The horror-of-the-demonic film is one of three subgenres of the horror film that grew out of mid- and late-20th-century American culture.

Characteristics

As described by the film aesthetician Charles Derry, the horror-of-the-demonic film suggested that the world was horrible because evil forces existed that were constantly undermining the quality of existence. The evil forces could either remain mere spiritual presences, as in ''

Don't Look Now ''Don't Look Now'' ( it, A Venezia... un Dicembre rosso shocking, lit=In Venice... a shocking red December) is a 1973 English-language film in the thriller genre directed by Nicolas Roeg, adapted from the 1971 short story by Daphne du Mauri ...

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Nicolas Roeg Nicolas Jack Roeg (; 15 August 1928 – 23 November 2018) was an English film director and cinematographer, best known for directing ''Performance'' (1970), '' Walkabout'' (1971), ''Don't Look Now'' (1973), '' The Man Who Fell to Earth'' (1976 ...

, 1973), or they could take the guise of witches, demons, or devils. "Films about witchcraft and ghosts have always been with us. Indeed, the idea of an evil incarnate has a long American tradition... The themes of repression and evil forces have long been a staple of American literature, from

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associated with that t ...

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The House of Seven Gables ''The House of the Seven Gables: A Romance'' is a Gothic novel written beginning in mid-1850 by American author Nathaniel Hawthorne and published in April 1851 by Ticknor and Fields of Boston. The novel follows a New England family and their ance ...

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Washington Irving Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and " The Legen ...

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The Legend of Sleepy Hollow "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a gothic story by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories titled ''The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.'' Written while Irving was living abroad in Birm ...

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Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...

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The Raven "The Raven" is a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe. First published in January 1845, the poem is often noted for its musicality, stylized language, and supernatural atmosphere. It tells of a distraught lover who is paid a myst ...

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Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

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The Turn of the Screw ''The Turn of the Screw'' is an 1898 horror novella by Henry James which first appeared in serial format in '' Collier's Weekly'' (January 27 – April 16, 1898). In October 1898, it was collected in ''The Two Magics'', published by Macmil ...

''."Charles Derry, ''Dark Dreams: A Psychological History of the Modern Horror Film''; A S Barnes & Co, 1977. Derry cites two films as "the most important forerunners in this genre": ''

Day of Wrath ''Day of Wrath'' ( da, Vredens dag) is a 1943 Danish drama film directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and starring Lisbeth Movin, Thorkild Roose and Preben Lerdorff Rye. It is an adaptation of the 1909 play '' Anne Pedersdotter'' by Hans Wiers-Jens ...

'' (Carl Dreyer, Denmark, 1943) and ''The Devil's Wanton'' (Ingmar Bergman, Sweden, 1948), although Derry qualifies the second film as "not a horror film".

Themes

Four themes that are common to these films lend a consistency to this genre. * The idea of vengeance, noted especially in ''The Haunted Palace'' (Roger Corman, 1963), ''Horror Hotel'' (John Moxey, 1960), and ''The Exorcist (film), The Exorcist'' (William Friedkin, 1973) * The corruption of innocence, noted in ''The Other (1972 film), The Other'' (Robert Mulligan, 1972), ''Rosemary's Baby (film), Rosemary's Baby'' (Roman Polanski, 1968), ''The Exorcist'', ''The Witches (1966 film), The Witches'' aka ''The Devil's Own'' (Cyril Frankel, 1966), ''

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, 1973), and ''The Mephisto Waltz'' (Paul Wendkos, 1971) * Mystic phenomena, especially possession, noted in ''The Mephisto Waltz'', ''Burn Witch Burn (film), Burn, Witch, Burn'' (Sidney Hayers, 1962), ''The Other'', ''Rosemary's Baby'', ''The Possession of Joel Delaney'' (Waris Hussein, 1972), ''The Innocents (1961 film), The Innocents'' (Jack Clayton, 1961), and ''The Exorcist''. * The emphasis on Christian symbology, noted in ''Horror Hotel'', ''Rosemary's Baby'', ''The Other'', ''Don't Look Now'', ''The Exorcist'', ''Burn, Witch, Burn'', ''The Haunted Palace'' (Roger Corman, 1963), ''Witchcraft'' (William J. Hole Jr, 1962), ''Diary of a Madman (film), Diary of a Madman'' (Reginald Le Borg, 1963), and the "Morella" segment of ''Tales of Terror'' (Roger Corman, 1962).

References

{{Gothic Horror genres