Horrors through the years have definitely changed with the times, whether they be subjected around recent tragedies or fears of the generation horrors all have the same thrilling effect regardless of the year they are released in.
Decade 1910 - 1919
The Golem was made in 1915. The plot is based around an antique dealer finding a Golem, and it being brought by a Rabbi. The dealer who resarects the Golem finds out that the Golem has fallen in love with his wife - she doesn't love the Golem back so he goes off on a series of murders. The silent film is of a german release and is produced by Hanns Lippmann and does contain german intertitles. The film originally titled 'Der Golem' meaning the same as the english title but in German is in only black and white; the theme of the story being a clay jewish servant becoming deadly.
Decade 1920 - 1929
Nosferatu was made in 1922 and is yet again another German made silent movie which is based on a vampire secretly moving into a house and being found out whilst he is trapped. The development of horror from Golems to vampires is a leap taken to stay 'in time' with the people's most feared subject. Vampires were commonly feared during this decade as the Germans believed that if someone was to die in a random incident or commit themselves to suicide they were to become known as a vampire, this was taken to their grave and was thought to haunt their families through generations. This is why the Germans in this particular age would have found a film about vampires living in their house very haunting.
Decade 1930 - 1939
Dracula was made in 1932 as vampires continued to rule the themes of horror for yet another decade but more movies like King Kong and Frankenstein were being released, so the bloodsucking vampires were making way for monstrous monsters in the new most spine-chilling horror decade yet. As times changed from vampires to monsters people became more and more interested in the development of scientific discovery, and as folk knew not much of this subject it embedded itself as the new horror theme (because people weren't educated fully in this field to understand how it all works).
Decade 1940 - 1949
Cat People was made in 1942 and is all about a Serbian immigrant fearing she will turn into a cat if she becomes intimate with her recently married husband. The film was such a thrilling success that a sequel was planned - but never carried out. The film was widely seen as a fearful horror as the beliefs of the film reflected reality in reality, as the word 'divorce' often used in this film was seen as a cursing word to the vast catholic community. The film industry was still working on colour graphics in this decade, however monophonic sound was starting to be produced - this added to the horrific viewing experience the audience had to endure.
Decade 1950 - 1959
Godzilla was made in 1954 (post world war two) when nuclear radiation was becoming a continuously overused type of horror. This new and frightful scare was a fear to all as people actually believed that this would happen if there was a nuclear attack! The film involves an American weapons testing facility leaking and producing an unstoppable dinosaur-like beast. The film was originally released in Japan and was too in black and white, with again mono-audio to improve the fright for the viewers.
Decade 1960 - 1969
Carnival Of Souls was a United States, green tinted black and white movie made in 1962 in which a woman becomes drawn to a very mysterious and abandoned carnival. When she rises from the dead she meets a very peculiar ending. The new horror era of rising from the dead has begun! In this decade films about characters rising from the dead and haunting / possessing their targets. This new demonic / supernatural sub genre of horror has developed and become the present days fright - all originating from this decade.
Decade 1970 - 1979
The Exorcist was one the first classic horror films to be made in full Metro colour (released in1973). This new age of horror involved the demonic possession of a young 12 year old girl. This horrific new horror sub genre (demonic) has overtaken the rule of monsters and vampires and replaced it with things that can supposedly happen to anyone, hoping people will find this most nerving in turn giving a better thrill. The Exorcist was the first of its kind and sprung a whole new idea of horror.
Decade 1980 - 1989
In The Shining (made in 1980) a family who make their way to a hotel to retreat for the winter have their father influenced by spirits and violence which leads to his son having future seeings and flashbacks. This decade of film has such a believably realistic feel to the films there is no wonder this generation of horror had evolved to Thriller / Slashers (like The Fog, Friday The 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street). Full colour images were now peaking and still single channel sound.
Decade 1990 - 1999
Se7en was made in 1995 and was another advance in horror film evolution. The 90's brought us the Dolby Digital sound system which enhanced the thrill of watching horrors significantly, the homicide detective film with sin related evil portrays the 1990's as a decade which uses the (widely practiced) church and Christian beliefs to distinguish good from evil and sometimes intertwine the two. Strong ethical beliefs are 'tested' in these horror films as new age demonic and satanic type horrors were released as people wanted to watch what they could mentally challenge - such as demons and Satan.
Decade 2000 - 2009
Final Destination was made in 2000 and reiterates the possible reality of another medium controlling us. In this series, death cannot be cheated as one character sees a vision and tries to 'cheat death' by avoiding their fore-coming deaths. The use of dead creatures / forces has been popular with new decade of 2000 - 2009 with other films such as Boogeyman 2 and Shaun of the Dead following the same pattern.
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