The Hot Take of the Horror Genre

by Amy Walker

In a one-on-one interview this past week, Dr. Sarah Tice, a film professor and horror fanatic at Florida Southern College, expressed her expertise in the field of horror.
Dr. Tice is a graduate of the University of Central Florida in 2019 and has worked on a variety of projects over her career. She and her husband have filmed numerous short horror films that have won awards.

She claims that many critically acclaimed horror movies do not exemplify a true horror movie. Rather, many low-rated movies( according to critics) follow the elements of horror to a much greater extent. She also expressed how the genre of horror is ever-evolving and as times change so do the fears in these films. According to Dr. Tice there are three major types of horror movies such as slasher, jumpscare, and fear of the unknown (S. Trice, personal communication, December 6, 2023).

In our interview, Dr. Tice exclaimed that the point of horror “is to invoke fear, terror, or some kind of guttural reaction.” (S. Trice, personal communication, December 6, 2023). She went on to state that many people believe that the main aspect of horror is gore, which in her expertise, is simply not the case. She states that this common misconception isnt believed by true fans of horror as they desire something that is “intellectual”.  She states in order for filmmakers to get amovie into the horror genre, by using sound, cinematography, and editing that can create a “viseral” reaction and overall feeling of dread to viewers. 

Dr. Tice goes onto explain in the interview that a horror movie needs to have some sort of build up. Following this, there can either be a release of this tension or push through the tension. She goes onto state that many people believe that there has to be actual horror to make a horror movie which is not the case. One example she provided was the movie Jaws, which is a film many would not view as horror but uses so many elements that allow it to fit into the film genre. 

Dr Tice claims there is a stigma surrounding the genre of horror films. Many people do not want to admit it; they like to watch movies in the genre such as Harry Potter and Jaws.

She states in recent years certain subgenres have become very innovative such as psychological. As of recently we have been going into trauma-based and mental illness horror such as the movie Smile and Talk to Me. This innovation makes viewers think, “there is something beyond what I can see, but it is inside of me” (S. Trice, personal communication, December 6, 2023). This innovation in the psychological subgenre of horror peaked after COVID lockdowns, and people were “left with their own thoughts”. People are not as scared of the potential monsters under their beds but rather themselves. 

The following audio is a short clip from the December 6th, 2023 interview with Dr. Sarah Tice:

In general, the genre of horror is ever-evolving. Many horror enthusiasts like Dr. Tice look forward to see future developments in the movie genre and the new sub-genres that are created as time continues. What could be next?