When The Jump Scare Is Actually Clever | Vanity Fair

[@williamgalipeault4206]

The human minds ability to recognize patterns and then subvert those patterns every time we get used to something is astounding

[@yeetthebeet]

the beauty of art !

[@MaQuGo119]

OY GAVALT!, I'M NOTICING STUFF

[@Evoke-Chaos]

yes, human mind. i have it.

[@theodillon3216]

gosh i hope nobody weaponizes this in my interpersonal life!!!

[@simplelife730]

standing ovation to the creative team behind this video essay, it's MARVELLOUS!

[@sandhanitizer15]

Ugh, fine. I'll stand. 👏 👏 👏

[@lobomalsano]

3:27 narrator said Stephen instead of Steven lol

[@kennethgimpayan3418]

i was like ugh 20 mins. then i finished watching and im like its not enoughhh!

[@carbonc6065]

@@kennethgimpayan3418 It would've been nice if they added the negative side of Jum Scares.

[@jordanfainstat2963]

Can't agree more.. don't know what I expected but it might be one of the best KZbin videos I've ever seen, although I'm a big fan of horror.. more please

[@buggiemara4902]

Jumpscares get a lot of hate in shallow film discourse, but when used effectively and sparingly, they can be quite the gems.

[@martispartis05]

Especially jumpscares that aren’t just the threat in the film! I love jumpscares that are as small and insignificant as a fork being dropped or a car horn taking you out of the situation

[@marinafernandez8934]

When done well, i loveeeee jump scares!

[@PHIL-y7x5l]

Love them all. Reddit horror can suck it

[@feduwtc]

i really like one of the jumpscares in Babadook, you have the jumpscare but the sound doesnt come immediatly

[@carbonc6065]

... But I hate the useless/nonsensical ones.

[@ReubenCornell]

A moment of respect for whomever did those chapter timings.

[@cameroncope7596]

Isn’t it done automatically now

[@bertberw8653]

whoever*

[@jameswilliam2003]

That subtle jump scare on It Follows gave me shivers the first time I watched it.

[@Rodflu]

It Follows its a underrated masterpiece.

[@BurgerInParadice34]

They definitely forgot the haunting of hill house scare - I know it’s a TV show but one of the most effective I’ve seen!

[@missraredoesstuff]

I'm so glad my fav show is mentioned!!!

[@bethourekt6361]

Absolutely the greatest jump scare in history

[@faboulusfab]

I was thinking that too! The jumpscare of Nellie's ghost in the first episode

[@rogerkearns8094]

I remember.

[@joaolira7072]

I was going to comment exactly that

[@Wormyquormy]

PLEASE make more videos like this! I loooved this! Give the people behind this one a raise!

[@RealAvocadoVR]

Frrrrr

[@pandemic7]

The Ring’s closet jump scare is to this day the most “scared” I have ever heard an audience. Just after the scene flashed in the theater, there was an audible groan and hush that followed the preceding screams. If “unsettling” has a sound, it was the deafeningly quiet sound that filled the theater that night. My then girlfriend-now wife and I still remember how we spent the remainder of the movie on edge, fearing that we’d experience another scare like that one.

[@Chiater]

Agreed

[@hobbychicken7084]

That scene was so scary!

[@asystole_]

I watched it on VHS as a teenager and it actually made me turn off the movie.

[@LarrySwishamane]

Yeah…yeah….yeah but did your house phone ring the first time watching it?

[@zergbot]

The Ring was so unscary it’s not funny. The original Japanese Ringu movie is so much better.

[@Thatonehorrormoviefan]

The firefighter fall jumpscare scene in REC was awesome and so sudden

[@danwilliams2551]

And then behind the scenes it turns out they didn't tell the actors. They told the ones that were closer, what and where and when it was going to happen, and didn't tell the actors who were required for that take to stay across the room, and then they dropped it in the middle of one actress' line reading.

[@tdoom1354]

The director did not tell the cast about that one. Actors thinking it was one of the crew falling down.

[@lylejustinegay7810]

My favorite horror movie

[@jayvegas]

What a great mini-doc!

[@힐만94]

yess, it's like "magic biggest secrets finally revealed".. now we know which movie that started it all, and hope directors will find new and different techniques in the future...

[@Soooooooooooonicable]

Sinister's Lawnmower jumpscare takes the cake for me. You've gotta watch the whole scene for that buildup of tension though.

[@menace135]

As a horror lover, I'm upset that that scene didn't scare me since it was spoiled for me :(

[@samanthakoller533]

I have a sensitivity to loud noises, so the visual reveal got me.. the sudden max volume scream caused my bp to spike and I started to cry. 🙈

[@bycintia]

@@samanthakoller533 is that why i cry when i hear amber alerts lol? like i get so spooked and start tearing up

[@nervmeister]

That scream chord when the victim suddenly came into view is what really elevated it.

[@timurradman3999]

It was the least scary of the tapes though. The others didn't have jumpscares at all, but still terrified me

[@abbyfish894]

This was such a great video! So informative and the structure was beautifully put together. More like this please!

[@clarkness77]

Im still mad at smiles trailer ruining that jump scare

[@menace135]

I'm mad that even tho it was spoiled I jumped out of my mf skin 😂

[@gatzt3r]

Came to comments to find this. I despise how trailers these days use the jump scares to lure audiences to theatre instead of saving it for later.

[@bycintia]

@@gatzt3r exactly

[@muddrock]

I was honestly glad to have that one spoiled by the trailer, I was stressin' that whole movie.

[@menace135]

@muddrock lol

[@FTKComputer]

The conjuring when Bathsheba is on top of the dresser is the only jump scare that made me actually JUMP 🤣

[@Lyonessi]

That one is a really stayed with me cos it's common to get wardrobes with something stuffed above it and in your peripheral it looks like a person crouching. I couldn't sleep in a room one time because there was a black bag on top of a wardrobe 🫣

[@PinkTableSalt]

No because that was the most horrifying jumpscare I've ever seen

[@drew_m_r]

THAT jumpscare im haunting of hill house deserved a moment

[@keyboxspiders]

Which one? It's been a while since I've seen the show

[@darudesandstrom1067]

@@keyboxspidersend of episode 1

[@shelbyr]

The car argument scene 💀

[@chvisk]

I know you can't include everything, but IMO the Haunting of Hill House (2018) car jumpscare is one of the **best**. That one hurt me. I had to pause and get up and walk around for a minute. Totally got me 😂😭

[@ajay1589]

I screamed so loud at that one omg

[@leme9006]

The part with Nellie hanging several scenes was it for me

[@orangegreenandred]

I was thinking about that exact one during this video too

[@ilovemytabbycat]

Haunting of hillhouse is like one of the best cinematic pieces to ever exist

[@meredithchambers8727]

The best one!!

[@Roman888]

Mulholland Dr. takes the crown for best non-horror-genre jumpscare.

[@michete]

I classify it as a horror movie specifically for the diner scene lol

[@Dellaluna13]

This one actually made me gasp, which never happened to me in the tons of horror films I’d seen.

[@shinaux]

Mulholland Dr. and Nocturnal Animals for me

[@amazingtheatre1262]

Terrific film, especially when you realise who the “creature” is

[@Eckhout]

I almost died

[@ppop_unvrs]

The reason why horror jumpscares exists and evolved overtime is because that's what make it interesting, it's a reminder not to underestimate it even though a story is fictional. E.g. The haunting of the hill house wherein jumpscares are few, but you still get the sense of eerieness and uncanniness.

[@brbaic9364]

They can be useful when done properly, but they're not what makes horror interesting.

[@random_stuff9547]

There's a lot of jumpscares in Hill House ... Some of then are pretty cheap actually. I like Hill House a lot, im Just saying...

[@random_stuff9547]

​​@@brbaic9364I think jumpscares are really interesting ... Just a matter of taste i guess

[@thomasbrands7134]

Pretty sure an ep of hill house set the record for most jumpscares in a tv episode

[@ItsB3enLikeThis]

​@@brbaic9364I'd say they're a part of what makes horror interesting

[@BrennanBarrier]

I’m a horror purist and the one that got me SO BAD was lipstick face behind Josh’s shoulder in Insidious

[@ralelunar]

I had that one spoiled for me, I wish I could've experienced it how people did when the movie came out

[@LovelyMotokochan]

Omg this! I remember ppl screamed in my theater at this part!

[@menace135]

That scene was spoiled for me so it was the only jumpscare I expected, every other gave me a heart attack, mainly the tiptoe through the tulips kid

[@amychen5746]

I consume a lot of horror and I still think about that jump scare

[@captsuperking2862]

For me, the jump scare that to this day scared me more than any other was Large Marge in Pee Wee Herman's Big Adventure back when I was 5 or 6. Had trouble sleeping for a couple of nights. Now I have a totally awesome shirt recreating that scene though. Face your fears or whatever

[@mzytryck]

Courage the Cowardly Dog had some great ones! There's the one that is probably a reference to Peewee when the guitar player in the creepy house turns around and has a nightmare face, but the scene where the woman in "Perfect" comes out of the door and says "you are a disgrace" is a real jump because of how completely unexpected it is.

[@bananaempijama]

Return the slab.....

[@dbzcollector9963]

@@bananaempijama what’s your offer!

[@remy9621]

I’ve never seen a lot of these movies before, so it’s a special experience watching jumpscares and being startled by them as you’re listening to what makes them scary

[@ocopmat]

4:53 this effin scene just broke my dental elastic

[@RJPHOTONYC]

😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@ToadyMcgee]

Seriously. That one actually got me.

[@CrashPK77]

Exorcist 3: GOAT jump scare

[@shantakidd6230]

Why would you lie like this? I just watched that whole movie and none of the jumpscares had goats.

[@heyheyhey33351]

It's an incredibly underrated movie. One of the creepiest movies I've ever seen. Fun fact: It's directed by the writer of The Exorcist.

[@pearlneochampagne782]

Bro, this kind of content is the reason why I love youtube

[@Optora.]

Smile and smile 2 Had some of the best and least expected jumpscares I've seen recently

[@ИванКожухов-щ3г]

Zzzzz

[@MuhammadAhmad-oj6mf]

Smile was such a mediocre horror movie

[@PowuhToSeven]

​@@ИванКожухов-щ3гliterally it was all dream sequences

[@PowuhToSeven]

Statements like that make you sound new to horror

[@Youthuba]

​@@MuhammadAhmad-oj6mfI liked it. It's very original concept. Not just some ghost haunting. Or some zombie outbreak that's been done so many times

[@sasanr1]

The Ring and The Grudge are such a master piece that even in this cut scene make you uncomfortable

[@abc_cba]

Conjuring's clap, The Nun's Potrait scare, are two the jump scares that get me everytime even if i watch them 20 times.

[@MilesToGoGo]

It’s the Sinister lawnmower scene for me 😓

[@deborahblackvideoediting8697]

I think I jumped a foot out of my seat when the hands clapped. That one really got me!!

[@Bubbagunooch2]

The lawnmower scene in "sinister" is a crazy jump scare

[@gabriellaberman]

Not sure if it counts as a jump scare, but the person in the dog/bear (?) costume in The Shining still sends shivers down my spine to this day. There’s no shot in cinema that turns my stomach like that shot

[@jj-if6it]

It just makes me laugh 😅

[@babyboy00000000]

​@@jj-if6it they just look at the camera like "bro, do you mind?" 😂

[@Strobenz]

The Descent will probably always be my favorite jumpscare. The couple first times I saw that scene I could feel my soul leave my body in a way no other jumpscare ever has!

[@goleon7671]

I showed that movie to my younger siblings and cousins, it was so funny watching them all jump off their seat at the same time 🤣

[@jj-if6it]

Great movie

[@gmork1090]

@@jj-if6it Spectacular, even.

[@2003jackb]

The Pee Wee jumpscare scarred me as a kid, and probably started my love of horror

[@masterofallgoons]

Tell 'em Large Marge sent ya

[@Rockovissi]

Every single time!

[@mrgreen_real]

We need more videos like this. Thank you, VF

[@RealAvocadoVR]

Fr

[@Daysed.and.Konfuzed]

3:40 >>> Being the ultra-rare case of a mega-successful Hollywood director that stays down to earth, Spielberg has clarified in making-of and interviews that he wasn't "fully aware" that holding off on showing the shark for so long would turn out to be great for the movie. In reality, they were forced to do that because of the shark's mechanical problems, so they had to keep adapting the script to avoid delaying the production even further.

[@ablazedark]

The double waking up in "in the mouth of madness" is brilliant.

[@riffranger]

As much as horror movies can't rely solely on jump scares, they also shouldn't completely avoid them. If a movie non-stop jump scares the audience knows to expect them so they stop being scary but conversely, if all we get is tension and buildup with no payoff to break them, the tension stops being tense becasue the audience learns nothing is going to happen. The best horror movies know how to play with the audience, balancing the tension and jump scares to always keep the audience on its toes. Will this buildup be the one that ends with a jump scare or is it another safe one? We never know so every scene is scary whether it ends with a jump scare or not.

[@bobmasters9871]

This is phenomenal, and really does a great job showing how jumpscares have grown and changed over the years, I found myself dreading the scare more and more as the video went on. That's fantastic

[@santos8468]

I'm so glad you included The Dark Knight.

[@rahulsinghdeo7903]

The Night House should have been there in the 2020s. One of the most uniquely creative jump scares. Negative Space. A high chance on the first glance many viewers must have missed it.

[@AllIsSymbol]

Hereditary's Head scene is of the most recent and effective ones I've seen.

[@freja201]

really cool video, props to everyone involved!

[@therealtosis]

The jumpscare in Signs is so powerful cos you are expecting it, but it goes way beyond your expectations.

[@lena.il01]

this was an emotional rollercoaster getting worse and worse

[@Webtalkshow]

What an awesome production you guys creator! Please do more like this! 10/10!

[@sweetmother2406]

Nothing tops Alan Arkin’s leap across the screen in Wait Until Dark.

[@GMed-o4d]

Yes classic horror paved the way. But these new modern horror films have been amazing lately . Midsommar, Heresitary, Talk to Me, Barbadian, Smile, Longlegs

[@call_me_akayz]

It Follows, too❤❤

[@gabriellaberman]

Get Out was also an instant classic! It’s become so influential and it hasn’t even been out for a decade

[@GMed-o4d]

@ true

[@jacobwoelke3734]

Please don’t include Longlegs with those legends, thx.

[@menace135]

Hereditary made my toes curl, I seen the middle half when I was 7 cause of my momma and her friends and that scene with Charlie traumatized me, I rewatched it when I was 14 to see the beginning and end, reaction still the same (besides the crying), scared shitless, I see a telephone pole and I cringe, I don't wanna EVER hear about that cursed movie

[@RickvanVeldhuizen]

The one in Repulsion actually had me pause the video because it still unsettles me greatly.

[@elrota]

You could make this mandatory viewing in film theory classes in universities around the globe. This was EXCELLENTLY done.

[@countgeekula9143]

Best one of recent years is ghost Nell in the car in The Haunting of Hill House. Nearly gave me heart failure.😲

[@christumakay2562]

I thoroughly enjoyed this. Such a huge fan of these films.

[@asherwilkins465]

Interesting how at 2:36 the first attempt at the mirror jump scare works much better because the mirror doesn't do anything unnatural and only shows a glimpse of the Evil Within.

[@justyarn9939]

The scariest part of this video was the 10 unskipable ads it showed me

[@8teenOfficial]

Variety Fair made a video about HORROR FILMS?!

[@shinaux]

Nocturnal Animals (2016) also has one of the best jumpscares for a non-horror movie

[@sweetmother2406]

That movie messed me up

[@chrisaultman1]

That Exorcist 3 scene made me jump out of my seat in the theater.

[@Mamomain]

I was hoping Bilbo would get his flowers in this video essay, as a kid I felt utterly betrayed after falling for that scare.

[@apachechief8815]

U skipped over child’s play….that dolls head spinning around when she checks the batteries is amazing.

[@serpentinefrolics]

This was amazing! I'd add The Sixth Sense - the bit where a child ghost slowly turns around to go and show us "where his dad keeps the gun" and casually reveals a hole shot through his head. That gave me nightmares for weeks! Also, I know this is niche and you likely haven't watched it, but you could have included Beau is Afraid. There were some innovative modern jump scares in there that got me.

[@Jsizzle6809]

It really amazes me that it’s 2024 and the greatest werewolf transformation took place in 1981! That is crazy! And it’s really not even close either. You would think they’d come up with a truly modern amazing practical effects werewolf transformation by now

[@natatatt]

Fantastic video! Feel like I learned a lot about horror movies.

[@elaspic]

Ah, Kayako is so pretty! 🥰

[@WatchCommentAndLeave]

2:11 perfect AGHHH!!!

[@VitaliyCD]

When Signs was mentioned, I was surprised that it wasn't the roof scene. The father was just sitting down, chatting with his daughter, and I was getting bored and on the verge of falling asleep.. when suddenly, a figure behind the window. This was completely unexpected for me, and one of my childhood's most memorable jump scares. As for the birthday scene, the music build-up and the kids in the video practically told you what was coming. So when the alien finally poked his head out, for me that one was "meh".

[@sailorarwen6101]

I had to rewind that scene a couple times because I couldn’t see what we were supposed to be seeing lol

[@jj-if6it]

Or the cupboard and fingers scene

[@VitaliyCD]

@@jj-if6it YESSSS

[@Bluemgwes]

I would argue that for Psycho, the jump scare on the staircase would be far more classified as a jump scare than the shower scene.

[@erakfishfishfish]

Or the corpse of Norman’s mother being revealed

[@menace135]

I haven't even seen the film yet I've seen that shower scene far too many times and it keeps getting funnier every single time I see it

[@Chiater]

Yeah but that shower scene is classic. And still a jump scare. That's what was interesting with Hitchcock... He often built tension but having the audience see more than the character... Still leads to a scary moment though

[@truantbuick]

In terms of my own experience, I agree with you the staircase scene shocked me more. But I think that's because the shower scene is so iconic and widely parodied/homaged. Those of us who couldn't see when it came out are likely primed to anticipate the shower scene, but we don't know what's going to happen when Arbogast ascends the staircase, so it's a tenser build-up and a bigger surprise of what happens.

[@marcus_ohreallyus]

In What Lies Beneath...it was the subtle distraction of focusing on the locket that makes it so effective.

[@Butoygirl]

I really hated the jump scare in Ju-On: The Grudge because when I saw the ghost in the blanket, I screamed "Is nothing sacred anymore?!"

[@ummon995]

Any film trope needs to change over time, not just jump scares. Otherwise they'll be seen as derivative or predictable.

[@Oriol-oo7jl]

That video is amazing. Thanks for bringing back so many memories and scares! I was highly impacted as 80's kid with the head in Jaws and The Thing's bitting torso. HORRIFIED

[@blupengu]

that mean girls clip took me out lmaoooo

[@beatrizortega1712]

Honorary mention to that one jump scare with Laura Dern in Inland Empire. Probably one of the loudest screams I've ever let out

[@DJJuxtapose]

one of the best videos i've ever watched on youtube. you folks nailed the brief.

[@JeffRauseo]

Incredible video essay! Thank you for sharing.

[@stingray1740]

17:37 this is my favorite jump scare of all time, no matter what without fail I jump. So happy you included this iconic jump scare!

[@youdontknowmegigna]

16:12 Unfortunately, we were all ready for it since they chose to put that moment in a lot of the promotional material. First trailer I saw had it. Back when I still viewed cable.

[@skarsilverheart3238]

Mike Flannagans Haunting of hill house was a MASTERPIECE in how to use the jump scare effectively.

[@timchambers170]

Wonderful! I might only add the jump scare that ends the Babysitter Story in "When A Stranger Calls" (1979)

[@avj317]

Asian horror hits different. The Grudge and Shutter

[@Themuffenthusiast]

Agreed. Dark water and audition as well.

[@J.J.Jameson_of_Daily_Bugle]

Audition and Ju-On are two of my favorite jump scares, because both completely change the movie you are watching. Audition telegraph that this movie is not gonna have a happy ending (till then you are pretty much watching romance-drama), and Ju-On tells you that this isn't haunted house movie and that no one is safe as Kayako (and curse) can operate outside some established horror tropes (such as if character leaves the haunted house they are safe). Also I really found elevator scene in The Eye super creepy, because character is struggling NOT to look at the ghosts, because one of the common rules in horror movies is that evil cannot harm you unless you acknowledge it first. However what I truly found creepy about that movie is that ghost has always been there and they are completely indifferent to protagonist, she only now has means to see them in the world. However they've been there long before that and will remain there long after.

[@amaltiwari4230]

Great Video!!! The scene at 19:33, though executed slightly differently in Smile (2022), was originally done in Terrified (2017), where I found it to be more impactful.

[@p.g.sophia]

Even how many times I watch it, The alien reveal in Alien 1979 always, and I mean ALWAYS, gets me.

[@stickboybob]

That closet scare in the ring kept me up for weeks when I was a kid

[@beachfilm77]

Great video compilation, especially the 4 sets of jump commercials that popped up out of no where.

[@ChrisOliver4307]

"Mulholland Drive" isn't a horror film? That's news to me.

[@killjoyqueenz]

Oooh the rec/ quarantine ❤

[@gamblerizzo7468]

Courage The Cowardly dog ALSO did a claymation jumpscare!

[@zai_cortsan]

I loved this video Vanity Fair!! Super interesting. Thanks for sharing.

[@NickWard-f6l]

Salems Lot the 79 version Jail scene when Barlow reveals himself ...one of the great jump scares .😮

[@amorrious]

THE BEST horror movie in my opinion has to be the paranormal activity series, its so terrifying because its based off of what a lot of people cant consider real or fake, the paranormal.

[@Derpy1969]

You skipped the giant head coming out of the closet in Poltergeist.

[@GooBanana]

The Descent was perfect

[@grimbles39]

Getting freaky under the covers.

[@treasuretea3549]

wow never knew about the OG jumpscares! thank you for this gem!

[@caradoc-si]

The clapping hands jump-scare in The Conjuring is so excellently done, I've seen it so many times and still it unnerves me

[@jaycethewanderer9835]

6:18 I don't know why but the shock on the cat's face, like it was just interrupted during a private moment, makes me giggle 🤣 Poor cat was the one that got jumpscared

[@AndySamK]

i hate jumpscares. why did i just watch 20 minutes of jumpscares at midnight? :/

[@edupbeat]

The Dan Akroyd jump scare in the original twilight zone movie(86) is one of the greatest jump scares of ALL TIME! Can’t believe this didn’t include it..

[@ThomasBiddle-c2d]

83, not 86

[@edupbeat]

@@ThomasBiddle-c2d thanks for the correction

[@TANKTREAD]

@2:19 Please give the deserving credit to the genius film composer, Bernard Hermann. Help educate the viewers.

[@ktograph1138]

4:54 that had me, I have never seen a jumpscare like this.

[@killjoyqueenz]

It Follows ❤

[@mrbookends]

Even though I knew it was coming, the REC jump scare got me! What a great montage! I'm surprised I had seen most of these!

[@Pachec088]

Thank you for this video essay! Perfect for Spooky Season 🎃

[@heathernks8]

The Wilhelm Scream at 2:18 (and again at the end) was hilarious😂 and the discussion of things like "dramatic irony" were reminders of VF'S status :) Subbed for more!