History of Horror films

The first supernatural events was created by the short film by the film pioneer George Melies in the late 1980s, which has been credited as being the first horror films. The earliest conventions of horror films are that there vivid imaginations, of visuals of ghosts, in shadow shapes, who were connected with the emotional side of an indivduals fear. The use of special effect creates an unknown feel to a film, which starts to scare the audience. Japan. In 1910 the first version of Frankenstein, following by the adaptations of Dr jekyll and Mr Hayde. The element of horror started from these film as it became more familiar with the audiences.

The Germanic film makers had a signifcant influences in later films, with the Paul Wegener's, the golem in the 1920s and The man who laughs 1928. Then another convention of vampires being in horror films as the adapatation of the Bram Stoker film called Dracula. "Horror" has been described as a film genre that should not have been used until the 1930s, with Universal pictures released Dracula (1931) and Frankenstein(1931). Hollywood dramas used horror themes for inspiration for there film, so some of there influences included of the The phantom carriage (1920s). Early films were seen as the most dark melodramas because of their characters and emotions associated with the plots in other genre films such as romance, violences and suspense.

The trends started to become more recognisable as the Pre horror melodramas continued through the 1920s as directors such as Tod Browning and Maurice Torunier focused on these themes with films such as the The magician (1926) shows the first type of convention of a "mad doctor", which had an big impact on the James Whales's version of the Frankinsten. However the film The terror (1928) was the first horror film with sound, as having the sound starts to show the element of tension for the audience when watching the film.

1930s-40s

The early period, Universal pictures started to show the success of Gothic horror film series. With the Tod Browing film, Dracula (1931) which was followed up by the James Whale's Frankinstein (1931), which included mute antagonists, which starts to show some of these were influenced by the blending of science fiction into this genre, creating unnatural events occurring in these films. Which some of these conventions show shows a mad scientist with the film The invisible man (1933). The Mummy (1932) began to show another theme of Egypt with having a makeup artist Jack pierce, so they were responsible for the iconic visual image of the monster. The horror cycle continued in 1940s with B-movies included The wolf Man (1941), as these film start to show common conventions of monsters. The film Freaks (1932) which is based around a short story called "spurs" but was disowned by universal before the film was completed, as it got banned in the UK for 30 years. Parmount in 1931 was known for using new colour filters to create a transformation before the camera. Actors such as Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi which started to build a career in horror appearing in films such as The body snatcher (1945).

1950s and 60s

With new technology becoming more advance, increases the tone for horror films as the theme of Gothic turns towards the contemporary. With two subgenres being put together the horror demonic where it includes of the spiratual senses emerging into the evil forces and doomsday where it iccludes of the apocalypic events including of zombies and nuclear events occurring, by this it shows the increase in the development of horror films. The alien invasion and dead mutation of people, plants and insects being featured in low budget films including humainity. With japan experiencing with the Hiroshima and the Nagasaki , where USA dropped atomic bombs on these cities during the last part of the world war 2. from this it builds further conventions with alien invasions, mutations of people with the film GodZila (1954).

In the late 1950s, the UK came out as a producer of horror films. The hammer company focused on the genre, as it went on to become very successful internationally, which involved classic horror characters, shown in colour for the first time. The producers of Frankinstein and Dracula were remakes with alot of sequels.  Ghosts became a significant conventions worldwide including films such as Kuroneko (1968) and Night of the living dead (1968) which grossed $30 million internationally.

1970s and 80s

The film The Exorcist (1973) which was one of the first commercial success, which allowed other horror films to represented with new conventions such as supernatural evil, impregnating women and posessing children. These become more popular in the cinema. The psychological horror genre films followed different ideas of "Evil children", alcoholism and telepathy. Murder and violence become less popular in horror films. Criticisms were brought up against the film The shining, however became successful as it was the most classic horror film which was set in a native american Indian tribe and a child which would sense supernatural powers, and then as a film became one of the best selling novels in 1977.

1990s

In the 1990s, halfway the genre showed different themes from the 80s. Slasher films such as A nightmare on Elms street and friday the 13th. They were all sequels which had different amounts of successes at the box office. The film Candyman (1992) was part of a small movement of horror films, as it touched upon relationships between fictional and real-life horror, which started to show the development of the horror genre. In 1994 The film "Theatre De Vampire" which had a grand guignol style, which includes of further undead performers of humanity, mortality and class, leading to a horror movie soon show new insights to new and effective frights.

Problems began to occur, as it pushed horror genre backwards, as the genre it self decreased with the proliferation on the slasher and gore films in the 80s and the adult audience from the previous decades had grown up, which then there interests changed to more sci fiction and fantasy films, with advanced technology with CGI, including films such as Species (1997) and Blade (1998). Later the audience came back into the interest with Peter Jackson's braindead (1992) which had element of comic effect to the film.

2000-2010

In 2000 it was a quiet time for the genre film. Final destination (2000) became a sucessof the teen horror with the four sequals. Comic book adaptations became box office successes with films such as Blade series and Hellboy(2004). Video games had adapted into horror films including Doom (2005) and Silent Hill (2006) which had average success at the box office. The trend of the psychology to be emerged to scare audiences rather than gore. The others (2001) which was the a successful film in this convention. Val lewton's theory of "less is more " so having low budgeted films to be more successful.

American versions of the The grudge (2004) and The Eye (2008) were banned in China from the market. Then the zombie convention merged back onto the 2000s as this makes it more developed in more early years. The biggest trend returned of graphic violence which were group as low budget films.

The extent of this trend was the developed in horror genre which emphasised on torture, suffering and violent deaths, with films such as Ghost Ship (2002), Eight Legged Freaks (2002). Remakes became more popular in the 2000s as films such as Dawn of the dead as well as the The Tobe Hooper's classic The Chainsaw massacre (2003).

In 2010, the remakes remained popular and the footage style which features Slender Man which became further successful on Youtube, which became popular at the beginning of the decade, Horror has become more dominant on TV such as: The Walking Dead, American Horror Story and The Strain, so popularity of horror films have had success on television series. The Cabin in the Woods (2012) returned to the slasher genre, intended also as a critical part of torture porn.