Genre Research - Horror

This blog post is all about the genre "Horror"

Horror films are movies that strive to elicit the emotions of fear, horror and terror from viewers. Thier plots frequently involve themes of death, the supernatural or mental illness. Many horror movies also include a central villains.

-Early horror movies are largely based on classic literature of the gothic/horror genre, such as dracula, frankenstein, the phantom of the opera and dr jekyll and mr hyde.

-More recent horror films, in contrast, often draw inspiration from the insecurities of life after world war 2, giving rise to the three distinct, but related, sub genres;
           - Horror of personality ( Pycho 1960)
           - Horror of Armageddon (Invasion of the body snatchers 1958)
           - Horror of the demonic (The Exorcist (1973)
              The last sub genre may be seen as a modernized transition from the earliest horror films, expanding on thier emphasis on supernatural agents that bring horror to the world.


Horror films have been dismissed as violent, low budget B movies and exploitation films. Nonetheless, all the major studios and many respected directors, including  Alfred Hitchcock, Roman Polanski, Stanly Kubrick, John Caroenter, David Lynch, William Friedkin, Sam Raimi, Richard Donner and Francis Ford Coppola have made forays into the genre. Some horror films incorporate elements of other genres such as science fiction, fantasy, mockumentary, black comedy, and thrillers.

Horror films effectively center on the dark side of life, the forbidden, and strange and alarming events. They deal with our most primal nature and its fears: our nightmares, our vulnerability, our alienation, our rvulsions, our terror of the unknown, our fear of death and dismemberment, loss of idenity, or fear of sexuality.

Above information taken from Wiki: Horror films

Whatever dark, primitive, and revolting traits that simultaneously attract and repel us are featured in the horror genre. Horror films are often combined with science fiction when the menace or monster is related to a corruption of technology, or when Earth is threatened by aliens. The fantasy and supernatural film genres are not synonymous with the horror genre, although thriller films may have some relation when they focus on the revolting and horrible acts of the killer/madman. Horror films are also known as chillers, scary movies, spookfests, and the macabre.

Above information taken from Film site: Horror films