History Of Horror

1.Gothic horror and the thre great 19th century horror stoires:

The three great 19th century horror stories were Frankenstein, Dracula and Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde. Frankenstein was made as Mary Shelley was challenged to come up with the best horror film idea. The impact this had on society was that it was responsible for the beginning of the science fiction genre and has inspired many directors since. Dracula was one of the first horror films ever made and is iconic to the genre, and everyone knows what it is. Dr Jekyl and Mr Hyde was made because Stevenson dreamt up the storyline whilst sleeping one night.

2.The Horror of the Silent Era (German Expressionism):

Audiences enjoyed seeing ghosts captured in still photography, so it was a popular idea to transfer these technical effects to the film genre to tell fantastic and bizarre stories. Trickery techniques were used to explore darker stories with psychological and supernatural themes. The first one ever made was "Le Manoir Du Diable" which lasted little over three minutes, but included all of the iconic horror must haves, including bats, cauldrons and ghosts. German Expressionism came from Germany before WWII, and referred to a larger expressionist movement of European culture, in ways such as architecture, cinema and painting. This is the impact it had on society as it caused movements in cultures. Films of the decade include "Cabinet of Dr Caligari" and "Nosferatu".

3.Monsters and Mad Scientists (1930's and Universal studios horror):

Monsters and Mad Scientists became popular main character in horror movies during the 1930's. Sound played a big role in these movies, as music was used to create suspense or signify a threat in the movie. They tended to be set in far of places and characters dressed in period costumes. Universal Studios came about in this decade and became very famous for their films Frankenstein and Dracula that are now iconic in the horror genre as everyone knows who they are. Famous films of this decade include Frankenstein, Dracula, King Kong and The Mummy. The impact this had on society was that it gave a lot of people a chance to escape from the depression of the ominous war. Also, the mad scientist character role reached it's peak after Hitler came to power, as it was seen to be a bit too similar to him.

4.The Primal Animal Within; werewolves and cat people-1940's:

At the time most horror films were American, and they didn't let European horror films in to their states, as they saw them to be dangerous. However, they couldn't hold out forever. An Example of an animal being used in a negative state is in Pinnochio where the bad boys turn into donkeys. The idea of using a Wolf as a negative and scary creature was due to Hitler being easily referable to them. His name Adolf meant wolf, and his SS Forces were known as his "pack of wolves". The Wolfman (1941) and Cat People (1942) were films in this decade. The impact Cat People had on society was that women were not happy with it, and they felt it was bias.

5.Aliens and Monsters (1950's):
The first low budget film to feature outer space and aliens was called "Rocketship X-M". This then started a trend of sci-fi films that led to titles including "The Thing", "The Day the Earth Stood Still" and "War of the Worlds". Exciting looking monsters were able to be used in films thanks to blue screen techniques. Early special effects worked well in King Kong. The Blob was released in 1958 had 2 remakes. The film's message was about warning people of the dangers of space travels. It was also used to show the 'creeping horrors of communism'. This decade had a big impact on society as there was a massive scare due to the progression of technology. People believed that it was going to take over everyone's lives.

6.Hammer film productions:
Hammer film productions was founded in 1934 and as produced many big name titles such as 'The Curse of Frankenstein', 'The Abominable Snowman', 'The Mummy' and 'The Curse Of The Werewolf'. Curse Of Frankenstein is very important during this time. Colour is used instead of black and white, focus is on victim and not the creature. Also, Frankenstein is on a quest for knowledge and not a criminal. The wheel of inspiration was important in this time. Universal project = change script = audiences like = make another = Universal project.

7.Ghosts, Zombies, Ghosts and your family:
Horror movies of the 70's reflected the grim outlook of the decade. This was the time that big budget films were hitting the screens again. These dealt with contemporary societal issues, and focused on realistic, genuine fears. these included children and child birth. The main film that dealt with this fear was 'The Exorcist'. It was banned from the UK until 1999, being labelled the scariest movie of all time. Satanism is also included in this film as it was a big fear at the time, with the child being possessed by the devil. Many ghost stories came about in the 60's, where the horror lies in showing the change from sanity to psychosis. These reflected a preoccupation with change, with women being the ones on the front line and being destroyed by it. Famous films from the era included 'Rosemary's Baby', 'Carnival Of Souls', 'The Omen' and 'Halloween'.

8.Slasher movies and body horror:
Slasher is a type of horror that depicts a killer that murders with the use of sharp weapons such as knives, razors and axes. Body horror is when the focus is on graphically showing the mutilation and destruction of the human body. Such films include scream, Halloween, nightmare on elm street and Friday the 13th. They started in the 80's due to the advancement in technology and special effects that allowed much more explicit scenes to be shown. Tom Savini is a famous make-up artist that worked on titles such as Texas chainsaw massacre 2 and Friday the 13th. Target audiences grew to love the iconic psychopaths.

9.Video Nasties:
These films were all about horrifically gory deaths. They didn't tend to be released on the big screen and were instead sent straight to VHS. People were so disturbed by them that court cases were filed against them and many were banned. The impact this genre had on society was that it was blamed heavily for changing Britain from the way it was before the genre hit screens. They were heavily advertised in shops due to the hype. Banned titles include 'Blood Bath', 'Axe' and 'The Burning'.

10.Gorenography and torture porn:
This genre of film has a sole focus on brutal deaths, and has no real story line, plot or characters. A Japanese sub-genre called Ecchi emerged which involved bodies being cut up by sharp instruments. Films like 'Wrong Turn' and 'Wolf Creek' took their ideas from films like 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' and 'The Last House On The Left' which were films with an emphasis on torture, suffering and violent deaths. Ed Gein is the psychopath that 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' was inspired by. Some of the things found in his house included human skins covering chair seats and lampshades, human heads and a belt made of female nipples. People imagine disturbing things in their head, and this can be shown in films, giving it an argument for being 'ok' to make and watch. Eli Roth was a horror film director and directed films including the famous 'Hostel'.