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The Conversation
Arryn Robbins, Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Richmond

Horror films exploit how human vision works to deliver movies’ best scares

Scary movies use visual tricks to build unease and frighten the audience. skynesher/E+ via Getty Images

This article contains spoilers from popular horror movies and shows.

Imagine you’re in the movie theater watching 2018’s “Hereditary.” During one of the film’s most unsettling sequences, the main character, Peter, wakes up in bed disoriented. As he sits up, you hear a couple of gasps from others in the audience. The camera stays locked on Peter as he moves through his house and enters the dim living room.

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