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The Horror Genre - Then and Now

When I was a kid, horror was a real taboo. It was frowned upon just like porn. But hey, that was life in the Bible Belt back then. In the 70's and 80's, the only horror movies available were what the big studios sugar coated and shoved down our throats. Films like The Exorcist, The Omen and The Amityville Horror set the tone of horror for the 70's. Seemed that everything that came out had a supernatural premise to it. Which is great because I hold each one of these very high in the history of horror. But there was a nastier de of horror that I was misng out on. Horror you could only see in a run down old theater tucked between a liquor store and a strip joint on the seedy de of town in just a few metropolitan cities.

These theaters had such nicknames as Grindhouse, Art House and 2nd run theaters. They specialized in the non-mainstream. Most of them were ran like sleazy porn theaters. These were the only theaters to see things like Last House On The Left, I Spit On Your Grave, The Hills Have Eyes, Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Dawn Of The Dead which seems funny now because all of these have been remade into mainstream movies.

But the 80's brought all of these little gems home. Literally. The VCR. I know, most of you kids are saying "what's that?" Well kids, it was pretty much an 80lb piece of furniture that you inserted this huge plastic brick into. Inde the plastic brick was a magnetic tape with a movie on it. And around the corner from my house was this little mom & pop store that rented the little plastic bricks. This is where my interest in horror blossomed into a full blown love affair. I couldn't get enough.

This was my introduction to Argento, Romero, Craven, Fulci and Lenzi. I was fascinated by cannibals, zombies, masked killers and the supernatural. They were bloody, gory, brutal and disgusting but that's what I liked about them and I couldn't get enough. I dedicated the entire summer of 1985 to horror movies. I got up every morning and headed to the video store and got my limit of 6 movies per day. I would t on the couch and watch movies all day. I estimate that I watched around 350 movies that summer--gained about 20lbs also.

By 1985 the VCR and its plastic brick had become corrupted. People figured out that you could spend fifty bucks making a real crappy movie and a few grand on some really cool cover art and they would make a fortune. That's how I picked out my movies. Whatever had the best cover art went home with me. Wow, some were really bad. And I like bad movies. They were unwatchable.

By 1990 the virus had spread worse. These straight-to-plastic brick movies were covering the shelves of video stores everywhere. The titles grew like a tumor. It was hard to find quality horror movies. It was like that through out the 90's. A couple of times a year something good would show up on the shelf or in theaters. Horror had become mainstream because of its success in the 80's. In 1991, The lence Of The Lambs became the first horror movie to win a Best Picture Oscar. There was no in between--it was either made by frat boys with a camcorder or was all polished and stiff.

Then 2000 rolled around and the whole game changed. Gone was the plastic brick and in came the DVD. I'm starting to catch up with some of you kids now. But there were many other changes The price of video cameras went down and the internet led even more people into thinking they could be filmmakers, and make movies is what they did. Tons of them. The advancement of computers had put an end to make-up special effects and replaced it with CGI. You could decapitate someone with a mouse and keyboard. But that really didn't matter because that was also the birth of the bubble gum horror movie. You know, those PG-13 horror movies aimed at teenage girls--The Ring, The Grudge, When A Stranger Calls, etc. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot There wasn't a ngle "Age Appropriate" horror movie available to me when I was 13. Horror movies for little girls. And it just got worse with a little book called Twilight.

And 2000 had another sad fact about it. All of the creativity had all but left the horror genre and I was stuck watching movies I had seen before. It was weird because all of the characters had changed and the story was different. They had put CGI in them. Much to my surprise I find out that they had remade all of the movies I grew up with. Jason went from being an unstoppable killing machine to a pot farmer protecting his crops. What happened? Can't find someone with an original idea? Does anyone have an original idea without a vampire? And the fresh ideas are all torture movies. I liked the first couple of hundred of them that came out but enough's enough.

There is still a ton of great horror out there and it's a lot eaer to access.

There is still great stuff being made today, you just have to know where to look. A lot of the Aan countries are putting out some really over the top stuff and the Europeans are really stepping up to the plate. Plus there is still a great group of young filmmakers making really good original horror movies. Look between the 400 copies of Mama Mia and the 900 copies of The Blind de and you just might find a ngle copy of what could be the horror movie that changes everything you know about horror.

Great article. I too remember the "mom and pop" video stores of the 80's and 90's, where all of the best (and worst) horror could be found. Every week I would round up 99 cents, then hop on my bike and head over to the "Video 99". I miss it. Netflix is great, and there is a steadily increang selection of movies available for streaming, but its definitely no Video 99.

The horror movie industry was definitely in a lull for a long time (with the exception of a few gems here and there), but I think its definitely back on the upswing. And you're right, you have to know where to look and who to talk to. Its amazing how many people I know who can't even watch scary movies. Sure sucks to be them.

This article totally reminds of the scene from Monster Squad when Sean is on the rooftop watching a Drive In Horror movie with his binoculars....Ah the 80's, I REALLY miss walking down the Horror isle at the local video store, I can still see the titles right now.

April Fools Day, Mother's Day, A Nightmare on Elm St., Friday the 13th, Halloween, etc etc.

I have a really good feeling that Horror is on a great upswing again....oh yeah, it never left, it just got harder to find....

Great article!!

Kudos for the review

I miss the old video stores !!! I remember the "old plastic black bricks" and the dreaded VCR i could never figure out how to record! To me it was all about the cardboard standees that gave the preview of upcoming horror movies coming to a

black plastic brick near you, he he!! Now are the days gone of the movie drive -in my favorite))) and old school horror. I am sorry but cgi will never replace practical in my mind! I will be the last man standing. I still like my black and white horror like "The Tingler"

"The Thing" and of course my favorites "Dracula" with Bela Lugo "Frankenstien", and "The Wolfman" I guess i am too old to give into the netflix genre. I guess i just dated myself with all this. I do like a lot of modern horror also, dont get me wrong. It just seems like you said movies like twilight aimed to the teeny boppers push away the true horror. ahhh the old days i miss them!!!

I 'am 19 and proud to have horror movies as a pason, i think horror movies deserve more credit in the recognition like best movie of the year awards ect. every nce i was 3 i love it ,new old, originals, remakes i appreciate it even though some movie i do hate. I wish i could contribute to this genre more than buying DVDs

i would love to direct/act a slasher flick one day it would be a dream come true.

Am I on glue or did you just suggest that The Ring is for teenage girls?

It is by far the smartest, scariest horror film of the decade. Sure, it lacks the blood and guts of most of the movies mentioned, but gore isn't always necessary for good horror. I'll take a smart horror film over torture porn any day.

Am I on glue or did you just suggest that The Ring is for teenage girls?

It is by far the smartest, scariest horror film of the decade. Sure, it lacks the blood and guts of most of the movies mentioned, but gore isn't always necessary for good horror. I'll take a smart horror film over torture porn any day.I'm sorry if you took that comment the wrong way. I was just trying to show the contrast between horror then and now. When "Scream" came out in 1996, more young women bought tickets than men did. This really helped Hollywood realize that they were misng out on the 14-24 year old female demographic. The one thing this demographic didn't like was the blood and nudity. Which was great for the studios, because it made it eaer to receive a PG-13 rating and could reach the entire demographic. The movies I listed and many more were promoted and and released with this demographic in mind. That is why I gave it it's own sub-genre "Bubble-Gum Horror". I don't mean that in a negative way and I believe this type of horror movie is very important to the horror genre. It has opened the door for a whole new generation of horror fans. Most of it I don't really like, but I would never disrespect anyone's taste or preference in horror movies. I'm just glad they are horror fans. I know I like a lot of crap nobody else would watch.

I have been defending "The Ring" for a decade. Having spent years working in video stores, I've heard 1000 times that they ruined this remake of the Japanese movie "Ringu". I liked "Ringu", but it's slow pacing bored me after a while. "The Ring" however, is ealy in my top 10 horror remakes.

The script was much more coherent and the pacing was constent. The amount of dread and despair was enough to make me want a xanax and a shot of bourbon. Even after multiple viewings you never grow numb of the anxiety like most movies. The reason "The Ring" was listed with the rest was because it was the first big movie released with the 14-24 year old female in public in mind. My comment was more about the fact that there was no age appropriate movies when i was that age.

As far as the blood and gore goes, in most horror movies it is just a cover-up for a bad movie. My top three favorite horror movies "The Exorcist", "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre" and "Halloween" are for the most part bloodless movies. the Torture Porn is way out of control. The "Saw" series in my opinion is more ridiculous than the "Police Academy" series. (I'm sure I'll catch Hell from "Saw" fans after that comment.) I don't believe that any of these torture movies are horror, they're more like bad mystery movies with gore. Because of the gore it's automatically put in the horror category.

Sorry I was so long winded. If someone disagrees with me I feel I need to explain or defend what I said. I hope this clears everything up. But, I will never defend "Twilight" I don't care how many people complain.LOL.

I see where you're coming from, guess I misunderstood.

I am in complete agreement with you about the Saw movies (I got dragged to the 6th one in the theaters and told my friend I would go as long as she didn't get mad when anyone in the movie uttered "Somebody helped him" and I died laughing.

By the time someone actually said "Somebody helped him" I was too over it to even laugh about it, but that's bede the point.)

I actually agree that The Ring is a better film than Ringu, though most people would jump on me for that.

I guess I only felt the need to say something because I didn't see any connection between something as groundbreaking (in the states) and well acted, directed and produced as The Ring, and something as lame as When A Stranger Calls.

It still surprises me that The Ring received a PG-13 rating, as it's the only movie in my adult life to scare me, but that's all personal opinion.

Anyway, great article.

It's nice to see people who appreciate both the old school and new school!

I grew up in the era of Freddy, Jason and Michael's later sequels. I remember at that point, horror was still frowned upon to a degree, but It wasn't nearly as mainstream as it is now. Sure, Freddy's burnt puss was all over televion and occaonally the news stand in addition to his box office dominance; but there were

some masve protests going down as a result of that largely forgettable (but still guiltily enjoyable) tv show Freddy's Nightmares.There were more than a few TV market mix-ups and the show wound up being broadcast in the afternoon in some areas, sparking the said protests. Now think about AMC's Walking Dead adaptation. Could you have seen that on TV (not HBO, either) back in the day? I think not.

This type of protest and let's-burn-books Nazi-style mentality has kind of slipped by the wayde in more recent years; as horror has grown more mainstream and safe.

But I still think that horror; good horror, mind you, can be capable of upsetting more than a few apple carts. All it takes is to BRING BACK THE STORY!! Yes, the gory and graphic special effects are awesome (and they beat the pure hell out of CGI any day) but it doesn't mean a damn thing unless there's a hell of a story behind it. I'm not gonna kick a dead horse here, but go look at the clascs. There is a HUGE reason that we are still talking about them.

Really and truly, horror is not dead. It's just hiding in the basement; waiting for the dumb public to come back down there to replace it's burnt out bulb.

More people need to tap into the indie scene and support the film makers.....Timo Rose, Ryan Nicholson, Fred Vogel, and many more are making kick ass horror and gore that doesnt get mainstream support.

If fans are tired of hollywood shit, then support indie horror.

As for "torture porn", the dopey tag is new but the style and subject matter can be traced back to dozens of films in the 70's and 80's, difference is the older films have vintage/cult/legend status. The new guys dont. I like brutal gore, nothing wrong with it.

I really enjoyed this article.

I see that I have missed much greatness in my absence. I'm so sorry, Horrorbid, that I don't think to check on you until between semesters. Articles like this remind me how much actual thought is put into the horror genre itself. I've recently reacquired an almost disturbing love for Norma(n) Bates & am in hopes of building my own Mother (posbly plural if I go the P3/remake/etc. route) in tribute to what "America on Film" & "Hooked on Horror" (just to name two books I read on the slasher genre recently) call the "prototype of the modern slasher film."

Again, excellent post. I've got some catching up to do with good ole' HorrorBid!

Lets just ignore the spam by the new user French horror has been impresng me and Indie horror films are great to watch. Speaking in Indie has anyone seen that indie film, "An Evening with my Comatose Mother" ? I really wanna check it out but don't know where it's available. I'm guesng they are still doing the festival circuit in hopes of getting it shown in theaters, remade for theaters or something.

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More people need to tap into the indie scene and support the film makers.....Timo Rose, Ryan Nicholson, Fred Vogel, and many more are making kick ass horror and gore that doesnt get mainstream support.

If fans are tired of hollywood shit, then support indie horror.

Thank you.

I 'am 19 and proud to have horror movies as a pason, i think horror movies deserve more credit in the recognition like best movie of the year awards ect.

I agree young man. Horror movies are harder to make because there are the special effects that must look real. Much harder than some other films where the need for spfx aren't needed.

Maybe horror films should just have their own awards seson.