Horror Genre.

Definition of a horror..

Horror has a few different genres which include ghost stories, zombies, haunted houses, torture, kidnapping, rape, sex, cannibals, demons, serial killers, sci-fi horrors, possessed animals or children, Psychological Horror and many more. Many films within the horror genre generally have a similar plot which usually tends to enhance extreme fear to its audience by involving hatred, causing fear, inflicting pain on someone or possibly using a frightening objects, deviance, rebellious acts etc. Most horrors usually plan on giving viewers nightmares by generating disgust and various emotions for its viewers to make sure they are jumping or 'at the edge f the seat' during the movie.  Horrors also have common characteristics with the thriller genre this includes blood which is very disturbing but intriguing to its audience.

Horrors from the 1890's

Horrors have started from as early as 1890's. Horrors first started off with supernatural trials with silent movies. The first film to be credited for being the first horror was 'Le manoir du diable' which stood for 'The house of the devil' this was created in 1896, However the two main films called 'Dracula' and 'Frankenstein' were both known to be branded with the term 'horror movie' in the 1931.

Horrors from the 1940's

Over the years horrors started to progress in its level of improvements and was enhanced very much. During the 1940's horror started to upgrade by giving it a main focus such as supernatural, demonic and Gothic horrors. Later on in the 60's it had changed into a  psychological horror where the well known movie 'Psycho' was made.

Horrors from the 2000's

 

In the 2000's there was a major difference between the horrors from the 1890's and 2000's. Horrors were more focused on being teen centered. Majority of the horrors made in the had one thing in common which was having vulnerable young girls who would either do something to put themselves in a situation which was almost impossible to get out of, when a scene like this was about to come on we are able to tell due to the fast pace editing we would see and the girls running away from the killer, to create suspense the most obvious thing would happen which was the individual dropping or reaching a peak point where they noticed that they are trapped in a forsaken place where help was almost impossible to find unless a hero magically appeared to save them during this scene we will hear heavy breathing. The scene usually ends by the victim being killed where the killer's identity is usually revealed, however in some thrillers to keep the audience craving for suspense the victim may have a chance to escape by fighting the enemy, but hardly ever ends well as they are more than likely to be haunted again or the villain being killed, the films that are very typical of this are 'the final desination' 'the grudge' and many more.

Horror movies

There are a number of movies that are classed amongst the genre of horror these include: 

• Insidious 
• The last house on the left
• Uninvited 
• Unborn
• Orphan
• Paranormal activity
• The human centipede
• Drag me to hell
• Prom night 
• Mirrors 
• The final Destination
• Saw 
• Dead silence

 Horror target audience

The horror genre was mainly targeted at teenagers and young adults from the ages 15-24, the reason for this is because horrors involve in very mysterious, sinister, dark atmospheres which are based on rape, sex, deserted areas and a use of weapons. Horrors tend to use dark sinister colours to make sure the audience has a feel of the horror genre they tend to maintain this by a use of props such as ropes, dark clothes, knifes, something to disguise their identity and many more. 

For example: Shaun of the dead  rated 15
                    True blood rated 18

Horror Forms and Conventions: Sub-Genres

 Above are all the different types of sub genres within the Horror Genre. I have matched them according to the correct sub headings. Typical traits in horror films include all types of things from numerous suspense, death, violence, revenge, hidden identities, abandoned houses, youthful characters and disguised villains.

Horror movies are very different in comparison to other types of movies due to the different elements that are included within the horror movies such as suspense and anxiety throughout the film which are usually portrayed in times of danger or when something risky is about to happen. One thing that directors and horror films do well is keep its audience 'on the edge' keeping us intrigued throughout the film until the main story line or plot has been revealed.

Horror Form and Conventions: Characters 

The characters used in horror movies tend to vary, however they often use similar types of characters who are very young. The reason for this is to attract the target audience more, due to the target audience being around the age of 18 - 24 they need to make sure that they think about the people that they use as victims and who we as an audience should feel sorry for.  The characters used make up the film. Characters are also seen differently by the audience. 

Characters we tend to see are:

• The protagonist – The person with the leading role who knows more than others in the group or who is determined to find the truth, they tend to survive everything. 

Example; Sorority row, Black Christmas etc

• The antagonist – The bad character in the film. The one who the audience either guesses or hopes to get caught for what they have been doing.

• Femme Fatale  – Promiscuous females who usually tend to blonde, they hardly last in the films due to being killed. 

• The Hero – Someone who is there to always save someone else, even though they are putting themselves in danger and risking their own life. They also tend to have a one on one fight with the villain.

• The unlikely hero – The character who is suspected as the bad character or accused for doing something due to the way they behave, however they are always the ones who save the day.

• The character who gets his comeuppance – This character tends focus mainly about themselves rather than others however they are more likely to be killed before any other characters.

Horror Forms and Conventions: Iconography 

Iconography are the basic visual elements within the any types of film. The mise-en-scene helps the audience more aware that it is a horror rather than a horror by this we tend to see traits such as:

• Blood and body parts
• Death (or symbols leading to death)
• Dangerous weapons - knife, guns, chainsaw, axes
• Haunted houses 
• Victims in danger
• Binary oppositions of both the good and evil
• Disfigured faces
• Masks for hidden identity 

Horror Form and Conventions: Themes

Horror movies usually tend to all have the same theme or settings where the film will be based. The common themes that are very often used are deserted houses with an extended lake, somewhere with a hidden past etc. However what we do not tend to see very often are horrors that have been set in urban areas in broad daylight unlike thrillers. 

Horror Forms and Conventions: Plot

Horrors usually tend to have a similar plot depending on the type of horror that it has been specified in, however some horrors may have  a twist with a cross this tends to involve 

• Murder 
• Chases 
• Paranoia 
• Mysteries - Looking for a reason or a killer
• Revenge
• Death
• Blackmail

Horror Form and Conventions: Visual elements

This is the use of camera works and editing that is used for the film such as:

• Voiceovers
• Sound (Non Diagetic and Diagetic)
• Lighting - Shows danger
• Angles - Can be used to portray power from the killer compared to the victim
• Close ups - Express fear
• Point of view shots - to make the audience feel more involved
• Slow pace editing - Flashbacks
• Fast Pace editing - used to build up suspense when something bad is about to happen