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The Audience Becomes Paranoid Too
This is perhaps the greatest trick both movies pull.
They don't just make the characters paranoid.
They make us paranoid.
We're constantly looking for clues.
Was that character acting strangely?
Why did they leave the room?
Why didn't they answer?
Where were they?
What did they know?
Could they have been infected?
Could they be a machine?
The audience becomes an investigator.
And because we don't always have enough information to reach a definitive conclusion, we're left guessing.
That uncertainty is essential.
A monster that is completely understood is often less frightening than one we don't understand.
