Psychological horror
"Psychological horror" is a term widely used to refer to a subgenre of
horror fiction, which uses knowledge (or lack thereof) and mood to create tension, as opposed to horror which derives its effect from gory
violence (often distinguished in the
film medium by the term "
splatter film"). Well-known examples include
The Sixth Sense and
The Blair Witch Project.
Psychological horror plays more on the psyche than to the instinctual reaction to violence or gore. By confusing and/or reaching the subconsious of the viewer, psychological horror is able to have a deeper effect that is more socially acceptable than a gory film, yet is also nearly universal in impact. This genre is similar to the psychological thriller in that it uses psychology, but in the
psychological thriller, the psychology is often applied to a character as opposed to the viewer.
Psychological horror is more common in literature than in modern film, and can also be found in some
computer and video games. Prominent examples of video games that make use of this brand of horror include the
Silent Hill series,
Condemned: Criminal Origins and
Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem.
1. A highly improbable sequence of events, that usually begins in an ordinary situation.
2. Main characters with whom one can identify.
3. Lives of others depend on the success of the protagonist.
4. The mood and setting are dark and/or foreboding.
5. The plot contains frightening and unexpected elements.
6. Violence (although in psychological horror violence is not necessary)
7. A third person perspective is used.
8. A plain style of cinematography is used.
Psychological horror is frightening to some viewers because of the tension built upon throughout the story.
Splatter films usually rely upon sudden "jolts" and direct physical threats to sympathetic characters, such as a monster jumping out from behind a corner. The primary effect of psychological horror is to play upon the anticipation of a perceived threat, or to confuse the viewer regarding the nature, or existence, of the threat (examples of the latter approach can be seen in the films
Let's Scare Jessica to Death and
Hour of the Wolf, and the game
Silent Hill 2).
Oftentimes, psychological horror films have no recourse to the "gore" prevalent in splatter films. However, some violence may be used to reinforce the notion of possible physical danger, while still keeping true to the psychological nature (an example would be the 1999 Japanese film,
Audition).
Occasionally - such as in the film
Blair Witch Project - the antagonist is never revealed. With no explicitly defined threat presented on screen, the "fear of the unknown" theme becomes central and can be explored fully.
