History of Horror Films

"If movies are the dreams of the mass culture... horror movies are the nightmares"
— Stephen King, Danse Macabre





Horror Films: The history behind them

Horror is known as an ancient art form. They orginate from tales which trigger the less logical parts of our imaginations for as long as we have told the stories for generations. These can be from the ballads of the ancient world to the now modern urban myths, audiences willingly offer themselves to storytellers to be scared, in films it is about getting a physchological thrill from the experience of being scared knowing conciously that you cannot get hurt. It is said that the reason why we watch horror films is to trigger the rush of adrenaline which fear brings, but horror films also serve a wider moral purpose, to reinforce the rules and taboos of our society.

Horror movies have long served two purposes. They are known to deliver thrills as well as tell the dark, forbidden side of life and death. These are known as cautionary tales for grown ups which are meant to show a mirror image of peoples anxieties. When watching you feel as if you are overcoming your fears which adds a thrill of exitement which is addicting.

An example of a horror film that is known for following the genre is Nosferatu (1922). It is not considered a tale of vampirism although it has this involved.
The plot involves Vampire Count Orlok expressing interest in a new residence that is unknown and real estate agent Hutter's wife. It is a silent classic based on the story "Dracula." which is a known horror book of the time.

The character in this film consists of a killer who is dressed in a big coat and has the facial expressions to chnage the way he appears to audiences. This is effective because it makes the audiences question why he looks the way he does, but automatically you are made to dislike him because of the aesthetics of his facial deformities.



Each generation gets different films in the horror genre, and one of the more fascinating aspects of the study of the genre is the changing nature of the monsters who present a threat. In the 1940s, part-man, part-wolf as becomes the boogeyman, whose natural part of his mind sees himself as the beast tears apart those who crosses his path.

In the 1990s however, there was no need for a part wolf component: Hannibal Lecter was entirely human but his face was distorted to change him into being the killer. This was effective because it showed a new use of make-up emerging that hadn't been used before, and changed the way in which we make horror films today.