Horror Genre Essay
Choose and Discuss 2 main changes in the horror genre with examples.
Introduction
After conducting the relevant research as part of this task I as a media student have been able to recognise that there have been some significant changes within the horror movie genre. I have been able to notice that the general conventions of a horror movie have been able to be developed over time to therefore suit more of a modern audience of today. There are many changes within the horror movie genre that I have been able to identify which therefore include the increase in special effects, technology and how the films have been adapted to suit more of a modern audience and also how they have been used to follow the common conventions from the relevant films at that specific time. In this essay I will illustrate these changes within the horror film genre and I will discuss the changes in detail and how this has been able to affect me as a British student who is therefore studying media.
A range of special effects have been added into more recent films due to the advancements into technology which is therefore used to suit more of a modern audience and have the common conventions of the horror movie genre. For example in Paranormal Activity 2007 there is a vivid scene where the bed sheet is lifted off the bed and there is nothing holding it up. For this reason this will therefore increase the horror or scare factor for the audience, as they cannot work out how this is possible. As a result technology has enabled the genre to develop and become scarier over time.
In the 1960s technology was not as advanced in making films scary. The techniques used in older films were carefully chosen music and editing. For example in Psycho 1960 in the scene where Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) gets murdered in the shower by Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) split personality as his deceased mother. The music used was created from screeching violins, violas, and cellos. This aspect of horror films have definitely been able to be developed in order to make the films scarier for the audience and make them feel more involved within the film. Nowadays film music is likely to be created from a composed soundtrack, therefore showing that the horror films have been able to change and be developed to suit the expectations of today’s audiences.
Horror films have definitely changed over time. For example, older horror films would be based around people’s actual fears, the things happening in the movies would be things that could actually happen to a normal citizen, a good example of this would once again be ‘Psycho’ which was directed by Alfred Hitchcock, 1960, it shows a woman wanting to escape from her regular life, and running away to meet her partner, stopping in a motel on the way, which is obviously where the trouble begins. This was something that could just happen to anyone, there were no fictional monsters and everything was genuine, meaning that it would’ve scared people by making them think it could possibly happen to them at some point during their lives.
I think there are a number of reasons for the change in film genres. The first being a change in the audiences and their expectation, i.e. as time has gone on, the older generation is dying out and the new, younger generation is dominating. This means that the expectations of the new generation will be different of that from the old generation. The modern audience who prefer horrors are going to find different things scarier from an audience of 50 years ago.
The audience attracted to horror films now expect more gore, and more fictional, jumpy storylines, two popular examples being The Mist which was therefore directed by Frank Darabont, 2007 and Jeepers Creepers which was directed by Victor Salva, 2001.Both films therefore include fictional monsters, which we know do not exist in the real world, however both films are placed under the horror genre, because the modern audience find things like this scarier, more like a ‘fear of the unknown’ type thing. This leads on to a change in technology helping move the horror genre along, again using The Mist as an example, the creatures would have been created on a computer, using very high tech pieces of equipment to make it look incredibly realistic. This wouldn’t have been the case back in the early 1900s, the filmmakers would have relied on genuine fear, and rather than knowing they could just shock the audience with amazing CGI, also including the fact that the producers would simply not have enough money from the budget to be able to use aspects like CGI in order to scare the audiences back then in the much older films.
The technology available now just changes the horror genre along so much because it helps to bring the horror genre to a whole new level – making them look more torturous or monster-filled, depending on what the director is aiming for. Narrative also affects how movies have been able to be adapted, and contributes to the way it changes, because storyline will change over time, due to both audience and technology changing. Storylines don’t necessarily need to become more detailed, because of the technological things available. Also, it is seen that more of a modern audience know the common codes and conventions of the horror movies of today making them more interested to seeing the horror films and enjoying the overall experience more.
Conclusion
Overall, I believe that the horror genre has definitely changed over time, due to a change in three major factors; audience, technology and narrative. I think that the horror genre will continue to change as time goes on because as newer generations take over, their new and different interests will influence more of a modern view on today’s horror movies that have been produced for a range of audiences in today’s cinemas. I therefore believe that this impacts me as a current media student as this is because I am able to gain a better understanding as to why the changes have happened and understand that the horror genre will need to change in order to keep up with the advancements in technology and the certain audience expectations of today.
After conducting the relevant research as part of this task I as a media student have been able to recognise that there have been some significant changes within the horror movie genre. I have been able to notice that the general conventions of a horror movie have been able to be developed over time to therefore suit more of a modern audience of today. There are many changes within the horror movie genre that I have been able to identify which therefore include the increase in special effects, technology and how the films have been adapted to suit more of a modern audience and also how they have been used to follow the common conventions from the relevant films at that specific time. In this essay I will illustrate these changes within the horror film genre and I will discuss the changes in detail and how this has been able to affect me as a British student who is therefore studying media.
A range of special effects have been added into more recent films due to the advancements into technology which is therefore used to suit more of a modern audience and have the common conventions of the horror movie genre. For example in Paranormal Activity 2007 there is a vivid scene where the bed sheet is lifted off the bed and there is nothing holding it up. For this reason this will therefore increase the horror or scare factor for the audience, as they cannot work out how this is possible. As a result technology has enabled the genre to develop and become scarier over time.
In the 1960s technology was not as advanced in making films scary. The techniques used in older films were carefully chosen music and editing. For example in Psycho 1960 in the scene where Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) gets murdered in the shower by Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) split personality as his deceased mother. The music used was created from screeching violins, violas, and cellos. This aspect of horror films have definitely been able to be developed in order to make the films scarier for the audience and make them feel more involved within the film. Nowadays film music is likely to be created from a composed soundtrack, therefore showing that the horror films have been able to change and be developed to suit the expectations of today’s audiences.
Horror films have definitely changed over time. For example, older horror films would be based around people’s actual fears, the things happening in the movies would be things that could actually happen to a normal citizen, a good example of this would once again be ‘Psycho’ which was directed by Alfred Hitchcock, 1960, it shows a woman wanting to escape from her regular life, and running away to meet her partner, stopping in a motel on the way, which is obviously where the trouble begins. This was something that could just happen to anyone, there were no fictional monsters and everything was genuine, meaning that it would’ve scared people by making them think it could possibly happen to them at some point during their lives.
I think there are a number of reasons for the change in film genres. The first being a change in the audiences and their expectation, i.e. as time has gone on, the older generation is dying out and the new, younger generation is dominating. This means that the expectations of the new generation will be different of that from the old generation. The modern audience who prefer horrors are going to find different things scarier from an audience of 50 years ago.
The audience attracted to horror films now expect more gore, and more fictional, jumpy storylines, two popular examples being The Mist which was therefore directed by Frank Darabont, 2007 and Jeepers Creepers which was directed by Victor Salva, 2001.Both films therefore include fictional monsters, which we know do not exist in the real world, however both films are placed under the horror genre, because the modern audience find things like this scarier, more like a ‘fear of the unknown’ type thing. This leads on to a change in technology helping move the horror genre along, again using The Mist as an example, the creatures would have been created on a computer, using very high tech pieces of equipment to make it look incredibly realistic. This wouldn’t have been the case back in the early 1900s, the filmmakers would have relied on genuine fear, and rather than knowing they could just shock the audience with amazing CGI, also including the fact that the producers would simply not have enough money from the budget to be able to use aspects like CGI in order to scare the audiences back then in the much older films.
The technology available now just changes the horror genre along so much because it helps to bring the horror genre to a whole new level – making them look more torturous or monster-filled, depending on what the director is aiming for. Narrative also affects how movies have been able to be adapted, and contributes to the way it changes, because storyline will change over time, due to both audience and technology changing. Storylines don’t necessarily need to become more detailed, because of the technological things available. Also, it is seen that more of a modern audience know the common codes and conventions of the horror movies of today making them more interested to seeing the horror films and enjoying the overall experience more.
Conclusion
Overall, I believe that the horror genre has definitely changed over time, due to a change in three major factors; audience, technology and narrative. I think that the horror genre will continue to change as time goes on because as newer generations take over, their new and different interests will influence more of a modern view on today’s horror movies that have been produced for a range of audiences in today’s cinemas. I therefore believe that this impacts me as a current media student as this is because I am able to gain a better understanding as to why the changes have happened and understand that the horror genre will need to change in order to keep up with the advancements in technology and the certain audience expectations of today.