Friday, March 18, 2011

Horror Film

Horror films can be classified as those which evoke fear, disgust, and unsettling feelings in the audience. There are of course many different types of film that could be classified as horror including the supernatural, gore/slasher, gothic, and of course the zombie film.

Those who enjoy horror usually like to have some of their personal fears confronted or deal with some form of terror so as to elicit a "rush" or "thrilling" emotion in themselves. I think this is the main reason that horror films are produced. Horror can evoke the same thrilling feeling many get when riding a roller-coaster. Each director of horror attempts to evoke that feeling in a different manner and obviously what is going to scare the audience has changed with the times. For instance I find nothing scary about the original Nightmare on Elm Street films. I appreciate them and they are obviously better than the remakes, but I find it hard to imagine if those films were shown in theaters today that the audience wouldn't laugh most of the time (or maybe that's just what my reaction was).

1 comment:

  1. I agree that one reason we watch horror movies is to have an adrenaline rush. I also think that horror movies provide a temporary loss of control, which can both excite the audience or cause further fear. I think losing control in a safe environment may be another reason why people choose to watch horror movies. I like psychological horror movies because they question my sense of reality and force me to think about the abstract and unknown. It is a way for me to experience something I would not on a daily basis.
    Horror movies have changed over the years, especially as special effects have advanced. The characters seem more realistic, and therefore plotlines seem more plausible. I still do not understand the purpose of gore and slasher movies such as the Saw series. I think there is more of an art to telling a scary/horror story, which is not depicted in the Saw movies. Although, the technology has advanced to portray more realistic events in movies, if the story is not complex, unlike the Saw movies, then it does not scare me. I differentiate horror movies from gore/slasher movies because I find that horror movies are suppposed to at least startle me, not just gross me out. I do have to agree that the advancement in special effects should allow horror movies to be scarier, but the essence of a horror movie is still the story, even with great special effects.

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