10 Ways to Reinvent/Improve the Horror Genre
We've all gotten used to the Horror Genre tropes. A group of teens are hunted down one by one by a killer that "dies" at the end just to come back in a crap hyper violent sequel (not every sequel is awful but this is just the general impression). There's tense music, or absence of music, to alert us that a jump scare is coming but it's not a monster it's something harmless then oh no it is the monster. The cliché build up to scares that start almost on the clock 30 minutes in. Even the characters are predictable. Cabin in the Woods does an awesome job of pointing out the Jock, the Slut, the Fool/Stoner, the nerd and the virgin. And of course, if the film is American (as South Park) points out there needs to be a token black character. The settings are always stock and predictable somewhere isolated where there is no hope of help. Perhaps the only thing that is creditable and some degree original is the manner of killing.
So what can be done to resolve this crisis of stagnation? I don't preach that I have the answers just some ideas. So here are 10 ways to spice up the genre.
10. Lesser of two evils:
Particularly in the slasher sub-genre, the antagonist is often portrayed as a psychopath or animalistic cannibal.
So, what if one of the group of protagonists were to be a psychopath themselves? One that lived on the periphery of criminal activity and murder. Or, alternatively someone with BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder) which in the past used to mean on the borderline between neurosis and psychosis. Now BPD refers more commonly to emotionally unstable personality. Perhaps this would be more interesting having an impulsive, erratic, moody and potential killer amongst the protagonists. Certainly would make a change from stock predictability.
9. Don't warn before the scare
Not that long ago I watched The Thing From Another World, a particular scene made me jump because mid conversation the creature just appeared. Too many times has the horror genre failed to scare because it gives far too much warning. A recurring example is the antagonist attacking a barricade of some sort a door or wall something like that making a small hole in the defence and then the protagonist is stupid enough to look through said hole when the monster pauses it's attack. Rather predictably the creature then appears to attack once more, often grabbing the protagonist through the break in the barricade.
8. Don't reveal the monster until end-game
Remember the Descent? The film that was brilliantly claustrophobic and generally awesome until we got a proper look at what the monster was and suddenly a lot of the fear dissipates. Other notable examples of this tactic is Signs, Shrooms, Identity, Cat People. This keeps the audience guessing, letting imagination spark fear. It also makes the characters within the film do more work as they don't know what they're fighting.
7. No Safe haven
Instead of an abandoned dark hospital, or an isolated old house what if the monsters attacked in Daylight in public, or had the power to strike at you anytime. Like Invasion of the Body Snatchers. This is one to combine with no 6.
6. Point of view of a psychopath
What if the whole film were a construct of a killer's imagination. Some psychotic nightmare in which the threats and dangers to the main character were actually victims of a serial killer. Or the protagonist is plagued by daytime public hallucinations that offer no escape.
Shrooms- Cows Can Talk Man
5. It could be any of us
Something that John Carpenter's 'The Thing' did exceptionally well. The concept that the killer is hiding in human form amongst the protagonists and that no one (not even the audience) knows who it is. This makes practically every situation unsafe, provokes audience interest and makes the characters become paranoid.
4. Conflicting atmospheres
A brilliant example yet perhaps less well known is the use of an Argentinian Tango in 'Un Chien Andalou' an early surrealist film. The antithesis of this jolly upbeat music to the sinister perverted intentions of one of the characters invokes feelings of disgust in the audience. Stepping out of the horror genre even further is a more popular example of this technique in 'Reservoir Dogs.' The infamous scene where a policeman's ear is cut off while the sociopathic torturer dances and sings along to the upbeat 'Stuck in the middle with you.'
Another way to do this is to avoid pathetic fallacy where weather indicates mood of the scene. Deliberately trick the audience with a vibrant sunlit area riddled with danger.
3. Give the imagination something to work on
A terrifying concept like global pandemic or devastation being suggested can be much more terrifying than trying to gross out a desensitised audience with gore. A low budget campfire horror story about monsters destroying the other side of the world can be an effective tension raiser. 28 Days Later often speaks about 'Reports of outbreaks in Paris and New York' and shows us a plague ravaged London and a glimpse of Manchester on fire.
2. Make characters relateable and realistic
I enjoyed the film 'Devil' because the stereotypical characters were explored and expanded upon. I loved 'Dog soldiers' because the soldiers came across as partially realistic representations of 'Squadees.' And their resourceful uses of boiling water and saucepans as weapons added to the comedy and severity of their situation.
1. The most terrifying concepts are those that are possible
Not only do the protagonists need to be believable, but there are benefits to the antagonists being relatable too. As with expanding on imaginated constructs, if the monster is possible the imagination can feed a lot more from it. A viral epidemic for example is certainly possible (not to the same scale that movies depict it) but zombies perhaps not.
