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Essays about horror films
Essays on horror films
Essays about horror films
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This essay will explore how horror films reflect the fears of both individuals and societies focusing on the film Cloverfield (Cloverfield, 2008). Films can often serve as an astute reflection of reality in a varying number of ways depending on the genre. The horror film can often serve as an analogy for the horrors of the real world. In the case of Cloverfield Director Matt Reeves creates a solid allegory of the September 11th terror attacks on New York City. “The horror film can bring us uncomfortably close to the worst that could ever happen—to a character or to ourselves” (Kawin, 2012). Cloverfield opens with a group of twentysomething New Yorkers having a going-away party for their friend. One of the group, Hud, is tasked with using …show more content…
In Cloverfield’s case the Statue of Liberty stands in for the World Trade Centre, the symbol of American freedom decapitated by the unseen danger. Cloverfield’s producer J.J. Abrams makes no attempt to hide the Cloverfield’s intention of echoing the traumatic events of 9/11. In an interview with Time magazine in 2008 Abrams stated “With Cloverfield we were trying to create a film that would be entertaining and, as a by‐product of the subject matter, perhaps be a catharsis. We wanted to let people live through their wildest fears but be in a safe place where the enemy is the size of a skyscraper instead of some stateless, unseen cowardly terrorist.” (Winters Keegan, …show more content…
To judge if Cloverfield is truly successful in its goal of accurately depicting the fear, panic and confusion of New Yorkers on the streets adjacent to the World Trade Centre on the morning of 9/11 we need to look to those who were there on the attacks. In an article titled “On Cloverfield and 9/11” author Jessica Wakeman compares her experience of watching Cloverfield for the first time with her personal experiences on the morning of 9/11 saying “Cloverfield . . . blew me away for its spot-on depiction of being attacked . . . The first 45 minutes of Cloverfield is the closest I think I can get to showing sometime else what 9/11 was like for me on an emotional level. Cloverfield nails what that morning felt like: the confusion at first, and then fear over-whelms and all you can think about is the possibility of dying and needing to escape by getting out-out-out but where can you go because the subways and trains aren’t running?” (Wakeman,
In 102 Minutes, Chapter 7, authors Dwyer and Flynn use ethos, logos, and pathos to appeal to the readers’ consciences, minds and hearts regarding what happened to the people inside the Twin Towers on 9/11. Of particular interest are the following uses of the three appeals.
The Strange Fascination of People of Turning Catastrophes Into a Media Event This opinion article tries to outline why the destruction of New York is presented in films and takes the 11th September terrorist attack as a case study and it attempts to find reasons why disasters that happen in real life remain stamped in the imagination of the human psyche. The destruction of the New York skyline has long been an obsession for the American film industry. It is depicted a lot in the Planet of the Apes series when in the first film's memorable closing sequence we see Charlton Heston finding the Statue of liberty half buried in the sand.
All of the family members of the passengers that were on the flight cooperated in making this movie. The reason why they all agree in cooperating with the movie is because "previous attempts to document the crash focused on just the few passengers who had been able to make calls to their family members." Paul Greengrass went as far as to collect as much information about the flight as possible like "the plane's exact movements in the air, the times and content of phone calls to family members, recordings from inside the cockpit and reaction on the ground from air traffic controllers and the military, as well as details about the passengers' personalities and mannerisms provided by the families." You have to give it up to the director for trying to recreate calamity of the situation as accurately as possible. His hard work payed off when he was nominated for an Oscar for directing this movie. The way it demonstrates terrorism in pop culture is by showing a accurate representation of the events that happened on that fateful day and showing the heroic actions of the passengers trying to overtake the
The film industry had to postpone and/or cancel the film shooting in New York and took the time to rewrite the script. If the producers and directors are planning the set the movie in New York City, they need to be aware that “while they are filming in New York in the wake of the devastation…went to great lengths to avoid any references to the tragedy”(Harrison-Kahan). A large number of films set in New York had the Twin Towers in the background shot and it needed to be either digitally removed, delete the scene altogether, or leave it as it is; except for films that are set on a time period before 9/11 by digitally adding the Twin Towers. It is indeed hard for Hollywood to rethink and follow the guidelines to censorship and avoid offending the audiences who experience trauma over 9/11. Author Lori Harrison-Kahan writes, “In the aftermath of 9/11, Hollywood feared that its standard fare of murder and mayhem might alienate American [audiance], from those who directly witnessed, experienced, and lost loved ones in the attacks to those compelled to watch the towers fall over and over…”(42). So, audiences will fear that, for example, action movies will contain explosions and collapsed buidings. It is best for people who experience lost and witnessing the attack to avoid certain genres that will cause them
When Cloverfield stormed the big screen in Godzilla-like fashion, it was clear producer J.J. Abrams was on to something. The film followed a group of adults that found themselves in the dead-center of an alien attack - with the “survivors” documenting the events using a camcorder. Now, when the film ended, viewers had absolutely no idea what was happening or whether or not humanity managed to secure the upper hand in the alien invasion. And to be honest, that was half the fun.
More than a year and a half ago, on September 11, 2001, a group of terrorists from the al Qaeda network hijacked four airliners and successfully used three of them to attack the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and the World Trade Center in New York. These attacks marked the first time in American history that a full-scale attack was executed on our own soil, and they affected the American people on a number of different levels. Americans found themselves shocked that such an event could occur, as well as reeling with grief for the more than 3,000 people who died in the tragedy. Soon, the shock and grief that penetrated the hearts of the American people gave way, in part, to a sense of national pride. American flags waved from every overpass, and “God Bless America” could be heard on every r...
First shock, then terror, followed by sorrow and lastly rage were my emotions on September 11th, 2001 when a hijacked airliner crashed into the Twin Towers in New York City. Tunh! Tunh! Tunh! All circuits are busy; please try again at a later time. This message kept repeating as I tried to call my cousin in New York, who was working in the South Tower. At the time the American Airlines flight 11 just moments earlier crashed into the North Tower. I sat in my house in shock and terror. Then at 9:05 am, about twenty minutes after the first collision, United Airlines flight 175 crashed into the South Tower. I began to feel the knot in my throat getting tighter and tighter until I just finally began crying. I still didn’t have any word from my cousin and when both of the buildings plummeted to the streets below, I thought for sure he was dead. When I returned home, my mother informed me that he had gotten out before the buildings went down. Turning on the television was another ordeal in itself. All of the news stations repeatedly exhibited the buildings plunging to the ground. I felt extreme sorrow for the families of those who had not made it out alive. They had to relive that horrible moment over and over again. I was also outraged. How could such an act be committed on American soil? The only way we can answer this question is to look at the terrorists who could do such an act and what possible reasons they have for doing it.
Michael Moore brilliantly manipulates the conventions of film to make the audience see and feel these political and moral issues the way he does. Moore, an outspoken loather of the President has shaped his film like a cinematic bullet, with character assassination as his priority. “Fahrenheit 9/11” shows a series of solemn images and sound bites, arranged as a critical history of the President’s actions since he took office, including the abuse of power and use of fear tactics that have been employed for his monetary and narcissistic gains. Regardless of personal political leanings, “Fahrenheit 9/11” is an amazing accomplishment of individual expression and anti-government aggression.
Modern day horror films are very different from the first horror films which date back to the late nineteenth century, but the goal of shocking the audience is still the same. Over the course of its existence, the horror industry has had to innovate new ways to keep its viewers on the edge of their seats. Horror films are frightening films created solely to ignite anxiety and panic within the viewers. Dread and alarm summon deep fears by captivating the audience with a shocking, terrifying, and unpredictable finale that leaves the viewer stunned. (Horror Films)
It was a normal day in New York City, normal for the people around the country in their normal routine, on their way to work or just out and about in town. When suddenly, at about 8:45, their routine took a u-turn. Paul R. Pillar, a former deputy chief of the Counterterrorist Center at the Central Intelligence Agency, once wrote, “9/11 was one of the most traumatic events in U.S. history.” In other words, out of all of the horrible events that our country has faced, all the war, imprisonment, and slaughter, 9/11 is most likely the worst. This possibly for the fact that thousands of American’s lives were lost, and hundreds of them “died just doin’ what they do” , as Alan Jackson sang in “Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning.” The positive and negative effects of 9/11 were shown to me through books, videos, songs, and my parents, my mom having seen the second plane crash on live tv. 9/11 affected the United States by changing the view on terrorism, a rise of patriotism, and upgrading the security of airports and major cities.
Some of us might remember how beautiful it was this day, how blue and clear the sky was. September 11, 2001 is not just a regular day anymore it marks the day terrorists attacked, not only New York but also America. Much like Pearl Harbor this is the day we were taken off guard and the day we struck back and went to war. With everything stripped away from us and no sense of what was going on, a country that was just fine on September 10, 2011 was now broken, on such a beautiful day such terror occurred. According to The Best American Magazine Writing in the article “Experts from the Encyclopedia of 9/11” there is a quote that reads, “Many of us remember going to work that week, searching for an appropriate journalistic response to a world that was changing in ways we couldn’t yet see.”(page 107) When our country was expecting failure and loss of control, we pulled together as a nation and started picking up the pieces from this tragedy that tore us apart this day. After reading this article I asked myself, how could anyone do such a horrible thing? Why would anyone want to give the...
One could easily dismiss movies as superficial, unnecessarily violent spectacles, although such a viewpoint is distressingly pessimistic and myopic. In a given year, several films are released which have long-lasting effects on large numbers of individuals. These pictures speak
Do horror films mirror our society’s fears and social problems? Horror movies gives audiences a jolt of fear as the most frightening scene takes place on screen, but is that scene of horror connected to the horrors of our everyday life. The problems we fear everyday are coming alive on the big screen. Creators of these films are cleverly disguise our fears of isolation, change, and the unknown into their films. Or do we as a society have a sick need to have these fears scare us? Throughout the years of film history movie monsters have mirrored our social problems and fears; as our society changes through the years so do the monsters on the big screen.
Too many horror films provide scares and screams throughout their respective cinemas. Not many viewers follow what kind of model the films follow to appease their viewers. However, after reading film theorist Carol Clover’s novel, watching one of the films she associates in the novel “Halloween”, and also watching the movie “Nightmare on Elm Street” I say almost every “slasher” or horror film follows a model similar to Clover’s. The model is a female is featured as a primary character and that females tend to always overcome a situation at some point throughout the film.
On September 11th, 2001 something occurred that shocked and stunned all of America. The morning started out like any other, but it was definitely not a normal day. All New Yorkers started their work day as usual. For many of them this meant going to work at the iconic twin towers. On September 11th, 2001 four different planes were hijacked, and used as weapons against the U.S. Two planes crashed into the World Trade Center. One hit each of the twin towers in New York City. One crashed into the Pentagon in Washington. The last one crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Thousands of lives were lost that day. There are many images and symbols that can represent this tragic event. In the photo, the flag functions as a symbol for the idea that America will not be defeated.