1950s Horror Films

Cold war baby boomers Korea red scare. The 1950s america can be summed up as music the best fashion and the best music. People moving to suburbs and babies were being born because soldiers were returning home.After World War 2 ended, many Americans were eager to have children because they were confident that the future held nothing but peace and success. Much of this increase came from government spending: The construction of interstate highways and schools, the distribution of veterans’ benefits and most of all the increase in military spending–on goods like airplanes and new technologies like computers–all contributed to the decade’s economic growth. Rates of unemployment and inflation were

Coming out of the 50’s, new genres of films emerged to the cinemas. Some of the most well known and beloved movie musicals such as Mary Poppins, The Sound of Music and West Side Story were released during the 60’s and they changed the way that we thought about our e Horror and action films also made an appearance with Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho and the first ever James Bond film Goldfinger.

Creepy settings, monsters, victims, murders, weapons,eerie vibes, and creepy music are what define the horror movie genre. Two films that belong to this category are Frankenstein directed by James Whale 1931 and Psycho directed by Alfred Hitchcock 1960. They both properly represent the horror genre because they follow it’s characteristics. These two movies compare and contrast in their settings, characters, plot, iconography, mood, and cinematic style.

1960s cinema reflected the good and the bad of the decade. 1960s cinema influenced many of the films we have today. 1960s cinema brought attention to movie musicals, which were movies that had many song and dance numbers along with dialogue and blocking. Three of the biggest hits of the decade were movie musicals. Some of the decade’s biggest hits, including the movie musicals, are still popular today. In the 1960s, there were many popular movies, both in theaters and on television, which were produced with money and lots of work. However, 1960s cinema also had a downfall.

When World War II ended most countries began to progress and prosper. Of these many countries, the United States was ready to take on new challenges that lied ahead and eventually become one of the most powerful countries on Earth. Popular Culture and Mass Media had a tremendous impact on people’s lives during the 1950’s which shaped the way that the United States is today. Popular culture and mass media affected the television, the average American family, teenagers, and people involved in the red scare.

With the daring and radical cultural up rise within the last few decades coming from icons we grew to love, to what was happening right there in our very own home, the 1950’s was the “golden age” of change, and change only. Rock n’ roll began the decade, so called “perfect family” living carried on throughout the decade, the television took over minds, new fashion, and many things this country was not used to could be heard or seen right in their living room. Many look at this decade as more of a state of mind rather than categorizing it as just another decade in history. Our nation just emerged victoriously from the second World War so families began to feel more at ease with the moral purity that spread throughout homes and the economy progressing

He used the typical bats, trolls, ghosts and demons in the film. These monsters are known today as the typical cliché horror film

As a society, there is a lot of excitement placed upon horror and horror films; ask anybody and they could recall what the first horror movie they saw was and when they saw it. In fact, there were 753 horror films release in 2015 alone. However, during the 1950s, there were only approximately 244 or so horror films released throughout the whole decade. During the 1960s, that number nearly doubled from 244 to 517 (“Letterboxd”).

INTRODUCTION The master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, created his greatest films in the 1950's and 1960's, a period when the film industry was in crisis from dwindling audience attendance. Renowned for his unique techniques, themes and plots, Hitchcock intensified his films by pushing the limits. Examining Hitchcock's innovative techniques, focusing on the film Psycho and the infamous shower scene, will demonstrate that Hitchcock is the most innovative and influential filmmakers of all time. BODY - PARAGRAPH #1 Hitchcock produced over 50 films including Rope (1948), Strangers on a Train (1951), North by Northwest (1959) and The Birds (1963).

In the early 1930’s, Universal Studios put together a number of horror films that were so classic that

During the second Red Scare in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, American’s were fearful that communism would permeate throughout their country and eventually rule their governments and entire lives. When Invasion of the Body Snatchers was directed by Don Siegal in 1956, he wanted to produce a film that creatively captured the fear of McCarthyism. The movie was inspired by the novel written by Jack Finney in 1954, which also aimed to depict what fears society had in the 50s. The film was recreated three more times, each with an original spin on the first movie and novel, but still effectively capturing the attention of the audience. The primary hope was of increasing awareness over the fear of Communism and losing one’s personal autonomy to Communism while each adaptation reflects the struggles and mindset during the time period that it was set in. Each of these films and novel, despite their numerous differences, reflect the period that they were created in through themes of losing one’s individuality, gender roles, and paranoia.

The movie industry was under attack in the 1950s. Television became popular to the point where people would not be interested in going to the movies, but rather stay at home with the family to enjoy favorite shows. Some of the shows include The Price is Right which originated on ABC in 1956, I love Lucy, and many others. Though television became the movies’ foe, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, James Dean and others, being some of the greatest stars, made sure show business was in its shape. New technology improving movies and experiments with 3-D provided audience. Drive-in movie theaters gained much popularity as well. “Early efforts to portray rodeo cowboys flowered with Robert Mitchum's movie performance as Jeff McCloud in The Lusty Men (Nicholas Ray, 1951) and continued into early 1960s movies such as Clark Gable's and Marilyn Monroe's The Misfits…” Music became a big sensation with the coming of Elvis Presley in the mid-1950s. Rock ‘n roll was popularized and everybody became insane over the new genre. Musicians were paid well and were in high demand every single day of the week compared to having to work only seasonally prior to the breakthrough. The 1950s also changed the household system. The decade brought forth most appliances we now take for granted, thus making life a lot easier and giving the start to the modern American family. Fashion did not have a

The 1970s represented a truly diverse time in the history of horror cinema. This was a reflection, perhaps, of how life was growing more complex in the 1970s, with competing problems pulling audiences towards different fears. Some horror films in the 1970s were revisionary, based on the fresh principles of a freer, more personal cinema. Other horrors were merely old resurrections and variations of monsters who had appeared on the silver screen, in one form or another, since the 1930s and 1940s. Nevertheless, following the path of Night of the Living Dead, most low-budget horror films of the early 1970s depicted the raw social and sexual conflicts. For example, films such Wes Craven’s Last House on the Left (1972) shares the story of a

A girl runs frantically through the woods trying to escape an axe wielding villain. The defenseless victim suddenly trips and collapses to the ground. The villain laughs wickedly as he lifts the axe above his head. The girl releases a final scream as the weapon quickly ends her life, causing the audience to go silent as they watch the villain drag away the lifeless body. Death, blood, guts, suspense, screaming, and terror are all just a few things to expect when watching a modern day horror film. What is horror? Horror can be defined as an intense feeling of fear, shock, or disgust. (Wilson) The description of horror is not very pleasant, but for some reason horror films are extremely popular. Why is this so? People are addicted to the

Most modern scary movies are jam packed with gushing gore, high-pitched screaming, and fascinating special effects. The storylines are super predictable of modern horror movies. In the film The Haunting based on the book by Shirley Jackson by not once do you see a ghost or blood, but it is just as, if not more, frightening as any other movie. The Haunting plays with your mind. This movie will definitely make you think twice about everything you observe while watching it. This movie made me ponder on everyday life. What truly is our reality? Are people we see as “mentally ill” the ones who are actually experiencing the true reality of the world? How do I know my reality is the same as everyone else's?