Research

There are many horror films which are based on true events. For example:

The Exorcism of Emily Rose

This is a story based on a girl called Anneliese Michel who began to hear voices at the age of 17. She was referred to a psychiatric clinic after having an epileptic attack. Anneliese began to hear voices and have hallucinations when she was praying and her strange behaviour was noticed by one of the workers in the psychiatric unit. Her parents gave up on doctors to find out what was wrong with their daughter and believed that performing an exorcism was the only way to cure her. This film is a twist on this real life event. Some parts are exaggerated to create drama however the fact the basis of the story happened in real life means that the audience responds a lot more. Audiences will be effected a lot more if it is relate able to a real life situation.

The Haunting in Connecticut

This is a film based on the real life experiences of the Snedeker family. The family moved to Connecticut where Carmen Snedeker's son was being treated for cancer.  The house seemed pretty ordinary apart from the many crucifixes around the house. Weird things started to happen such as Phillip (the son)'s name was being called and every family member claimed in was not them. Carmen put it down to the radiation treatment messing with his head. Phillip continued to notice weird things and no one would believe him. His mother would order him to stop telling 'stupid ghost stories'. Phillip was taken to an institute where they diagnosed him schizophrenic however he did not accept this and told his mother that 'they were coming after them'. After his mother was nearly killed by a strange occurance they performed an exorcism on the house. 

The Conjuring

This is based on the real life couple Ed and Lorraine Warren, who were paranormal investigators. The Perron family began experiencing weird happenings at their home in Harrisville. They described spirits that were both harmless and angry and they also experienced the smell of rotting flesh at the exact time 5:15. The film looks at the investigation into the Perron's house and how the Warren's planned on removing the spirits.