"The Babysitter & The Man Upstairs" Moodboard

Gothic Horror Moodboard

Character Analysis - The Man Upstairs

The Man Upstairs

Sadistic - The myth involves a man killing three children which instantly deems this myth to be sadistic as children are involved. Not only that but the way he goes about the murders and the phone conversations were twisted and expected of a satanic murderer. 

Persistent -  When making the phone calls to the young girl, he was very persistent in asking her questions to make her anxious and he was successful in doing so. It created tension as he did not show any leniency to the young girl. 

Intelligent - The planning of his crime could be considered as very intelligent, although horrid, as the thought process of how to torture her so successfully and time the situation in such a way that everything happened when it was meant to, is something to be considered. 

Controlling - From the first phone call he makes to the young girl, he is in control up until he is remanded by the police. He controls every move she makes as he was the one placing the calls. 

Character Analysis - The Babysitter

The Babysitter

Vulnerable - The babysitter herself, although unmentioned, is assumed to be around the age of 14, making her a vulnerable easy target. Not only is she young but is in charge of three young children who are equally as vulnerable as herself.

Anxiety - Looking after young children at a young age can be challenging as there are many pressures that come with it. The babysitter in the myth has to deal with more than the average babysitter therefore the anxiety would show through more when creating the character. 

Lonely - At two points in the myth, the babysitter could of felt extremely alone. The first time, she makes a call to the restaurant to talk to the parents to discover they had left a while ago, emphasizing her loneliness. The second time is after she makes a 911 call and the dispatcher informs her there is nothing the police can do if the phone calls she is receiving are not threatening. 

Despair - After the man upstairs torments with the young girl for a while, it clearly becomes too much for her to take as she snaps "I'm shaking, Are you happy? Is that what you wanted?". Naturally she must feel helpless and in despair as she doesn't know what to do.

"Gothic Urban Legends" Brief & Introduction to Unit

For the unit "Styling for Stage, Screen & Television", we were given the brief titled "Gothic Urban Legends", based on urban myths from the Gothic genre. We were required to style and shoot two images for two different models as characters from one urban myth, designed to be used as characters for a music video. My chosen myth is "The Babysitter & the Man Upstairs", a myth about a young girl babysitting three children who end up murdered by a mysterious man upstairs. 

The Babysitter & The Man Upstairs

A married couple were going out for the evening and called in a teenage babysitter to take care of their three children. When she arrived they told her they probably wouldn't be back until late, and that the kids were already asleep so she needn't disturb them.

The babysitter starts doing her homework while awaiting a call from her boyfriend. After awhile the phone rings. She answers it, but hears no one on the other end — just silence, then whoever it is hangs up. After a few more minutes the phone rings again. She answers, and this time there's a man on the line who says, in a chilling voice, "Have you checked the children?"

Click.

At first she thinks it might have been the father calling to check up and he got interrupted, so she decides to ignore it. She goes back to her homework, then the phone rings again. "Have you checked the children?" says the creepy voice on the other end.

"Mr. Murphy?" she asks, but the caller hangs up again.

She decides to phone the restaurant where the parents said they'd be dining, but when she asks for Mr. Murphy she is told that he and his wife had left the restaurant 45 minutes earlier. So she calls the police and reports that a stranger has been calling her and hanging up. "Has he threatened you?" the dispatcher asks. No, she says. "Well, there's nothing we can really do about it. You could try reporting the prank caller to the phone company."

A few minutes go by and she gets another call. "Why haven't you checked the children?" the voice says.

"Who is this?" she asks, but he hangs up again. She dials 911 again and says, "I'm scared. I know he's out there, he's watching me."

"Have you seen him?" the dispatcher asks. She says no. "Well, there isn't much we can do about it," the dispatcher says. The babysitter goes into panic mode and pleads with him to help her. "Now, now, it'll be okay," he says. "Give me your number and street address, and if you can keep this guy on the phone for at least a minute we'll try to trace the call. What was your name again?"

"Linda."

"Okay, Linda, if he calls back we'll do our best to trace the call, but just keep calm. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes," she says, and hangs up. She decides to turn the lights down so she can see if anyone's outside, and that's when she gets another call.

"It's me," the familiar voice says. "Why did you turn the lights down?"

"Can you see me?" she asks, panicking.

"Yes," he says after a long pause.

"Look, you've scared me," she says. "I'm shaking. Are you happy? Is that what you wanted?"

"No."

"Then what do you want?" she asks.

Another long pause. "Your blood. All over me."

She slams the phone down, terrified. Almost immediately it rings again. "Leave me alone!" she screams, but it's the dispatcher calling back. His voice is urgent.

"Linda, we've traced that call. It's coming from another room inside the house. Get out of there! Now!!!"

She tears to the front door, attempting to unlock it and dash outside, only to find the chain at the top still latched. In the time it takes her to unhook it she sees a door open at the top of the stairs. Light streams from the children's bedroom, revealing the profile of a man standing just inside.

She finally gets the door open and bursts outside, only to find a cop standing on the doorstep with his gun drawn. At this point she's safe, of course, but when they capture the intruder and drag him downstairs in handcuffs, she sees he is covered in blood. Come to find out, all three children have all been murdered.