The MCU's latest blockbuster, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, features plenty of jump scares, a departure from the usual action found in Marvel films. Designing the perfect jump scare is tricky but under certain circumstances, they are highly effective. The element of surprise is crucial but anticipating the audience's reaction is important too. In The Haunting of The Hill House, for instance, everyone could guess Steven would see a ghost or encounter a supernatural presence by the end of the episode. But they didn't realize the ghost of his sister Nell would confront him in his living room!
Ambient detailing and visual aspects are also quite key to acing a good cinematic startle. It takes a lot to jolt the modern viewers who are already expecting gore and terror. But some movies managed to deliver an effective jump scare that makes a big statement without being gimmicky, according to Reddit.
The Exorcist III: The Nurse Station Scene
The nurse station scene in The Exorcist III is one of the most successful jump scare sequences in Hollywood history. Unlike most jump scare shots, this wasn't a close-up. The minute-long scene only features three seconds worth of intense tension. Walktwomoons notes, "The thing going on in the background with the security guard/police officer makes the scene feel more natural as well because the action isn't focused on one person. Also, it gives a false sense of security, showing how quickly a 'protected' environment could turn into a dangerous one..."
The Redditor is right. What really worked for the scene was the attention to detail. The nurse opened and reopened the door to check the lights. It's almost as if the makers had lulled them into a false sense of security by insisting that the door was locked and nothing could possibly emerge out of it.
Mulholland Drive: The Scene Behind Winkie's
David Lynch has never been big on jump scares or even gimmicky techniques that are superficial. The closest he ever came to crafting a jump scare moment was in Lynch's horror noir Mulholland Drive, when Dan and Herb (played by Patrick Fischler and Michael Cooke), meet each other at a diner named Winkie's. Even in this scene, Lynch almost walks the viewers to the big reveal, and therein lies its horror.
The audience and Dan expect the worst and yet, never really believe what they will see will live up to their fears. Heybart notes, "What's amazing about this scene is it's not technically a jump scare, because Lynch tells you what's coming (Lynch doesn't do jump scares). You're expecting it, and when it happens, you are jolted anyway."
Insidious (2010): The Man In The Baby's Room
The Insidious films are almost too scary to finish and despite its flaws, the franchise features some smart, efficient camera work that works wonders for the story-telling. The film uses some simplistic movements and hacks that though, not polished or over-the-top, get the job done because they are unpredictable.
The scene where Renai (Rose Byrne) hears the baby monitor and runs up to the crib to find a creepy face hovering over the baby, wasn't one of the sleekest moments but for first-time viewers, it was quite the treat. GreyStagg agrees and says, "Insidious had some brilliant creepy moments. It was probably a little less subtle than I like my creepy atmospheric horrors but ultimately it was better than most horrors I've watched. They built the atmosphere and tension really well."
Friday The 13th: Jason Rises Out Of The Water
Many viewers agree that this dream sequence would have been the ideal ending for the movie. It's a truly horrifying scene that no one saw coming and also ties to the mythology of the film which is essentially a dilemma over whether Jason had really drowned. J_Quig notes, "Everyone relaxed after the beheading scene... and then, when Jason leapt out of the water, the room just outright screamed. It's just one of those moments that stuck with me."
The Reddit goes on to say, "I genuinely believe it would have been a better ending if it just cut to credits after she got pulled under." Friday The 13th already has a reputation for twist endings and the best way to handle this would have been to treat the lake scene as a cliffhanger and Alice's fate could have been revealed in the sequel.
Sinister (2012): The Lawnmower Footage
The lawnmower scene has a very clear visual focus. The only source of light is a strong gleam from the light in front of the lawnmower, so the audience doesn't have to keep tabs on any other visual cues except what's highlighted on their screen. This makes the jump scare effective.
Viewers know they will spot something in the footage, perhaps a corpse on the ground or a dismembered organ. But the one split-second view of a child, who had obviously been murdered (possibly by the one mowing the lawn) is extraordinarily disturbing. Viewers found an element of gore in the way the scene was handled. "I couldn't watch the lawnmower scene, I can't stand gore in movies after have gone through always watching gore movies in jr high," writes Sourdime.
The Ring: The Closet Scene
The closet scene in The Ring where the grieving mother recalls finding her daughter's corpse was one of the most terrifying moments in the film. It came across as so shocking because the scene cuts away to a flashback that no one saw coming. And though the audience had a general idea of what had happened, the second-long scene was quite nightmarish.
Redditor Yusi-D-Jordan was unprepared for the scene, even though she had seen the 1998 film Ringu, which was adapted into The Ring. "It's that scene early on in the movie where some lady talks about her daughter and says 'I saw her face,' and it cuts to her daughter in a closet, all deformed due to The Ring girl. I'm 30 years old in 2 months, and I still wake up from time to time with anxiety, picturing that scene," the Redditor writes.
The Night House: The Scene When Beth Wakes Up
The split-second terror is largely considered the most effective jump scare formula. But in some slow-burning films, stylized or longer jump scare moments can also prove to be effective. The 2021 film The Night House, for instance, has a rather curious but well-executed example - the scene where Beth wakes up to the sound of the stereo after she had passed out on Claire's lap.
But the camera angles and the ambient elements make it obvious that the mood has shifted and that Beth was awakened by a looming, supernatural presence. Dangeralpaca points out, "Not only does it put you perfectly in Beth’s shoes, scares and disoriented, but it’s also already clearly established that the stereo turns on at night, so it’s not like it comes out of nowhere."
Signs: The News Footage With Aliens
The fact that this striking footage occurs as part of a news feature is what makes it so effective. No one expects a jump scare moment to be televised. Moreover, jump scares are usually experienced by one person which magnifies the sense of terror and helplessness.
But the fact that this jump scare was designed as a communal viewing experience, as part of a news broadcast, makes it powerful. "Building suspense, the delivery was short, sudden, screaming children, etc. But above all, It made direct eye contact with the camera. I think that's what made it so jolting. Made me freeze in horror, too lol," writes BirdieTater.
28 Days Later: The Chapel Scene
The chapel scene worked flawlessly in Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later because the split-second where Jim sees two zombies pillaging through a floor of corpses was captured effectively with that one jump scare. The film essentially showed a world where civilization had ceased to exist and all institutions had fallen. So the chapel had a lot of significance in this context as did the zombie priest who goes after Jim.
DeathByButtPlug states, "The helplessness and confusion on Jim's face mixed with the horrific scenery of all the corpses on the church floor" make this one of the most effective horror movie jump scares.
Jaws: Head In The Boat
The scene where Hooper sees a one-eyed head rolling around inside Ben Gardner's boat is an example of a classic shocker. It's not exactly as gory as the rest of the film and yet no one really expected to see something so severe towards the beginning of the movie. Visually it was designed to make a big impact considering the focus of the camera.
IWW4 recalls the time when they saw the movie in the theatre and it made everyone scream: "That audience reaction to that scene was so incredible. As a kid I thought a bomb had gone off in the theatre because of how people reacted. People were shrieking, I looked at the audience and people were moving around so much I swear the audience was boiling!"