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October 2022: Horror Films
Horror Films
Selector: Shannon McDermitt
"Horror is a universal language; we're all afraid. We're born afraid, we're all afraid of things: death, disfigurement, loss of a loved one. Everything that I'm afraid of, you're afraid of and vice versa."
John Carpenter
Content Warning: Given the nature of horror films, the content of this guide may be disturbing or triggering for some viewers. Please use discretion when deciding to view this guide.
Supernatural Horror: Stream Now on Swank, October 2022
Genres of Horror
Horror movies span a wide range of subgenres, each designed to trigger fear in different ways. Psychological horror plays on the mind, using paranoia, delusion, and inner turmoil rather than monsters or gore. Supernatural horror features ghosts, demons, or unexplained forces beyond human control, while slasher films focus on relentless killers and gruesome violence. Monster horror brings creatures—whether vampires, werewolves, zombies, or aliens—into the spotlight, often serving as metaphors for human fears.
Other subgenres rely on atmosphere and realism. Found footage horror mimics amateur recordings for an immersive, “real-life” feel. Folk horror taps into rural traditions, superstition, and isolation, while body horror unsettles viewers through grotesque transformations or mutilations. Even comedy horror exists, blending laughs with scares to both lighten and exaggerate terror. Together, these styles reflect the many ways fear can be explored on screen—whether through the supernatural, the psychological, or the all-too-human.
Genres of Horror, October 2022
You can order these DVDs from the Michigan eLibrary Catalog (MeLCat) to be delivered to campus. Select the link to go to the item record in the MeL database and select "Get this from MeLCat". If the title is available via Wayne State University's library catalog, click the green link Request from Catalog found in the item description.
Rent from MelCat
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The Conjuring
Director: James Wan
2013 -
Hereditary
Director: Ari Aster
2018 -
Insidious
Director: James Wan
2010 -
The Omen
Director: Richard Donner
1976
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Midsommar
Director: Ari Aster
2019 -
The Wicker Man
Director: Robin Hardy
1973 -
The Witch
Director: Robert Eggers
2015
eBooks
Articles of Note
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Maypoles, merriment and murder: An introduction to the folk horror subgenreSBS, March 21, 2019
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Is the Return of Folk Horror Here to Stay?Phasr, April 27, 2020
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16 Best Folk Horror Movies of All TimeLooper, May 13, 2021
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23 Folk Horror MoviesCreepy Catalog, April 25, 2022
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We Decoded All the Ingenious Art-Historical References in the Horror Movie ‘Midsommar,’ From Hilma af Klint to Judy Chicagoartnet news, September 3, 2019
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The Orphanage
Director: J.A. Bayona
2007 -
Ringu
Director: Hideo Nakata
1998
eBooks
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Japanese Horror Films and Their American Remakes
by
ISBN: 9781134109623Publication Date: 2013-10-23
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The Blob
Directors: Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr., Russell S. Doughten Jr.
1958 -
Creature from the Black Lagoon
Director: Jack Arnold
1954 -
It
Director: Andy Muschietti
2017 -
Little Shop of Horrors
Director: Frank Oz
1986 -
Stephen King's It (miniseries)
Director: Tommy Lee Wallace
1990 -
Young Frankenstein
Director: Mel Brooks
1974
eBooks
Articles of Note
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The Forgotten Woman Who Designed The Creature From The Black Lagoonnpr, March 28, 2019
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200 Years of Frankenstein On Stage and OnscreenLiterary Hub, April 27, 2018
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A User's Guide to FrankensteinMoMA, October 26, 2018
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10 Scary Movies That Actually Get 'Witches' RightScreenRant, October 28, 2020
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Black Christmas
Director: Bob Clark
1974 -
Candyman
Director: Bernard Rose
1992 -
Child's Play
Director: Tom Holland
1988 -
Friday the 13th
Director: Sean S. Cunningham
1980 -
Halloween
Director: John Carpenter
1978 -
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Director: Wes Craven
1984 -
Scream
Director: Wes Craven
1996 -
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Director: Marcus Nispel
2003
eBooks
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Halloween: Youth Cinema and the Horrors of Growing Up
by
ISBN: 9781315185453Publication Date: 2019-10-02 -
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Get Out
Director: Jordan Peele
2017 -
The Lighthouse
Director: Robert Eggers
2019 -
Misery
Director: Rob Reiner
1990 -
The Shining
Director: Stanley Kubrick
1980 -
The Silence of the Lambs
Director: Jonathan Demme
1991 -
Stephen King's It (miniseries)
Director: Tommy Lee Wallace
1990
Free to Stream on Tubi, October 2022
Horror Film Lists, October 2022
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14 Scariest Horror Movies About Cults Ever, RankedGamespot, June 10, 2019
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The 50 Best Horror Films From the 1980sEsquire, September 22, 2022
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The 50 Best Monster Movies Ever MadeTimeout, September 7, 2022
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The 50 Best Monster Movies of All TimePaste, September 29, 2021
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57 of the Scariest Horror Movies of All TimeToday, June 17, 2022
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100 Horror Films to See Before You DieMuseum of Pop Culture
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The 200 Best Horror Movies of All TimeIndieWire, September 23, 2022
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Spooked In The Stacks: 10 Iconic Horror Movie Library ScenesScreenRant, April 2, 2020
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These Are Some of the Best International, Non-English Horror Movies This Century, So FarMovieWeb, February 10, 2022
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Top 10 Horror Novels Made Into Great Horror MoviesHudson Booksellers, October 9, 2015
Websites, October 2022
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On the Psychology of Horror MoviesPsychology Today, October 13, 2021
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The Psychology Behind Why We Love (or Hate) HorrorHarvard Business Review, October 26, 2021
Jordan Peele, October 2022
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Jordan Peele’s Favorite Movies: 10 Films That Inspired the Modern Horror MasterIndieWire, August 7, 2022
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Jordan Peele on a Truly Terrifying Monster: RacismThe New York Times, February 16, 2017
Exhibitions, October 2022
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A Monstrous Centennial: Universal's Legacy of HorrorThe Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences October 12, 2012
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Scared to Death: The Thrill of the Horror FilmMuseum of Pop Culture
TikTok, October 2022
Horror Themes, October 2022
Horror Documentaries, October 2022
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Horror Noire
A look at the history of black horror films and the role of African Americans in the film genre since the beginning. -
Reflections on the Living Dead
The director, co-writer and producers gathered for the first time in 25 years for a roundtable discussion on the making of their horror classic -
Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched
Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched explores the folk horror phenomenon from its beginnings in a trilogy of films – Michael Reeves’ Witchfinder General (1968), Piers Haggard’s Blood on Satan’s Claw (1971) and Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man (1973) – through its proliferation on British television in the 1970s and its culturally specific manifestations in American, Asian, Australian and European horror, to the genre’s revival over the last decade.
eBooks: History & Criticism, October 2022
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Horror Noire: A History of Black American Horror from the 1890s to Present
by
ISBN: 9780415880190Publication Date: 2011-06-20 -
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Books in Print, October 2022
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Children of the Night
by
Call Number: PN 1995.9 .H6 R37 1997ISBN: 0786403373Publication Date: 1998-01-01 -
Grimm Pictures
by
Call Number: PN 1995.9.H6 R35 2007ISBN: 9780786431748Publication Date: 2007-08-31 -
Hollywood Horror from the Director's Chair
by
Call Number: PN 1995.9 .H6 W45 2008ISBN: 9780786432325Publication Date: 2007-08-29
Electronic Journals, October 2022
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FIAF international film archive database This link opens in a new windowContains: International index to film periodicals, 1972- International index to television periodicals, 1979- List of periodicals indexed Treasures from the film archives International directory of film and TV documentation collections and Bibliography of FIAF members' publications.
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Kanopy Streaming This link opens in a new windowKanopy is an on-demand streaming video service for educational institutions that provides access to more than 26,000 films. Kanopy works directly with filmmakers and film distribution companies to offer award-winning collections including titles from PBS, BBC, Criterion Collection, Media Education Foundation and more.
Book to Film Adaptations
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