Subgenres of Horror Films

Science Fiction Horror

Zombie

Horror

Action Horror

The science fiction horror is a combination of scientific technology

and aliens to create the fear of the unknown for the audience.

Usually the science fiction is an experiment gone wrong or a government based experiment.

These include alien activity or technological monsters.

Films of science fiction horror include: Alien and The Mist.

Zombie Horror may include a virus breakout or infection.

The infected are known as zombies or more dramatically ‘the undead’.

The zombies are hungry for human flesh and there are usually only few non infected which usually include the protagonist or multiple protagonist.

It creates an effect on the audience of the unknown and the ongoing question of ‘what if zombies invaded?’

Action horror includes a main Protagonist that is in a battle against evil.

The usual antagonist include the evil eg: zombies, vampires and monsters

They usually entail gun fights and chase scenes that create huge tension.

The film usually involves heavy violence and gore to create an impact of horror onto the audience.

An example of this could be Blade, Dawn of the dead and From Dusk Till Dawn.

Body Horror

Psychological Horror

Body Horror includes the degeneration or deconstruction of the human body. Limbs used to create monsters out of human body parts or unnatural movements and dysfunction to create fear.

It may entail a disease outbreak that causes the body to be deformed or deconstructed.

The genre is used to create personal fears and phobias about the audiences body.

Examples include teeth, cabin fever and the invasion.

The Psychological horror includes dependent on a

character's fears, guilt and belief, emotional instability and sometimes the supernatural to build the tension and further the plot.

Reality is where the horror comes from within this subgenre.

Psychological horror usually has a protagonist and their fear.

It captures the audience in a fear of reality.

Subgenres are a subdivision of a genre of literature, music, film, etc.

Horror has many subgenres that create many effects on the audience.

The film’s subgenre outlines the theme.

These subgenres include: Action, Body, Comedy, Gothic, Psychological, Science Fiction, Slasher and Zombie Horror.

The subgenres are a great way of characterising a specific type of horror.

Comedy Horror

Gothic Horror

Gothic horror consists both elements of gothic and horror.

Some of the earliest horror movies were of this subgenre.

Gothic horror films normally entail features such as castles, dungeons, ruined landscapes, extreme landscapes and magic/the supernatural.

These include films like: Dracula, Van Helsing and Frankenstein.

Consists of elements of comedy and horror fiction. The horror genre almost always inevitably entails attributes of black comedy.

The first greatest comedy horror film produced was 'The legend of the sleepy hollow’.

Examples include scary movie, gremlins and The Haunted House.

Slasher Horror

This horror includes the asset of gore and a lot of violence that creates masses of tension for the audience.

It usually revolves around the antagonist stalking the protagonist.The killer may have some sort of sexual deprivation or desire. Or he may have been abused as a child. The slasher includes (usually) a phallic weapon e.g: a knife.

Subgenres of Horror Films