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Any one want to attempt to answer this?

to me horror isnt films like SAW or Hostel or I Spit on Your Grave etc, these films are just people.
Horror is about having supernatural elements and things that cant normally be explained by commen sense etc.

Discuss

Erm.. when something is horrible/nasty/sick/bloody/evil to watch.
Hm when i go to my local video store they have saw, i spit on your grave etc in the horror section.

Well there are different types of horror. Some movies,which are classed as horror, arent in my opinion. Real horrors are texas chainsaw massacre type of thing

well based on my experience horror ganre can be described as alien, predator, any zombies movie, is that what you mean?
nah for me horror movies are, devils rejects/house of 1000 corpses, texas hainsaw massacre, hostel, saw, your mum's mirror, if you think that theese movies about people killeng or kidnaping others arent horror then in what genre do you categorize my previous movies?

Horror is knowing there is somthing bigger than yourself. Somthing that cannot be stopped. It's that icy stab to the gut when you know theres no way out. It's your brains way of telling you that the end is here. Horror is the unknown, not some wacko with a chainsaw or whathaveyou. (although TCM ranks high on my favorite movies list). What cannot be seen is far mor terrifying than what can. And when it's also somthing that cannot be controlled, THEN you have your true horror.

It's how Dictionary.com defined it.

Horror is a genre. That means that not everything that qualifies as "terrifying" or "shocking" automatically means Horror. Just like not everything that qualifies as "funny" automatically means Comedy. Or that everything that qualfies as "scientifically impossible" automatically means Science Fiction. There are rules and set ups. I think the whole Horror genre is mostly about the unequal battle between man and the things he cannot logically compete with or even understand. Nothing is more scary than threats than some lurking creature from beneath or the thought of a dead guy haunting your house. It's all about the fear for the unknown and the forces from beyond, which is what seperates Horror from Thrillers. Because the latter is mostly about humans.

Imo, horror is something like this.

- a mostly supernatural, intangible or indescribable threat (unkillable killers, invisible forces, zombies, wolves, vampires, ghosts, demons, killer dolls, monster animals and anything else you wouldn't dare to keep as a cute pet). Movies like The Sixth Sense fall into the horror category as well, imo.

- the fear or tension that is induced by this threat (not required)

- A sense of mystery that invokes either an uneasy feeling or a moody atmosphere (not required)

- A sense of Darkness (not required)

A film that involves zombies and is not supposed to be a parody, is automatically horror (possibly with a comedic extension, like Braindead or Shaun of the dead)), because zombies are simply a horror theme. So whether or not Dawn of the Dead (Romero) is scary and dark doesn't matter. The the subject matter, the violence and the gore makes it horror.



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So no, I don't consider movies like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Saw and Hostel to be horror. I just consider them to be dark Thrillers, although Texas Chainsaw has some horror elements.

Supernatural themes have nothing to do with horror. I'd argue that horror films just about people are terrifying on a much deeper level, because we know people like them exist, murderers and rapists exist, it's undeniable. Ghosts, and creatures of the like don't exist and thus aren't quite as frightening, at least not on the same level.

Mystery also has nothing to do with horror, has more to do with Suspense.

Horror is simply a film set out to terrify, disturb, mortify, or disgust. It's all about intent, hence why films like Salo and Men Behind the Sun are considered horror, when at first glance they don't seem like they fit in the genre, because their intent is to terrify and disturb, not with ghosts or supernatural beings, but simply by exposing the cruelty and pain human beings can inflict on other human beings.

Originally posted by BackFire
Supernatural themes have nothing to do with horror. I'd argue that horror films just about people are terrifying on a much deeper level, because we know people like them exist, murderers and rapists exist, it's undeniable. Ghosts, and creatures of the like don't exist and thus aren't quite as frightening, at least not on the same level.

Actually, supernatural stuff has EVERYTHING to do with horror. The cinematic horror genre is based on the literary horror genre, which consists mostly of scary, imaginative tales involving the "unknown". You know, the stereotypical campfire-esque ghost stories. The element of the fantastical plays a huge part. Thrillers on the other hand are all about human interaction and tales that are grounded in reality, that's why movies like Rear Window, The Third Man Marathon Man and such are considered thrillers. Not because they don't feature anything remotely disturbing or shocking.

As for ghosts, monsters and creatures, they ARE frightening. And we're all very glad that they don't actually exist. Because if they did, we wouldn't be enjoying a good scare from the safety of our homes or theatres.



Correct. But suspense has a LOT to do with Horror. Not by definition, but it usually does, because the element of "the unknown" or "what comes from beyond" thrives on that particular sense of mystery. It's not the same type of suspense as you'll see it in a Hitchcock movie, but it IS suspense.

You seem to be talking in dictionary terms when it comes to horror, which imo doesn't quite cut it.




That's too simple a description. Salo is a disturbing, confrontational drama, Men Behind The Sun is an exploitation flick, which is pretty much a genre on its own. They may invoke "horror", but so do a lot of other non-horror films. How are we going to decide what's what? That's why the genre has rules and laws, just like any other genre. If there weren't, horror would be more of a film making style that can be applied to any dramatic, science fiction or comedic story, rather than a stand alone genre.

Btw, films like The Pianist or Platoon also expose the cruelty and pain human beings can inflict on each other. Would they qualify as Horror?