How is suspense created in the film you watched in class?

THE STEPFATHER

When watching the thriller film The Stepfather, there were many suspenseful moments, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats.

 Here are three examples of these suspenseful moments:

Example 1:

Near the beginning of the film, David asks his fiances older son to meet him in the basement for a "chat". The audience is kept wondering why David situated this particular place to meet him. The basement is a very ominous place and immediately suggests to the audience that something negative is going to happen there. The music played when the young boy is walking down the stairs of the basement, is full of very low string instruments, this complements with the fear and confusion of the audience to why David is waiting for him in a basement. The building up of suspense makes the audience feel certain that the young boy is going to die, however this does not happen as it's done by purpose to make the audience feel engaged with the film.

Example 2:

As the film develops, the audiences is faced with another 'false plateau'. This is when a cat jumps in front of the camera making the audience think  it was David who was behind ready to kill her. This 'false plateau' leads the audience into a false sense of security making them think something negative is about to happen but it doesn't. This scene is full of tension for the audience making them feel all the feelings of suspense such heavy breathing and a fast heart beat.

Example 3:

At the beginning of the film a sense of normality is established. A normal man having a shower, shaving and eating breakfast in a normal family home. This produces the audience to feel comfortable and relaxed, however, behind this normality the thrill and horror is hidden. As the audience feel calm the reality is seen producing the audience to change their feelings and begin to feel the tension and fear.

I was inspired by the technique of "False Plateau' as I thought it would be a good way to engage the audience into watching a film. I would like to use this in my thriller clip.