COP Proposal

How have Horror Movies changed?

Reference Guides

-          Censored Screams – Tom Johnson

-          Framing Monsters – Joshua David Bellin

-          A new heritage of Horror – David Pirie

-          Nosferatu/Dracula (Hammer)/ Dracula Untold

-          Godzilla 1954/Shin Godzilla

-          IT (1980s)/ IT (2017)

-          Hammer Horror/ Paranormal Activity (Jump Scare Films)

Proposal

Over the course of my essay, I want to look at the horror movies of the era of 1930s to 1950s, in comparison to the horror movies of late 90s to present day, and how they represent the horror genre. I want to discuss the ideas of horror movies between these 2 eras, and how they compare with one another. In this I want to consider the political goings on at the time and discuss whether or not they affect what is considered “scary” during this time period. I also want to discuss the aesthetics of each era and whether it makes for a scarier film. I want to discuss the ideas of something which is “chilling” in comparison to say a jump scare which is a modern horror trope which seems to define a “horror” movie.

In comparing the eras which my study material comes from I want to look out how the era manipulates the story and in some cases the genre of the story. For example, in 1954 Godzilla was considered a Horror, however in 2017 Shin Godzilla, a very similar movie is not, but has horror themes and was described as a horror like film. I think this part is particularly interesting and I want to see whether the political motivations at the time link into this aspect of what is considered horror. Linking back to the same 2 movies, in 1954 Godzilla was made by nuclear bomb survivors in Japan so the theme and horrific nature of what had happened was still fresh on the minds of everyone.