Foreshadowing In Horror Movies

Never sing "Spanish Ladies" while on a boat, people.

17 Clever Clues And Foreshadowing In Horror Movies

July 21, 2021

Everyone has a movie that freaks them out. For some, it's the horror genre that does it – and for a good reason. Horror movies are designed to do just that: scare the living daylights out of you. Whether it's an iconic scene, a shocking twist, or simply the overall suspense and Atmosphere, horror movies leave a lasting impression on us.

When a horror movie is done well, the scares don't just come from what's on the screen. Clever clues and foreshadowing can plant the seeds of terror long before the first jump scare. In this blog post, we'll take a look at some famous examples of the suspenseful movie-making technique.

Clever clues and foreshadowing can make or break a horror movie. When done well, they set up the suspense and help keep viewers on the edge of their seats. But when done poorly, they can be painfully obvious and take away from the scare factor. In this article, we'll take a look at some of the best (and worst) examples of clever clues and foreshadowing in horror movies. Stay spooked!

Be sure to keep an eye out for them the next time you watch your favorite horror flick!

17

GET OUT Rod tells Chris about a suspicious old lady at the airport and says, Like you can't hide a bomb in a wheelchair? Watch, Chris, the next 11 is gonna be on some geriatric shit. It's a foreshadowing of the nefarious ongoings between the senior citizens of the Coagula project. CRACKED.COM — Script Slug

16

It FOLLOWS In the beginning the kids play Old Maid, a game about passing on cards in the hopes of not getting stuck with the old maid card.. It represents the entity in the movie that cannot be destroyed but can only be passed along, and foreshadows it appearing as an old woman. CRACKED.COM — Slate

15

READY Or NOT LEBAIL'S GAMBIT ID Take I FAMILY RITUAL I ID PLAYERS CRACKED.co There's a shot of various board games at the beginning of the movie, each with their own significance. Family Ritual and Secret Council are obvious ones, but it's the bottom one titled Sunrise that foreshadows what Grace will have to do to activate the curse. — Cracked

14

SHAUN OF THE DEAO In the beginning Pete yells at Ed, You want to live like an animal? Go live in the shed! That's exactly where Ed lives by the end of the movie. CRACKED.COM — YouTube clip

13

Willy's WONDERLANO and Wonderland It's never stated what exactly the Janitor (Cage) does for a living or how he learned to kick butt like that. But a quick shot in his car at the beginning of the film shows dog tags hanging from his rearview mirror, hinting at his fighting ability (and arguably his affinity for discipline and routine). CRACKED.COM — Elements of Madness

12

UNDERWATER Right in the beginning we see Norah spotting a spider in the bathroom of the underwater drilling station. The creators said it was a deliberate foreshadowing of a creature you would not expect to see at the bottom of the ocean. CRACKED.COM — Film School Rejects

11

Us In the beginning when we see a young Adelaide at the psychiatrist's office, she is placing a tiny rabbit toy in a long line of other animal toys. This foreshadows what happens when the underground or Tethered emerges. CRACKED.COM — Cracked

10

Relic Throughout the film, the mother makes carvings, foreshadowing how the turn in her life carves her in the end. CRACKED.COM — Signal Horizon

9

SCREAM A couple of songs warn about the boyfriends in the movie. Billy is introduced while (Don't Fear) The Reaper plays, and before Tatum dies in the garage scene, she's hanging out with Stu while Republica's Drop Dead Gorgeous plays, the chorus being: I know my ex-boyfriend lies Oh, he does it every time /It's just his permanent disguise/ Yeah, yeah, but he's drop-dead gorgeous. CRACKED.COM — YouTube clip

8

The Others CRACKED.COM Throughout the movie, the children start breathing erratically every time they're in a tense situation. At one point, their mother Grace even tells them to stop breathing like that. It's a foreshadowing of the twist and reveal at the end. — The Cinemaholic

7

THE DARK AND THE WICKED In the opening of the film, there's a blink-and-you'll-mis--it: shot of a demon among the goats in the barn. Not only does it show that it's too late for the characters because the demon's already there, but it also foreshadows the first death, the slaughtering of the goats, and pretty much everything you need to know about what's coming. CRACKED.COM — YouTube clip

6

The Witch The song the children sing to Black Phillip in the beginning tells you everything you need to know about the end: Black Phillip, Black Phillip A crown grows out his head Black Phillip, Black Phillip To nanny queen is wed Jump to the fence post/ Running in the stall/ Black Phillip, Black Phillip / King of all. CRACKED.COM — Robert Eggers on Quora

5

TRAIN TO BUSAN At one point, the elder sisters bicker about a remaining seat on the train, telling each other to take it. Little Su-an gives up her seat, causing the sisters to sit on opposite sides of the aisle. Later, they are separated to opposite sides of the infected cars on the train. CRACKED.COM — YouTube clip, TV Tropes

4

EVIL Dead In the 2013 remake, the five characters stuck in the cabin in the woods are David, Eric, Mia, Olivia, and Natalie. The first letters of their names spell D-E-M-O-N. CRACKED.COM — IMDb

3

A QUIET Place In the opening scene we see a traffic light- with focus on the red - knocked over in a town that doesn't show much else destruction. This is a clue to what happens later when Evelyn needs to send an SOS and she switches on the red lights, unknowingly luring the monster.. CRACKED.COM — Mashable

2

MIDSOMMAR There's a flower arrangement on top of a photo of Dani next to her parents' bed at the beginning of the film. CRACKED.COM It looks a lot like the flower crown she wears by the end of the movie. — Cracked

1

Jaws Quint sings Spanish Ladies, the same song the crew sings in Moby Dick. And just like Captain Ahab was dragged to his death by the creature he obsessed over, so was Quint. CRACKED.COM — YouTube clip, Houston Chronicle

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