Shelby Welker, sw256@uakron.edu
From slashers to thrillers, the horror genre has something for anyone who is interested in the dark, gory, and macabre. Horror got its start in the late 1800s, with Georges Méliès’ La Mainor du Diable / The House of the Devil, which is often considered the very first horror film. The silent, black and white film which was just over 3 minutes long (which was actually considered a long film for the time) depicts encounters with the devil and multiple ghosts, making it the first true horror film, even if it wouldn’t seem very scary to modern-day audiences. In 1931, film adaptations of both Dracula and Frankenstein were produced, further developing the genre and popularizing it with the public. Although it was during the 30s that the genre really began to be explored, many at the time were horrified (pun intended) by the genre, and films were often heavily censored and cut to exclude the more gory, violent scenes. Throughout the early-mid 1900s, horror continued to develop, and many horror films made at this time were combined with science fiction, which was likely due to new space exploration and a general fear of what was in space. Along with many sci-fi horror films, there were numerous films inspired by nuclear bombs and communism, which would've also been a common fear for Americans at this time due to the Cold War and the threat of nuclear disasters. In the 1960s, censorship relaxed a little, and the sci-fi and nuclear disaster themes of the 50s relaxed, turning into stories of ghosts and hauntings. In the 1970s, the genre changed again, with the popularization of ‘slasher’ films such as Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and Halloween (1978). It was also during this time that Stephen King's films began to be released and popularized, beginning in 1974 with Carrie. In the 1980s, the creation of new special effects technology made horror gorier than ever, allowing movies to take gruesome deaths to a new extreme. Along with more gory special effects, nudity became common in horror movies at this time, due to the genre focusing more on young male audiences. Overall, 80s horror films popularized more gore and violent death, focusing on repulsing and disgusting audiences rather than scaring them. It was also during this time that many well-know horror franchises began, such as Friday the 13th, Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street, Child’s Play, and Hellraiser. In the 1990s, serial killers were a popular theme, mirroring the rise in serial killers at the time. Films such as Silence of the Lambs, Scream, and IT were popular, and more well-known Stephen King films were produced. In the 2000s, found-footage horror films found new life with movies such as The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity. In the 2010s, many older horror films were remade, including Pet Semetary, IT, and Carrie. In the next few months, movies such as Saw 10, The Exorcist: Believer, and Five Nights at Freddy's are set to be released, giving horror fans some new movies to binge this Friday the 13th.
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