"If movies are the dreams of the mass culture... horror movies are the nightmares"
— Stephen King, Danse Macabre
Frightening an audience with tales which trigger the less logical parts of our imaginations is an ancient art form. From the ballads of the ancient world to The Blair Witch Project, audiences willingly offer themselves up to sadistic storytellers to be scared witless, and they are happy to pay for the privilege. Theories abound as to why this is so; do we derive basic thrills from triggering the rush of adrenalin which fear brings, or do horror stories serve a wider moral purpose, reinforcing the rules and taboos of our society and showing the macabre fate of those who transgress?
Horror movies have long served both purposes. They deliver thrills by the hearseload, as well as telling us stories of the dark, forbidden side of life (and death). They also provide a revealing mirror image of the anxieties of their time. Nosferatu (1922) is not simply a tale of vampirism, but offers heart-rending images of a town beleaguered by premature and random deaths, echoes of the Great War and the Great Flu Epidemic fatalities. At the other end of the century Blade (1998) is not just a tale of vampirism either, but reflects a fear of the powerful yet irresponsible elements in society, echoes down the corridor indeed of the seemingly impunitive behaviour of those at the top.
Each generation gets the horror films it deserves, 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 early 1940s, a world living under the shadow of Hitler's predatory tendencies identified a part-man, part-wolf whose bestial nature caused him to tear apart those who crossed his path as their boogeyman. In the 1990s however, there was no need for a part wolf component: Jonathan Doe (Se7en 1994) and Hannibal Lecter (Manhunter 1986, Silence of the Lambs 1991, Hannibal 2001) were entirely human in their calculated and stylised killing methods.
The best way to study films is, of course, to watch them. However, it is also important to have some sense of a film's context, both the wider socio-historical background against which it was made, and also its artistic framework. The following pages will provide you with background information, and some pointers on where to look further.
Background to Horror - 19th Century Literature
It is probably easier to look at these in book form, but you may want to browse through the e-texts, just to get some idea of the author's style. Most people are familiar with the storylines of these famous books but few have actually read them; it is interesting to do so to get some idea of what all the fuss is about. Mary Shelley & Bram Stoker did not really publish anything else of note, (although Stoker's The Lair of The White Worm is unintentionally hilarious, a bizarre psychosexual take on the myth of the Lambton Worm. The 1988 film version is equally gigglesome). The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde is the shortest and easiest to get to grips with, but do take a look at the others. You might enjoy dipping in and out of the Edgar Allen Poe short stories.