I talk a lot of the subgenres of horror, but it’s come to my attention that I really haven’t explained those much. I’ve included some websites and articles that go more in depth to these subgenres to help further understanding. But here’s a quick overview of a few major subgenres of horror and the differences between them.
Slasher- Most films within the slasher subgenre include a main killer who goes after a group of people. Many of these films appeared in the 1980s like A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th. There are also some predecessors like Halloween (1978) as well as some that have continued into modern times like Scream VI (2023).
Psychological- These are the horror movies that make you think a little deeper, whether you’re solving a case alongside the protagonist like in The Silence of the Lambs or because of the reasons the atrocities are happening like in The Shining.
Found Footage- This subgenre is one of the newest, as it was popularized by The Blair Witch Project (1999). These are films that as directed as if all of the camerawork is done by camcorders by regular people. They often follow a premise that doesn’t show much but evokes a real-life kind of fear.
Paranormal- These films are all about the creepies found in adjacent dimensions like ghosts or demons. These films are one of the most popular subgenres because it encompasses everything from The Exorcist (1973) to Ghostbusters (1984).
Monster- This subgenre is the oldest type of horror movie, and still one of the most popular. All of the classic creatures like Dracula and Frankenstein are found within monster movies, and are still popularized today with derivatives of these films like Renfield (2023) and semi-new ideas like Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023).
Comedic- Every horror movie that’s more funny than scary fits into this subgenre. Many of these movies are spoofs of popular horror movies like Scary Movie (2000), but others are just hilarious within the context of a horrifying scenario like Shaun of the Dead (2004).
Many horror movies fit into more than one subgenre, and I think that’s a really good thing because if they just stuck to one lane, it wouldn’t be as intense as it could be if it pulled from many of them.
Check out these websites below that go into more detail about these subgenres and then some! Do you have a favorite?
https://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/genre-breakdown-horror-films/
https://www.lafilm.edu/blog/subgenres-of-horror-films-explained/