The Horror Genre

The horror genre has been popular since the early 1900's. It takes peoples fears and then uses it to scare a wide range off audience. Over the years the horror idea off what is scary has changed a lot over the years. The first major films were from the silent ear and it was films that came from novels such as Dracula. They started to get more when a german film was made called nosferatu this is basiclly the vampire there was also the cabinet of dr caligori this started to get the horror genre noticed. Then america started making remakes off dracula and made films such as the frankenstiens monster,curse off the werewolf,jekyll and hyde and freaks. Times have changed a lot since these times and the horror genre has grown a lot.

The film usully follows a set convention. There is the start off the film which usully shows the normal way off establishing who the victim is. It then starts to establish main characters are in the film. Usully there is a villian in it and he starts to kill off the characters. This is not true for every film. Vladmir Propp got the idea that in horror films that there is always a villian/monster,hero,victim,helper and a doner. At the start off the film it only usully shows the victim first. The next scene either shows the villian if he has not been shown in the first part or the hero and it establishes some off the characters that will be in the film. Then after the start there is the middle this is the main part and it helps build up different charatcer types and who will be killed and who will survive. The ending is usually when the hero beat the villian.


There is also for 4 different types off horrors:

experimental/avant garde- These were the first horrors such as nosferatu and cabinet of dr.calirgari.

classic- these are the more well known films such as dracula,frankenstien,wolfman

parady- these are the films such as carry on screaming and shaun off the dead

deconstruction/postmodern/hybirds- Scream Seven, Scary movie these film are the modern ones.

these were designed by Vladimir Propp

In a horror movie there is always these things- blood/gore,weapons,voilence,darkness,fight scences and so on this is always designed to scare the audience.

Monster as a metophor- Monsters in films usually represents our fears in life and what we are as a human race. This is things such as fear off sex,science,losing humainty,change,puberty these are things people go though in life.

Most horrors take things from the news and use it. The Film Dawn off the Dead in the shopping mall shows we are like machines and all we do is eat,shop,and live pretty much as robots. Dog Soliders is showing how in life there is always a fight between yourself and other people and its up to you to try and fight it. Frankenstien shows peoples fear off death and the need to live.

Colours in the horror movie-

Black means dark,bad,evil,warning,death
White means good,light,heroic
Red means evil love passion blood

There are different types of genres within the genre 'Horror'
Horror films are often combined Sci - Fi films, this is when there are monsters, aliens, derranged beings or the corruption of technology are involed.
The fantasy and supernatural genres are not usually synonymous with the horror genre. There are many sub-genres of horror: slasher, teen terror, serial killers, satanic, Dracula, Frankenstein, etc.

Comedy Horror Films
Zombie Films
Cannibalism in Popular Culture
Monster Movie
Psychological Horror
Slasher Film
Survival Horror
Urban Gothic
Vampire Films
Werewolf Films