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• 1 2021-03-19T01:45:58+00:00 The Evolution of Popular Gothic Horror Cinema 12 Chapter II: Literature Review image_header 2021-04-16T06:01:44+00:00

  Horror films gained real mainstream and financial success in the 1930s as both the development and consumption of cinema became more widely accessible. In 1931 both Dracula and Frankenstein were released by Universal Studios, which pioneered the production of popular horror cinema in the US and dominated the genre for a decade. Paramount, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, RKO, and Warner Brothers also produced many successful horror films, but Universal claimed stock gothic characters such as Dracula, Frankenstein, the Mummy, and the Wolfman in their portfolio, all of which are still being adapted to this day (Everson; Friedman et al.). However, while Universal’s characters are classics, by the 1940s, they had produced several sequels to and remakes of Dracula (1931), Frankenstein (1931), The Mummy (1932), and Werewolf of London (1935). Eventually these characters lost their appeal, and audiences became more interested in real-life horrors like the ones depicted in films by RKO Pictures. RKO offered a fresh and potentially scarier subgenre of horror that focused on fear rather than action and told stories about superstition (Everson). RKO producer, Val Lewton, had nine of the highest-ranking horror films of the 1940s including Cat People (1942), The Seventh Victim (1943), and The Body Snatcher (1945). Lewton’s films emphasized “sources of horror and terror as might be found in the real world - satanic cults, voodoo, serial murderers, insanity, sadism, and pestilence- and stylistically foreground suggestion, atmosphere, and the ambiguities of perception” (Friedman et al. 375). His work established that sometimes what goes unseen is far scarier than what is shown. Lewton’s productions reinforced the importance of the unknown in the genre and targeted fear from a psychological angle (Friedman et al.).  

  Although “golden age” horror films declined after World War II, the late 1940s and the 1950s saw a rise in “B movies,” science fiction films, and Teenpics. These subgenres often overlapped but were distinctly different from what the horror genre had been established thus far (Doherty; Everson; Friedman et al.). B Movies refer to a low budget film created by an alternative production company. RKO’s popularization of “fearing what you can’t see” opened the doors for B production companies, as it is far less expensive to produce a horror film where you do not see the monster. Similarly, B movies are mass-produced and made for general audiences and as such are going to be adaptations of what is popular at the time. Due to the cultural impact of the cold war, societal fears relating to foreign invaders, the atomic bomb, and largely unknown new advances in science and technology, the rise of science fiction films began (Friedman et al; Leeder 31). The Thing (1951), The War of the Worlds (1953), and Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) are three highly successful science fiction films that dip into elements of horror and fear and can therefore be categorized in both genres (Friedman et al.).  

  In the late 1950s, the horror genre began to gear towards teenagers and young adults with racier, more sexual horror flicks designed to be watched in groups at drive-in theaters. Horror Teenpics often depicted teenage characters engaging in taboo behavior, and teens were drawn to the films for their graphic, gory, and sexual content. Due to the immoral nature of these movies, many of them were low budget productions done by small studios, making the films also examples of B horror (Doherty). Teenpic horror films targeted the fears of young people and mirrored real-life situations that teens were in. Similarly to the gothic genre’s use of an unhomely home, teenpics took place in the houses and schools of the American teen. Suddenly the suburbs, a place of normalcy and security, could itself be the setting of cruel and horrific stories. These films were in response to the conservative values and lifestyle of the 1950s, and were early examples of the sexual revolution that came in the 1960s (Doherty). 

  Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 film Psycho marked the onset of the horror genre’s “modern period” (Friedman et al. 376). Psycho dove deeper into the psychology of the horror villain. His antagonist, Norman Bates, showed that one did not have to look like a monster to be a monster (Durgnat 44; Friedman et al. 377). This concept rocked the genre and reinvented what it means to be a villain. “The ‘monster’ is the charming, boyish Norman Bates, a serial killer who preys on victims in the motel that he manages” (Friedman et al. 377). Much like the successful characters of Universal Studios, Norman Bates became a key figure in the horror genre (Everson; Friedman et al.). Hitchcock combined the previous lessons from teenpics and RKO to craft a suspenseful and bloody narrative that triggered a visceral emotional response from audiences. Although Psycho revolutionized the horror genre, Hitchcock’s film still borrows heavily from gothic inspiration. The isolated Victorian home in which Bates resides is full of death and decay, with dark secrets lurking around every corner waiting to be discovered, and the film’s themes of madness and insanity can be directly tied to gothic thinking (Batters). Hitchcock used gothic iconography and motifs to create his message and through his own interpretation of these elements, give them new meaning. Outside of Hitchcock, the 1960s was an era that attracted attention to other iconic horror film directors such as Roman Polansky, Terence Fisher, and Roger Corman (Friedman et al. 377). 

  The 1970s ushered in a unique type of horror that had only been previewed before that point: violence-based horror. Violence-based horror was depicted primarily through two subgenres: demonic films and slasher films, or Slashers (Clover 66; Friedman et al.). Abundantly violent and graphic horror films were not new per se but were far less common before the 1970s. Second-wave feminism sparked social conversations about women's rights and place in society, creating a horror atmosphere that both liberated women and punished them. This put conversations about family structures and stability at the forefront of the US socio-political realm, and in both the 1970s and 1980s, horror films about families were wildly successful. A major trope and theme from horror films of this era is the uncanny child; these sorts of tales often center around female characters as well as center the female identity around motherhood. The Exorcist (1973), The Omen (1976), The Shining (1980), and Poltergeist (1982) are all examples of horror cinema focused on the unusual behavior and presentation of a child (Balanzategui 32). The Exorcist (1973) and The Omen (1976) both also tell tales of traditional family units plagued by the supernatural interference of demonic beings. The films use graphic imagery to scare audiences and rely heavily on references to Catholicism and traditional family values. While gothic thinking is not abundantly violent, religious symbolism is an iconographic reference within the horror genre, and themes of endurance and oppression have been present since early gothic fiction.    

  Slashers use graphic imagery to scare and shock viewers while drawing inspiration from horror Teenpics by incorporating sexual themes and visuals into the narratives and setting the torment of the characters in a common domestic location, like a suburban home (Doherty; Clover 68; Friedman et al.). Slashers are aimed at younger audiences as opposed to demonic stories that typically target family units. Early slasher films of the 1970s include Black Christmas (1974), Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), and Halloween (1978). The films are grounded in reality, meaning they do not have supernatural characters. This makes the stories realistic enough to be frightening while still taboo enough to attract views (Clover 66; Friedman et al.). The victims in slasher films were often primarily women, in direct response to second wave feminist thinking, some slasher films punished women for their freedom. The remainder of the 1970s through the 1980s mirrored the early days of horror cinema by reinventing the hallmarks of the genre and introducing new stock horror characters. A major part of the success seen by films such as Halloween (1978), Friday the 13th (1980), and A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) can be attributed to cultural affection toward the films' antagonists as characters like Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, and Freddy Krueger became nearly as iconic as Dracula. Numerous popular horror films from the 1970s to the 1980s have been remade and/or turned into spin-offs multiple times since their release (Friedman et al.).  

  Slasher films dominated the horror genre for years, leading eventually to the rejection of the subgenre. Well-known slasher filmmaker, Wes Craven, directed Scream in 1996. Scream revised the slasher genre and reimagined its previously overdone form. Instead of punishing young people, particularly women, for their lifestyles, the film critiqued the punisher and poked fun at the slasher genre. Scream is both frightening and comedic as it participates in a critical intertextual dialogue with the slashers of the 1970s and 1980s. The 1990s and early 2000s saw a resurgence of gothic narratives and intense psychological ghost stories such as The Blair Witch Project (1999), The Sixth Sense (1999), and The Others (2001), which gained popularity and scared audiences like never before. These films used characteristics from previous gothic horror films such as dark moods, uncanny imagery, claustrophobic settings, and psychological thrills to freak out audiences instead of blood and guts (Friedman et al. 279). 

  While the late 1990s and emerging 2000s seemed to shift away from the ultra-violence of the slasher genre, after 9/11 a rise in conversations surrounding war and torture galvanized interest in violence-based horror and the torture porn genre awoke (Kerner). The 2004 film Saw and its sequels are iconic examples of torture porn. This horror subgenre, like traditional slasher films, is characterized by extreme violence but on a new level. Extraordinarily gory, the torture porn subgenre aimed to shock and disturb audiences by creating what Aaron Kerner called “spectacle horror” (22). Films such as House of 1000 Corpses (2003), Hostel (2005), Martyrs (2008), and The Human Centipede (2009) utilized disturbing imagery previously considered too taboo for film. Classic horror films from the 1970s and 1980s, like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), Dawn of the Dead (2004), The Amityville Horror (2005), Black Christmas (2006), Halloween (2007), Friday the 13th (2009), The Last House on the Left (2009), and A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) were all remade in the 2000s-2010s to be more explicit and graphic than the originals. For years thereafter the horror genre became near exclusively a place for the most depraved content, which polarized and isolated consumers. 

  Today, the mass specialization of media content has audiences more fragmented than ever. Despite this, some overarching trends can still be observed throughout popular horror films of the 2010s-2020s. Slashers, films aimed at young people, science fiction, remakes, and even adaptations of Dracula are still popular, but contemporary horror cinema has seen an emergence of films that make social commentary, such as Get Out (2017), Us (2019), and Parasite (2019). Additionally, the production studios Blumhouse and A24 have risen as central producers of decade-defining horror films (Stone). Blumhouse, the producers of Paranormal Activity (2009), Insidious (2010), The Purge (2013), and Get Out (2017), distributes films that make overt commentaries on society and pop culture. The studio uses a variety of styles and horror subgenres such as horror-comedies, slashers, hauntings/possession, and films about technology (Blumhouse). On the other hand, A24 is an independent film studio that produces films with a highly intentional aesthetic style. A24 has released horror films such as The Witch (2016), Hereditary (2018), Midsommar (2019), and The Lighthouse (2019) (A24 Films). A24 horror films brought attention to the art house horror style and have introduced an accessible form of artistic and ostensibly alternative horror mise-en-scene to the masses. Two of the most popular contemporary horror directors, Robert Eggers and Ari Aster both have their films produced by A24. These directors use unique and innovative stylistic approaches in their filmmaking while still operating within a genre influenced heavily by the gothic.  

  Gothic characteristics are still present in contemporary horror films of today. Films produced by Blumhouse, A24, and countless other studios rely on gothic elements just as much as horror films from the 1920s. Regarding setting as an element of gothic storytelling, gothic horror films are set in gloomy, decaying places that are often secluded. Horror films such as The Woman in Black (2012), The Conjuring (2013), Gerald’s Game (2017), and The Lighthouse (2019) particularly emphasize this aspect. Supernatural beings are another characteristic that has held the test of time with the theme of the supernatural persisting in gothic horror since the genre’s origin. Most horror films still include some element of the supernatural, if not a supernatural villain. The films Insidious (2010), The Innkeepers (2012), Lights Out (2016), and Winchester (2018) feature ghosts while the films Sinister (2012), The Taking of Deborah Logan (2014), Veronica (2017), and Hereditary (2018) feature demons and the films Let Me In (2010), Only Lovers Left Alive (2013), A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014), and The Transfiguration (2016) all feature vampires. All three are supernatural creatures that are synonymous with the gothic horror genre.