A New Fear

Horror is a special genre as it allows us to tap into our oldest emotion: fear. It, along with comedy, are the hardest genres to do well, and the easiest to fail at simply because they rely on the subconscious manipulation of the audience.

The 2000's saw a sharp decline in the quality of horror films; directors made lazy movies, and the studios had zero problems with this as long as the product made money. The problem was that many studios stopped putting out movies that relied on one of two things, either shock or startling. It was a period where every film was loaded with extreme gore, jump scares, and it was lazy film-making. How many supernatural movies were made that couldn't make you uneasy and fearful, but instead jam-packed with jump scares? A jump scare is a tool available to the horror director, but they work best when used sparingly, and only when the film has already immersed the viewer in an atmosphere of tension and dread. When something springs out of the darkness and a loud sound is played, we are startled, but if there is no atmosphere it is a hollow victory. Atmosphere was hard to find.

For the 2010's , however, horror is seeing a resurgence across all forms of media, especially cinema. We still have the assembly-line box office vehicles, such as the Conjuring spin-offs and so forth, but we're seeing a rise in something that was missing for years: horror with passion. Directors like Ari Aster and Jordan Peele have revolutionized the genre with by creating films that submerge the audience in disturbing miasma that lingers in the back of their minds long after they've left the theatre or turned off the television. There are old trails being blazed again in the genre that challenge what could be considered acceptable in a horror movie. The Lighthouse, for example, is completely in black and white, creating stark contrast in its scenes to great effect. Midsommar, a film by the aforementioned Ari Aster, on the other hand takes place almost entirely in bright daylight, turning to darkness for only a few scenes. These films have their jump scares, but they are far fewer in number, allowing the director to deploy them for maximum effect. The surge of remakes and reboots continues, but their creators are taking care to give them heart. Films like It and Suspiria could have been simple shot for shot retreads of their originals, but their directors went in with different plans. Both took new interpretations of their predecessor into different angles, such as how It now includes scenes from the book it was based upon that were completely absent from the 90's television mini-series.

The big studio productions aren't the only ones improving cinema; indie horror is experiencing a wonderful renaissance, producing films at pace almost too fast to keep up with. With movies like Get Out, The Color Out Of Space, and Host all attaining high praise from critics and audiences alike. There is also now a much higher emphasis on addressing the social issues plaguing our world. Racism, homophobia, misogyny, and classism have all been tackled by stellar indie films made by talented, intelligent directors and writers. Jordan Peele's Get Out, for instance, utilizes an interracial couple attending a peculiar family gathering to spin an allegory of racism and the longtime enslavement and exploitation of black Americans. Leigh Whannell's 2020 remake of The Invisible Man shines a bright light on the destructive effects of toxic relationships and domestic abuse in ways that are disturbing because they are accurate.

This recent revival of the horror genre have revitalized an important ideal for the audience, that despite being exposed to a scene filled with revulsion or terror, they should not look away. Monsters need to be confronted to be beaten. Thankfully, these last few years have provided the audience with myriad monsters to be clashed with, and they're only getting better. It is truly a good time for a lover of horror, whether one likes the big box office spectacles or to delve into a streaming service's reservoir in their home. If you're looking for some of the best horror films produced in a long while, all you need is the desire to be scared.