The History of Horror Films

Horror films are an inherently frightful experience that often use fear to explore deeper themes. Horror movies are also a great vehicle for mashing up other genres, creating new and exciting spins on classic tropes. This can be anything from a mix of comedy and horror, like Shaun of the Dead, to an exploration of police procedurals and serial killers, like Dexter. Horror movies can even incorporate elements of science fiction or fantasy to create a unique and engaging experience.

Despite the gruesome violence and explicit erotic scenes in some horror movies, they often rely on the power of suggestion rather than explicit action to generate fear. This is done through intelligent editing and careful manipulation of lighting and tone to create a sense of tension.

The early 1900s saw an explosion of horror film production, largely due to the popularity of popular works of fiction such as Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. These horror films drew on current anxieties and fears to create an eerie, otherworldly feel. This period saw the rise of the slasher genre, with films such as Halloween and A Nightmare on Elm Street.

With the end of World War II came a new era of horror, as studios aimed to appeal to younger audiences with more modern films that drew inspiration from contemporary sources, including feminism and postmodernism. This era saw the emergence of films such as Carrie, The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari and The Shining.

This era was also when horror started to make the transition to television, as many of these films were turned into TV shows and serials such as The Exorcist and Veronica Mars. During this time, horror started to mash up with other genres, such as romance and comedy, which helped broaden the audience base for the movies.

Throughout the decades, horror has continued to evolve, with new subgenres being introduced and old ones becoming increasingly gory. Throughout this process, one thing has remained constant: the ability of horror movies to terrify audiences and tap into deep-seated anxieties and fears.

The most successful horror movies often manage to do the hardest job of all: to scare audiences without resorting to bloody splatter or cheap jumpscares. A few of the best horror movies do this by exploring grief through haunted houses and creepy ghosts, or by showing us the unsettling inevitability of death. Others delve into the mind of a disturbed character or take on societal anxieties. Still others, such as Sinister and Poltergeist, use the bleak aesthetic of horror to create a truly affecting story. Then there are those that combine a touch of erotica with horror, such as the sexually-transmitted curse in Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the sexy slasher flicks of the 1990s. There is also a growing interest in Asian horror, such as Ringu and Ju-On: The Grudge. These creative mixes show how well horror can work when it’s given the space to be a true genre-crossing art form.