Studying Genre at a Textual Level.

I have started to look at how genre is represented in films, particularly the horror genre. We watched the opening of the film 'Nosferatu (1922)'  in class and noted down any themes we noticed that indicated it was a horror movie. Here are some of the themes I noticed in the clip:

• Corruption
• The unknown
• Separation
• Greed
• The monster within
• Fragile nature of love
• Abandonment
• Loneliness

These are all themes that could be used within my own horror trailer. They are obviously affective themes to use, as they have been used in films such as 'Nosferatu' since 1922 and are still used in many horror films today.

In class, we also discussed the way horrors often play on fears in society in order to make films more realistic and therefore more frightening for the audience, as they can imagine themselves in the situations presented in the film. 

Fears in society:

• Teenagers turning feral (An example of a movie that has used this is Eden Lake)                   Eden Lake Trailer.
• The apocalypse (For example 28 days later)                                                                                 28 Days Later Trailer
• Science going too far (For example I am legend)                                                                            I Am Legend Trailer
• Contagion - Disease (For example The Crazies)                                                                        The Crazies Trailer
• Technology
• Insanity (For example The Shining)                                                                                           The Shining Trailer
• Family
• Alienation (For example The Hills Have Eyes)                                                                          The Hills Have Eyes Trailer