Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, disgust, or startle its audience by inducing feelings of horror and terror, it also seeks to elicit a physiological reaction, such as an elevated heartbeat, through the use of fear and shocks.
Le Manoir du diable or know as The Haunted Castle in America, is a short 1986 French silent film by Georges Méliès and is considered to be the first proper horror film which was followed by the 1898 French silent film La Caverne maudite or more know as The Cave of the Demons in America was another one of Georges Méliès work. Both these pieces were more comedic then serious on the fear factor but the themes of the devil, hell and ghosts link with the horror genre.
In 1910, Edison Studios produced a short film of Frankenstein which was directed by James Searle Dawley. Similar to The Haunted Castle and The Cave of the Demons it wasn't produced to provoke fear in the audience like conventional horror films, it was deliberately designed to de-emphasize the horrific aspects of the story and focus on the story's mystical and psychological elements and is one of the early aspects of monsters featuring within films.
The term horror wasn't used within the film industry until the 1930's but the themes of horror had been used way before, some examples include The Phantom of the Opéra (1925) and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923). Big Budget horror films became a thing in the 1930's, in 1931 Universal Pictures produced Frankenstein directed by James Whale and Dracula directed by Tod Browning. These are now classed as the pioneering films of the horror genre, in 1935 Universal Pictures produced a direct sequal to the original 1931 Frankenstien film called The Bride of Frankenstein directed by James Whale leading into the golden age of big budget horror films such as; King Kong (1933), The Wolf Man (1941), Godzilla (1954) and The Curse of Frankenstein (1957).
The 1960's were well known for their acclaimed horror. Reflecting the social revolution of the era, the movies were more edgy and more controversial levels of violence in comparison to previous years which become a staple of horror films over the next decades. Alfred Hitchcock is often referred as one of the pioneers of modern horror films with his films such as Psycho from 1960 which was based off Psycho by Robert Bloch and The Birds from 1963 which was based off The Birds by Dame Daphne du Maurier becoming classics of this genre. In 1968, George A. Romero brought the zombie movie craze to life with Night of the Living Dead and has since gone on to become a cult classic.
The 1970's saw a big increase in horror films as cinema audiences began to enjoy the genre a lot more. Films such as The Exorcist (1973) which had a significant influence on popular culture and has since gone on to become one of the best horror films in history and has gone on to spawn sequels, prequels and even a television series. Other films include The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and Halloween (1978) which have both gone on to spawn franchises with multiple films, comics, novels and other merchandising.
The horror craze continued into the 80's and 90's with new film franchises coming to life on the big screen. A Nightmare on Elm Street came out in 1984 which scared audiences on a whole new level, the popularity of the film allowed it to spawn a franchise that consisted of multiple films from 1985 to 1994 with a reboot in 2010. Similar to A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th was produced in 1980 by Sean S. Cunningham and went on to accumulate multiple films from 1981 and 2009 and even a crossover film with A Nightmare on Elm Street. During the 80's and 90's multiple sequels to Halloween and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Also throughout the 80's and 90's, many of Stephen King's works were adapted into feature films such as, The Shining (1980), Cujo (1983), IT (1990) and The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)
The 1960's were well known for their acclaimed horror. Reflecting the social revolution of the era, the movies were more edgy and more controversial levels of violence in comparison to previous years which become a staple of horror films over the next decades. Alfred Hitchcock is often referred as one of the pioneers of modern horror films with his films such as Psycho from 1960 which was based off Psycho by Robert Bloch and The Birds from 1963 which was based off The Birds by Dame Daphne du Maurier becoming classics of this genre. In 1968, George A. Romero brought the zombie movie craze to life with Night of the Living Dead and has since gone on to become a cult classic.
The 1970's saw a big increase in horror films as cinema audiences began to enjoy the genre a lot more. Films such as The Exorcist (1973) which had a significant influence on popular culture and has since gone on to become one of the best horror films in history and has gone on to spawn sequels, prequels and even a television series. Other films include The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) and Halloween (1978) which have both gone on to spawn franchises with multiple films, comics, novels and other merchandising.
The horror craze continued into the 80's and 90's with new film franchises coming to life on the big screen. A Nightmare on Elm Street came out in 1984 which scared audiences on a whole new level, the popularity of the film allowed it to spawn a franchise that consisted of multiple films from 1985 to 1994 with a reboot in 2010. Similar to A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th was produced in 1980 by Sean S. Cunningham and went on to accumulate multiple films from 1981 and 2009 and even a crossover film with A Nightmare on Elm Street. During the 80's and 90's multiple sequels to Halloween and The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Also throughout the 80's and 90's, many of Stephen King's works were adapted into feature films such as, The Shining (1980), Cujo (1983), IT (1990) and The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)
With the increasing popularity of the horror genre, the 2000's welcome a whole new era for the horror genre. Since the 1970's horror films were becoming increasingly gruesome and more violent to keep up with the audiences as films were becoming more and more sophisticated. 28 Days Later (2002) and its sequel 28 Weeks Later (2007) saw the zombie craze shoot back into the limelight with TV shows like The Walking Dead (2010 - Present) becoming increasingly popular. One of the most popular horror franchises of recent years is Saw which first came out in 2004, it took inspiration from many horror films over the years and the gruesomeness and twistedness of the film proved popular with the audiences and has gone on to spawn multiple films from 2005 to 2010 with a new film due to be released on 27th October of this year. IT also received a remake in 2017 directed by Andy Muschietti, it was critically acclaimed by critics and grossed $630.5 million on a budget of $35 million.
Horror has become increasingly popular over there years, proving more and more popular with modern audiences and since 2006, horror movies have made up a total five percent of all films produced per year.
Horror has become increasingly popular over there years, proving more and more popular with modern audiences and since 2006, horror movies have made up a total five percent of all films produced per year.
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