Timeline of the Horror Genre 1970's-10's

One Hundred Years Of The Horror Genre (Part 2)

1970's

Horror movies of the 1970s reflect the grim mood of the decade though they showed a return of the high-budget psychological horrors.

A recurrent theme of the fear of children and childbirth which could based upon the nations fears after the Thalidomide tragedy of the early 60's which left many babies disfigured, disabled or even stillborn.

As these themes evolved it became that people (especially children) were possessed by an "evil within" which often resulted in the breakdown of previously stable family units; sparking paranoia, fear, and distrust.

e.g. The Exorcist (1973), The Other (1972), The Omen (1976)

Replacing the old, gothic style of horror films, the 70's saw a huge increase in the number of graphic horror films as a new rating system was introduced and restrictions on adult movies was slackened. Shocking use of sexual exploitation of female victims, bold colours, and electronic music created these "classic" horrors and are the backbone for most common representations of various ages and genders in horror movies today.

e.g. The House That Dripped Blood (1970), Bob Clark's Black Christmas (1974), Halloween (1978)

1980's

Special visual effects finally reach the same level as the gory imaginings of horror films and movie makers in this decade with grotesque make up and technical advancements in animatronics and prosthetics; allowing film makers to play with the classic monsters of supernatural, human and unknown origins in a way that had not yet been explored.
e.g. Alien (1979), The Shining (1980), Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)


Films also often developed the ability to scare audiences with the fear of suggestion rather than needing to contain any actual monsters. This was popular for audiences of the psychological horror as it meant that the genre was able to expand through the audiences imagination as the viewers fear enhanced the atmosphere of the room when the films were played. For this reason, film makers saw the benefits of creating enigmatic suspense within the first few minutes of a film and providing a plot twist towards the end, usually destroying any assumptions the audience had made and therefore destroying the "trust" we had come to associate with good vs bad stereotypes.
e.g.

Some filmmakers took an alternative route and found that excess gore is best and instead ended up desensitising the audience to human gore. The body horror fad of the early 80's is usually obvious from do-I-laugh-or-do-I-vomit scenes as body parts and blood are shown across the screen for extended periods of time. In some extreme cases, this resulted in video nasties which were deemed unsuitable for public viewing and were removed from box offices, tv channels and, in some cases, not officially released at all.
e.g. Athrophagus (1980), Blood Moon (1981), The Driller Killer (1979 America, 1982 England)

Deconstruction of Sound in Horror Films

• Diegetic sound such as heartbeats and unexplained noises are exaggerated to build suspense and tension throughout the film.
• Non diegetic sounds such as screaming are normally loud and sudden to make the audience jump or to build fear.
• Some horror movies use children’s voices singing or whispering to give an eerie effect.
• Music is normally high pitched, eerie and slow tempo to begin with. As there is a build-up of tension or the action increases the pace of the music quickens.
• Horror movies may use calm and cheerful music at the beginning but then a sudden interruption to scare the audience.
• Sounds of weapons may be used such as a chainsaw to evoke sympathy from the audience as they begin to worry what about what is going to happen to the victim.                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Horror Deconstruction

 

Characters

Characters normally include a killer who has had a traumatic past and is out for revenge and the victim who is often female and linked with the killers past. The two to three characters at the beginning of the film are often the main characters throughout.

Props

Many horror films involve the use of weapons such as axes, knives or chainsaws to symbolise death and violence. The use of weapons also evokes sympathy from the audience as they become worried for the lives of the victims. Masks may be used to create enigmas as the audience are unable to identify who is responsible for the events taking place therefore has them predicting the outcome. Props that are religious symbols such as the crucifix may be used to show Good Vs. Evil. Other props may  everyday items such as chairs, tables, beds, coffins or dolls.

Location

Horror films are normally set in places that have a hidden past of signify isolation where there is nowhere for the victim to run or find help. Common locations for horror films include:

• Woods
• Abandoned house
•     Hospital
•     Asylum
•     Grave yard

Camera shots and Editing

Extreme close ups and close ups are used to show the audience facial expression of the characters allowing the audience to determine whether they are the victim or the killer. They may also be used to show gore to shock the audience. Tracking shots can build up the suspense further as they allow the pace of the film to quicken to show that something bad is about to happen. Another common feature in horror films are flashbacks often showing how the killer has got into such a state and how the victim is linked to the killers past. Common colours used are reds and blacks to suggest danger and death. The main action in the movie is normally accompanied by stormy weather showing pathetic fallacy.

Lighting

Dark lighting or bright but sharp lighting is used throughout horror films. Many people have a fear of the dark as it has connotations of danger and evil therefore many horror movies are normally set at night. Bright and sharp lighting is often used quickly to show sudden danger.

Insidious poster

• From the makers of Paranormal Activity and Saw’- using this at the top of the poster attracts people who have already seen these two films and shows the audience that it will be a good film as it has been made by the same producers who created two popular selling films.
• This poster conforms to the conventions of horror movies being set in houses, as shown behind the boy. The dark clouds above the house and boy suggest that something sinister is bearing over them both. Also giving connotations  of  darkness and evil.
• The boy is positioned in the centre of the frame, showing that he is a victim, with his eyes directly looking towards the viewer and his colour drained. This suggests that the boy has been possessed by dark forces showing Levi- Strauss’s theory of binary opposites, child vs. evil. The use of a child being possessed by evil also evokes sympathy from the audience as children often are associated innocence and vulnerability.
• The boy’s pyjamas symbolise childhood but are mainly red which is a common colour used in horror movies to show danger and blood. The use of the low lighting and clouds suggests the loss of innocence and heightens the sense of fear in the audience who foreshadow that the innocent boy gets turned into the opposite.
• The title Insidious is mainly in white which has connotations of purity however two letters are in red connoting danger and evil suggesting that dark forces are coming to take over.

Movie Poster Deconstructions

Teen Drama / Romance

 Crime Drama / Thriller

 Crime Drama / Fantasy Horror

Film timeline - Vampires

Nosferatu (1922)

Director: F.W. Murnau

Writer: Henrik Galeen

Plot

Within the film Count Orlok summons Thomas Hutter to his remote castle in the mountains. The mysterious Orlok seeks to by the house near Hutter and his wife, Ellen. After Orlok reveals his vampire nature, Hutter struggles to escape knowing the Ellen is in grave danger.

About

This is a silent film that was an unauthorized adaption of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, with names and other details changed because the studio could not obtain the writes to the novel. This is the first recorded vampire film. This film does not follow the common characteristic of vampires as previous vampire films as the vampire itself is portrayed in a hideous form with long finger nails and an out of proportioned body.

Effects

Prohibition begins in the US with hope of bettering society. The film Nosferatu could be a contrast between freedoms of the consumption of drink in comparison to being prohibited from doing so. The prohibition would also cause people to be discreet in how and when they drink, this could be a strong link between the character of Count Orlok and the audience.

Dracula (1931)

Director: Tod Browning

Writer: Bram Stoker, Hamilton Deane

Plot

After hypnotizing a British soldier, Renfield, in to a slave the Count travels to London and takes up residence in an old castle. Soon Dracula begins to wreak havoc, sucking the blood from young women and turning them in to vampires. When he sees his sights on Mina, the daughter of a doctor, vampire hunter Van Helsing is enlisted to put a stop to the Counts never ending blood lust.

About

This films historic dramatics from the stage play are reflected in its special effects which are made up of fog, lighting and large flexible bats. The acting was very over dramatic and employs several intertitles and close ups of newspaper articles to advance the story along, this was a common thing that occurred within silent films. As the director Tod Browning was very experienced with silent films, creating a film, such as Dracula which includes sound and dialogue, was something in which he had little experience.

Effects

Through horror films such as Dracula people were able to have a sense of escape from their Great Depression reality, despite the money spent on the special effects used for the films they often provided a good return rate. The horror films within the 1930’s was a band of exotic fairy tales set in faraway lands in period costumes and strange accents. This created a sense of escape for the audience.

                Horror films became more popular during the 1930’s as a use of escape from the everyday realities of depression and the approaching war. 80 million people attended the cinema on a weekly basis in the 1930s, some 65% of the US population.

Kiss of a vampire (1963)

Director: Don Sharp

Writer: John Elder

Plot

A couple on their honeymoon in the early 20^th century become caught up in a vampire cult led by Dr. Ravna and his two children. The cult abducts the Marianne (wife) and contrive to make it appear that Harcourt (husband) was travelling alone and that his wife never existed. Harcourt gets help from Professor Zimmer, who lost his daughter to the cult and who finally destroys the vampires through an arcane ritual the releases a swarm of bats from hell.

About

This film was another attempt at creating a Dracula sequel without Christopher Lee. The final script makes no connection to Dracula and attempts to suggest other ideas about the ‘vampire community’. Whereas in previous vampire films our fanged friends were regularly seen isolated and alone this new outlook suggests that there are many of them. Some in which work together/ as a family.

Effects

Could have been influenced by Adolf Eichmann’s death, he was a lieutenant colonel and one of the major organizers of the Holocaust. He was in charge with facilitating and managing the logistics of mass deportation of Jews to extermination camps in the German occupied Eastern Europe during World War 2. His death symbolizes the end of Nazi mind control over the nation.

                Though the film was originally created as an attempt on a sequel of Dracula it makes no reference as to the characters of Dracula. Instead it expands further in the directions taken in Brides portraying vampirism as a social disease afflicting those who chose a decadent lifestyle. This could refer back to the lifestyle in which Adolf Eichmann led and could be used as evidence in connecting both the historical event and the film.

The fearless vampire killers (1967)

Director: Roman Polanski

Writer: Roman Polanski,

              Gerard Branch

Plot

Vampire hunter Professor Abronsius and his faithful assistant, Alfred, are traveling across Transylvania when they stop to rest at a suspicious-looking inn. That night, they witness the innkeeper's daughter, Sarah, being whisked away by Count von Krolock, an obvious vampire, and pursue him to his nearby castle. They break in, only to be invited to stay by the unfazed count, and plot to rescue Sarah and destroy their murderous host.

About

The film’s opening sequence is animated which has not been previously used within vampire films. The short sequence is shown before the production companies and shows the main protagonists ‘hunting’ and ‘killing’ a vampire. This film shows the vampire story in a different point of view as it portrays the stories of two vampire killers instead of the monsters themselves.

                Not only this, the film also includes a homosexual vampire (Herbert), this was not regularly seen within the film industry as an unmentionable subject.  It’s only until recent years in which homosexuality is more accepted and acknowledged.

Effects

The satanic church began in 1966, this could have made a huge influence in the production of this film as satanic beings such as Vampires could have been considered a more believable idea due to the newly formed religion. Though the church does not believe in or worship the Devil or a Christian notion of Satan. The High priest Peter Gilmore describes its members as "skeptical atheists”.

                Another historical aspect that most likely had an influence on this film is the sexual offences act of 1967 which allowed gay men to carry out sexual acts within the confinements of their own home. This introduced the idea of homosexual characters within films as it became more ‘acceptable’.

The vampire lovers (1973)

Director: Roy Ward Baker

Writer: Harry Fine,

              Tudor Gates,

              Michael Style

Plot

This sexy horror story from Britain's Hammer Films finds Ingrid Pitt playing three roles, the most notable being a lesbian vampire who will resort to biting a man only when it is absolutely necessary. A doctor and a manservant are victims, but only after she has exhausted all attempts to sink her fangs into the bosoms of young women. The General finds his daughter Laura is victimized by the bite of the vampiress. With the help of Baron Hartog, they try to end the horror brought by the blood-sucking beauty. 

About

This film uses a female lead character which was not regularly seen through the film industry, not only this there was a lot of issues due to the lesbianism within the film with many warnings that the script of The Vampire Lovers was sent to the chief censor John Trevelyan, who warned the studio about depictions of lesbianism, pointing out that a previous lesbian film, The Killing of Sister George, had had five minutes excised by his office.

Effects 

After The Fearless Vampire Killers which included a homosexual character the film The Vampire lovers includes a lesbian character which could have possibly been influenced by the lesbians invaded the platform of the Women’s Liberation Conference in Skegness, demanding recognition in 1971.

Ghost and Possession – Throughout the Years

1930s – 1960s:

The earliest record of Possession films dates back to the 1960’s, where ghost based films began to evolve. Religion has always been a huge part of daily life for many centuries, particularly after Henry VIII introduced the Church of England back in the 1530s during his break with Rome and Catherine of Aragon. For this reason, many film directors and script writers objected to making films about possession, which often relate to the bringing back of spirits and the devil, due to the controversial issues related to religion.

1960s:

It is believed that many of these ghost story based films were a reaction against the creature feature films popular in the previous decade. They became particularly popular due to the advances in technology, allowing editors to carry out special effects that would make the viewer believe in a ghoulish or demonic figure.

·         Carnival of Souls (1962) –

Ø       This film is based on a woman who survives a traumatic incident, which involved her car crashing into the river, and later finds herself drawn to a mysterious carnival full of ghostly figures.

Ø  The ghoulish figures in this film were portrayed as pale-white and human looking characters with the iconic blackness around the eye. This was a famous icon for the 60s in terms of ghosts as the harsh contrast between black and white and the greyish streaks found on their faces are similar to those which are found on fresh corpses, thus representing death.

Ø  Fear is inspired to the viewers due to this as one of the most common fears instilled in people is the fear of death, which these corpse-like characters clearly symbolise.

·         The Haunting (1963) –

Ø  The plot for this movie consists of a paranormal investigator who wishes to study a supposedly haunted house, which had been passed down through generations by which the females of the family seemingly die.

Ø  Many of the ghost-like scenes in this film are symbolised rather than ghostly characters physically being shown. To do this, paranormal occurrences were portrayed by way of a moving door, dropping of temperature or a collapsing staircase.

Ø  These effects were still considered scary as it is known that people fear the unknown, the unseen and the unexpected, so if they cannot see what or know what is about the happen, they become more on edge and afraid for the pending scene.

1970s:

                During this decade, ghost and possession films really began to come into popularity, as one of the most famous possession films of all time was introduced in this decade: The Exorcist. Many of the horror movies of this decade were created to reflect the grim mood of the decade, what with various events causing public upset. Some events include the split of the Beatles, oil strikes, sexual/cultural revolutions and some even consider the moon landings to be negative due to the conspiracy theories related to them. One of the greatest fears of this decade was children and childbirth.

·         The Exorcist (1973) –

Ø  This film has been voted the scariest horror movie of all time, with the special effects considered ‘dazzling’ even to this day.

Ø   The film is based upon book inspired by the exorcism of Roland Doe, by which a mother is desperate to save her 12 year old daughter who has been possessed by a demonic presence.

 Ø  One of the main reasons for the production of The Exorcist was due to the fact that screenwriter, William Peter Blatty, wanted a best-seller which would shock people and encourage them to test their faith.

 Ø  Compared to the previous decade, possession is portrayed in the 70s, particularly in this film, to be related to that of the Devil’s work. Due to Biblical beliefs, many people say that demonic creatures condemned to hell are corpse-like, inhuman and decomposing, explaining the scratched up and demonic looking character in the Exorcist.

Ø  Although this film shows the possessed girl levitating, spinning her head and demonic scratch marks appearing on nearby characters, it has been said that many real life exorcisms performed by the Vatican churches have no such behaviour but rather just display emotional distress by the parties involved.

1980s:

                The special effects and animatronics really skyrocketed during this decade, allowing for more adventurous and horrifying characters and ideas. For example, the advances in technology and animation allowed video editors to distort the human figure, creating more terrifying possessed characters or ghost figures in the movies. This decade was all about materialism; people wanted bigger, better and scarier things. As explored earlier, the greatest fear people experience is fear of the unknown; for this reason, many of the films of this time were about evil entities and poltergeists, rather physically seeing ghostly figures.

·         The Shining (1980) –

Ø  In this film, a family travels to an isolated hotel for a winter break where they soon discover an evil entity lives. After a while, the father of the family begins to become more violent due to the presence whereas his psychic son starts to see horrific premonitions from the past.

Ø  In this movie, the supernatural presence is rarely seen but rather experiences out of the normal are witnessed and the father appears to be influenced by the entity to kill his own wife and son.

Ø  The film is considered one of the scariest and greatest horror movies of all time. One of the reasons behind this is the psychological spin on the story; the fact that the viewer sees the changes in to family’s behaviour and the strange occurrences in the hotel rather than ghostly figures or possessed characters, such as in The Exorcist, plays with their mind, making them wonder whether it was a trick of the imagination and thus scaring them more.

1990s:

                During this decade, filmmakers had lost their ability to scare their audiences; viewers were finding the gore and the horror in scenes to be more funny than scary. On the other hand, each decade has its fears and the majority of films produced in this age were based on serial killers. The ghost and possession based films turned to the remakes and the reinventions of older classics, attempting to deepen the previously told stories and bring back old fears.

·         The Exorcist III (1990) –

Ø  This number in the series is based around the philosophical Lieutenant William F. Kinderman from the original Exorcist film in the early 70s.

 Ø  In this film, he investigates a series of murders that all appear to have similar traits – they are all linked to the deceased Gemini serial killer and Kinderman believes there is a satanic motive behind the killings.

 Ø  Due to the current film trend of this decade (serial killers), this number of the Exorcist film series were highly based around mass murders, however, the serial killer was dead… This combination was highly frightful in this decade for that reason.

 Ø  Despite the sequel the first film not being very successful, this film was considered to be ‘flawed yet scary’.

Ø  However many people consider the first Exorcist to be the mother of all horror movies, there were even ideas at remaking a more recent version of it but Blatty (the director) has not explored the idea further. 

2000s:

                With the 2000s came the global devastation known as 9/11 which greatly impacted the world of film. Any filmmaker with intent to make a horror film for the next 4 years would be shot down, some people even went to the lengths to try and have the horror genre banned. However, by the time 2005 rolled around, the horror genre was as popular as ever. In terms of possession films, the late 2000’s found the ‘Found Footage’ style of film to be the popular idea of horror films.

·         Paranormal Activity (2007) –

Ø  Since the release of the first film, there have been many more additions to the Paranormal Activity family and others said to be made.

Ø  The films are based around demonic or supernatural presences which haunt and follow families, killing them and other witnesses off. This first film is based around a young couple who are terrorised by a demonic creature who the young female, Katie, believes has followed her around since she was young.

Ø  With the many advances in technology, this film is highly realistic, with the basis being poltergeist action and even possession towards the end few scenes, where in many scenes there are doors closing, hand prints appearing on the floor and even the female protagonist being dragged across the hallway.

Ø  In this film, we do not see an actual ghost figure but are rather scared of the unknown and realism of the film. The realism is conveyed more so by the used of camcorders, security cameras and hand held cameras to give the feel of found footage. This is scarier for many people as they believe that it could be real and occur in real life rather than made up like many other horror films.

Ø  The Paranormal films are extremely popular in this century as the films all inter-link and relate to each other and the special effects used today are rather effective and appear realistic.

Present:

                Horror films continue to develop and grow as a genre in present day, with many older classics being reinvented into new and improved versions. The Paranormal Activity film series continue to grow with the next instalment due later this year (2015) and even new Exorcist films are being spoken of. The trend for this sub-genre seems to be a mixture of poltergeist activity and possession. One of the most popular trends is ‘in the past’, where these supernatural horror movies are made present day but set back in time by 40 or 50 years.

·         The Conjuring (2013) –

Ø  This film is based in the 1970s, where a family with 5 girls move into an old farmhouse and begin to notice strange paranormal things happening to them.

Ø  They then call in paranormal investigators, who discover a number of evil entities present in the house. In an attempt to prove to the priest of the presence in order to carry out an exorcism, the mother of the family is possessed by the evil entity, who tries to make her murder the youngest daughter.

Ø  In the beginning of the film, the story of Annabelle is told, a doll who is possessed and torments two young nurses. This story was later expanded into the newly released horror film: Annabelle.

Ø  The film uses top range special effects, which makes the movie seem extremely realistic, particularly in the exorcism of the mother scene.

·         Ouija (2014) –

Ø  After a teenager plays with an old Ouija board she finds in her attic alone, she is possessed by an evil spirit and hangs herself.

Ø  Mourning the death of her friend, a teenage girl, along with the help of her friends, finds the Ouija board and begins to ask it questions in the hope to answer her questions regarding the death of her friend, Debbie.

Ø  After playing with the board, each of her friends begins to be possessed by the evil spirit and made to kill themselves. 

Ø  As a result, the girl seeks out the sister of the spirit and must follow the steps she is given in order to save herself and her sister from being possessed also.

Ø  In this film, there are mixtures of both poltergeist activity and the visual presence of spirits. The special effects used create realistic images of the said spirits, increasing the fear for the viewers watching the film.

Ø  Although initially the film was considered to receive negative reviews, it was a success in terms of Box Office and there is a sequel set to be released October 2016.

Timeline Of The Horror Genre 1910's-60's

One Hundred Years Of The Horror Genre (Part 1)

1910's
Many German horror movies were produced this decade with the premise of creating artificial creatures and the introduction of sophisticated, miniaturized sets used in place of locations. These set the stage for many paranormal and supernatural horror films and tv series as films were still silent and technology was too crude for sophisticated special effects.
Many of the films featured around physical effects such as explosions and prosthetics to create supernatural creatures, usually based from legends, myths and 19th century novels.
e.g. Der Golem (1914), Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1913), The Student of Prague (1913)

1920's
1922 - First 3D movie The Power of Love is aired.
1927 - First feature length "talkie" called The Jazz Singer.
1928 - First "talkie" horror film, The Terror, based on a play of the same name by Edgar Wallace. It was a rudimentary supernatural horror which used suspense as the main feature as the enigma of the murderer's identity deepens.
e.g. Nosferatu (1922), The Golem (1922), London After Midnight (1927)

1930's
Deindustrialisation age.
The great depression meant unemployment levels rocketed.
Films were "exotic fairy tales" based off 19th century novels like Grimm's Fairy Stories and Frankenstein. This meant that exotic or far away locations, strange accents and clothes were common themes which were likely to have reflected how people viewed foreign soldiers from the war effort.
e.g. Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1932), King Kong (1933)

1931 - Stereophonics invented.
1935 - First colour feature film using Process 4 is released. Technicolour followed soon after.
'39-'45 - WWII happens.
Horror movies are not longer produced in Europe due to the war effort and all movies are instead filmed in America until 1941 when America joins the war.
Due to limited budgets and an unstable economy and society, horror films evolved little and tried to remain "safe" however the idea of human's having primitive, animal-like instincts was re-occurant and sparked a season of creature features. This is likely because people viewed jews and nazi soldiers as not-quite-human and dangerous.
e.g. Werewolf of London (1935), The Wolf Man (1941)

1947 - Kenneth Arnold UFO sighting. Start of modern UFO era inspires hundreds of new sci-fi horrors however technology is still basic and special effects are crude.

1950s
Post war feelings of horror over the brutal nature of humans still lingered and was echoed in TV and film. An influx of supernatural and psychological horrors involved humanoids and sentient, mercy-less monsters.
e.g. Mutant Madness (1950), Godzilla (1954), Them! (1954)

Teenagers at drive-in cinemas were the primary audience for horror movies so low budget films (B movies) were abundant and involved a focus on cheesy jump scares instead of quality of plot line, special effects of character development.
e.g. I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957), The Fly (1957), Attack of a Fifty Foot Woman (1958)

Sci-fi horrors involving aliens and UFO's became increasingly popular as the technology improved and special effects became more real. Shape shifting aliens movies attack society and question what it means to be human; "He looks just like uncle Joe, and he acts like uncle Joe, but he ain't uncle Joe".
e.g. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), Plan 9 From Outer Space (1959)

1960s
The sexual revolution of the cinema. The social stability of post was was destroyed and the gap was filled by uncensored underground cinema which allowed the public to rethink what they thought about sex and violence. These low budget horrors were significantly more open to nudity and onscreen violence and became more believable and sophisticated, allowing teen audiences to relate to the issues each character.
e.g. Psycho (1960), Night of the Living Dead (1968), Rosemary's Baby (1968)