GHOSTS, ZOMBIES, SATANISM AND YOUR

FAMILY (60’S -70’S)

Liam & Josie

Horror movies of the 70’s reflected the grim outlook of the decade. However, this is also when big budget, respectable horror returned. These dealt with contemporary societal issues, and mainly addressed genuine psychological fears.

One of the recurring fears was of children and the fear of childbirth.

The Exorcist (1973)

One of the main films of the era that dealt with the fear of children is ‘The Exorcist’. It was banned from the UK until 1999, and was voted ‘The scariest movie of all time’.

These films reinforce that children can be unwanted and do bad things to their parents.

The crumbling family becomes the source of fear and mistrust, implying that the enemy can be found closer to you that originally thought.

Satanism also comes into this as the person is possessed by the devil, and the exorcism is to get rid of the devil.

Scary Children

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Night of the living dead was one of the first ever zombie films, which came out in 1968, but this film started off the comedy horror genre. Parts of this film represent the discontent of American society caused by events such as wars, The Wall Street Crash and generally bad things happening in their own country, as well as ones further away.

Ghosts on the Big Screen

Many ghost stories appeared within the 1960’s which can be seen as being a reaction against the elaborate creature features made in the late 1950’s.

The horror lies in the journey the protagonist takes between sanity and psychosis.

These reflect a preoccupation with change, with mainly woman on the frontlines being the first(And many times, the only ones) to be destroyed by it.

Ghosts

FAMO US HO RRO R FIL MS FRO M THIS ER A

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

Carnival of Souls (1962)

The Stepford Wives (1975)

Alice, Sweet Alice (1976)

The Omen (1976)

Halloween (1978)