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Ooh a proper discussion.
Ok so how would you define horror? Webster's has horror as "a painful and intense fear, dread, or dismay." So it ought to follow that horror movies are those that elicit those emotions. But then where does horror stop and suspense begin? Or Thrillers? Where for example does the Shining fit? Or Misery? Both written by a "horror" writer. Although Shawshank Redemption and Apt Pupil do kinda mute that point. I'd class the Village as an attempt at horror but that's my view on the semantics of the genre. (Incidentally I'd forgotten about that film, another I'd wanna add to my list of films to avoid.
Horror does not have to involve the supernatural surely? Does Psycho count as horror or Scream, or Wolf Creek or Hostel for that matter? Does having the supernatural involved make it a horror? Saw is another example usually classed as horror. It does deal with the edges of emotion and having to confront primal fears but what essentially is in this film that isn't in say many thrillers or suspense movies. The edges of this genre a so blurred I would be very interested to know other people's views. I think personally it's hard to pin down any one defining feature, like trying to define what a game is. We know what a game is from experience but there is no one thing that is universal. Art is another example. And if we only know from past experience of what is a horror film we will all have different versions, though mostly along a similar line.
So what I want to know is what defines a horror film, who decides whether a film meets those criteria and why they feel their definition is worth more than anybody else's.
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