Spooky Season: The History of Horror and Creepy Curations Part 1

Now that we're squarely in the midst of (arguably) the creepiest month of the year, One Moore Hollywood Podcast's latest episode has our hosts, Chris Moore, Katie Marpe, and Dennis De Nobile, jumping right into the topic of horror films through the ages. In this episode, they discuss the history of horror in film, dissect how genre is used in horror, and recommend some of their favorite spooky movies for the season.

Genre, Genre, Genre

De Nobile, a horror movie buff, starts strong by referencing a quote from Italian master of horror Dario Argento: "Horror is like a serpent; always shedding its skin, always changing." 

This quote honors something De Nobile finds fascinating about the horror genre: that the topics and subjects of horror films change throughout the ages to represent current societal fears. 

In the 1950s, people were terrified of nuclear war and the effects of radioactive fallout, so horror films often showcased giant distorted bugs like ants and spiders. In the 1970s, serial killers like Charles Mason had spiked a fear of home invasion, murder, and cults, and horror movies reflected those fears. These days, we're seeing more AI and pandemic-inspired horror on our screens. 

"You can look at horror films like a time capsule."

–Dennis De Nobile

As a genre based on the concept of fear, there's a lot of range regarding the lens used to represent fear to the audience. Usually, another genre acts as the lens, whether it's comedy, drama, or action.

Moore agrees with De Nobile; rarely is anything just a horror movie. Think Stranger Things, World War Z (the 4th highest-grossing horror film ever), and Cabin In The Woods, all horror hybrids. 

Are You the Monster or the Victim?

Interestingly, over the years, who the audience is supposed to identify with has shifted within the horror film scene. Before the 80s, the audience was expected to identify with the victims in horror films. In the late 70s and 80s, however, several major horror films (Carrie and Halloween are good examples) had the audience identify with the violent perpetrator or monster instead. 

"If you're talented as a filmmaker, you can almost get the audience to root for anything."

–Chris Moore

Whether through premarital sex, drug use, or bullying, with these films, the filmmakers intended to create a kind of justification for the killings that happened. Rather than identifying with the victims, you would identify with the Carrie or the Mike Myers, who seemingly gave the victims what they deserved.

Our Hosts Recommend

With Part 2 of the Creepy Curation coming your way soon, our hosts leave us with some of their favorite scary movies. 

A recent favorite of our hosts is A24’s Talk To Me, a horror-mystery movie directed by two brothers, Danny and Michael Philippou. All three hosts found it a film that succeeded on all fronts: invoking fear and making the audience care about the intended characters.

As for all-time favorite horror movies, Marpe lists Shaun of the Dead, a classic horror-comedy film, and The Babadook, a drama-horror hybrid that leans into the narrative element of drama.

Moore goes for thrillers of the religious cult variety, like The Da Vinci Code and other movies based on Dan Brown's books. For De Nobile, zombie movies and horror films with inventive stories and narratives, like 2007's Trick 'r Treat, generally do the trick.

 Listen to the entire episode here: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or iHeartRadio.