Horror is an ancient art form. The long-lasting appeal of horror movies is often traced to the fact that people try to confront their fears within the safe confines of a cinema or their own home. The successful horror film works not only because the audience can attempt to face their fears but it also works by confirming our belief in the need for authority to suppress desires bubbling to the surface and tossing society into a state of chaos.
The first ever horror film was made in 1896 which was a film called ‘The House of the Devil’ made by Georges Méliès. Around this period of time was when horror films were only about monsters like Frankenstein, vampires and werewolves.
The most influential horror films through the 1920s came from Germany's Expressionist movement, with films like ‘The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’ and ‘Nosferatu’ influencing the next generation of American cinema.
One actor singlehandedly set the stage for the Universal dominance of the ‘30s. This was Lon Chaney, who performed in the films ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’, ‘The phantom of the Opera’ and ‘The Monster’.
The 1940s had seen the birth of horror comedy films and consisted of more sequels, spin-offs and remakes than originals. Also the matching of various horror monsters against each other, e.g. ‘House of Frankenstein’. Most of these films were presented in a very humorous manner before the genre finally turned into a farce as several horror characters went on to star in various Abbot and Costello movies
It was the 1950s that saw the start of science fiction horror films. Science fiction was demanded by film viewers and so a minor amount of science fiction horror films were made. For example, ‘the War of the Worlds’ and ‘the Day the Earth Stood Still’.
!970s-1980s brought out the more gory scenes to the horror genre with sexual overtones. The popular success of ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ directed by Roman Polanski and had Mia Farrow starring, led to the release of more films with occult themes in the 70s, such as ‘The Exorcist’ and other horror films representing the Devil and supernatural evil often by possessing children.
Now, there are also horror films about more realistic events such as man-eating and mass murders. This makes films scarier as the audience knows that something like that could happen to them.
There are also more supernatural terrors made in the twenty first century that make the audience wonder if something like this could really happen. Films such as ‘The Grudge’ and ‘The Ring’.
The first ever horror film was made in 1896 which was a film called ‘The House of the Devil’ made by Georges Méliès. Around this period of time was when horror films were only about monsters like Frankenstein, vampires and werewolves.
The most influential horror films through the 1920s came from Germany's Expressionist movement, with films like ‘The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’ and ‘Nosferatu’ influencing the next generation of American cinema.
One actor singlehandedly set the stage for the Universal dominance of the ‘30s. This was Lon Chaney, who performed in the films ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’, ‘The phantom of the Opera’ and ‘The Monster’.
The 1940s had seen the birth of horror comedy films and consisted of more sequels, spin-offs and remakes than originals. Also the matching of various horror monsters against each other, e.g. ‘House of Frankenstein’. Most of these films were presented in a very humorous manner before the genre finally turned into a farce as several horror characters went on to star in various Abbot and Costello movies
It was the 1950s that saw the start of science fiction horror films. Science fiction was demanded by film viewers and so a minor amount of science fiction horror films were made. For example, ‘the War of the Worlds’ and ‘the Day the Earth Stood Still’.
!970s-1980s brought out the more gory scenes to the horror genre with sexual overtones. The popular success of ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ directed by Roman Polanski and had Mia Farrow starring, led to the release of more films with occult themes in the 70s, such as ‘The Exorcist’ and other horror films representing the Devil and supernatural evil often by possessing children.
Now, there are also horror films about more realistic events such as man-eating and mass murders. This makes films scarier as the audience knows that something like that could happen to them.
There are also more supernatural terrors made in the twenty first century that make the audience wonder if something like this could really happen. Films such as ‘The Grudge’ and ‘The Ring’.
