Off Trend: The Other Horrors of the '00s and '10s
In many of the conversations about horror over the decades, there's an instinct to characterize decades by trends. One of the things I've noticed in this, is the tendency to choose to categorize decades by trends that started with independent horror, which were then capitalized on by studios. This is particularly true of the '90s, '00s, and often doesn't take into account the amount of influence independent films, foreign films and the home video market have on the successive decades.
When talking about the '90s and '00s in horror, they're often characterized as having been dominated by the glossy teen slasher and their sequels, starring a cast of Hollywood up and comers. Scream is in many ways the prototypical example, but because of both it’s success and it’s influence, it’s held as the example the rest were then imitating. The 00's are also associated with “torture porn” early on and remakes as the decade continued, often following a similar formula for casting. Hostel and Saw are most often referred to as being the stereotypical representations of the “torture porn” phase and the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake is generally considered the best of the remake trend, with A Nightmare on Elm Street being considered the worst. The 2010’s are often characterized by the rise of “elevated horror,” a term which never really found a solid meaning, but seems to have instead developed a negative connotation related to horror films that has something on their mind that isn’t just “pure entertainment.” It’s become a derisive label used for films heavy on theme, from filmmakers who have something to say or express using horror as the medium.
There is truth to this. These have all been dominant at the box office, and they were in no shortage. At the same time, the focus on these trends also leads to worthwhile films being forgotten or passed over. I think, particularly where the 90's and 00's are concerned, the home video market helped shaped the horror landscape even more than it had in the 80's, and one of the reasons for this is that independent horror was less interested in chasing the trends the studios were following.
The 80's were dominated by the slasher film, and the many sequels they spawned. This trend did start in independent horror, but once the studios caught on and started releasing their own, it didn't stop being a major focus of independent horror producers. V/H/S shelves were full of slasher films from both studios and independents. It demonstrated how profitable the home video market could be, which gave filmmakers room for projects that were more personal and/or exploring other sub genres and genre mashups.
The home video market also expanded exposure to, and interest in, foreign film more widely. One of the beauties of horror history is the genre has never been a uniquely American phenomenon. American filmmakers have been influenced by and have influenced filmmakers and creators in other countries, and this international genre conversation has only become fruitful and more influential in the 00’s. This is, undoubtedly, a good thing for filmmakers in horror and for dedicated horror fans and audiences. Filmmakers from all over the world have a better chance of their films being seen by that many more people, in many more places. Audiences in geographic areas who previously wouldn't have had access to many of these foreign and independent films now did, which helped expand their influence on what audiences were willing to try or actively wanted to see.
There’s also a tendency among both horror fans and people who are looking casually at horror from outside (or looking down on the genre and it’s fandom) to characterize a period of horror, be it in the past or today, as being, “All sequels, remakes and reboots.” When this happens, they’re not taking independent or foreign horror into account. These are both areas of intense creativity, and filmmakers exploring every dark corner and creaky noise outside of the spotlight of the film press not focused on horror and the marketing machine that supports studio created filmmaking.
It’s not a coincidence that the term “elevated horror” started out a reference to certain films, from people who considered themselves outside of horror fandom. It was essentially a term being used by critics and other film buffs who generally looked down on the genre as a signal that, “Oh, this film is different from those other horror films.” It was, basically, people giving themselves permission to like horror films, even though they felt horror was too “low brow” for them. The thing is, every decade has had horror films created by filmmakers who were taking an almost literary approach to the genre, using its tropes and clichés to say something either about their own experience or the human condition. The “elevated” horror films of the 2010’s, were not only not new, but in many ways, many of the independent and foreign films which came to some level of popularity and status after being released to DVD and Blu-ray helped create an appetite in the horror audience, which independent studios took note of, resulting in more of a push on the festival circuit. Films like The Babadook, The Witch and It Follows are following in the footsteps of Lake Mungo, Session 9, May, The Devil’s Backbone, Hard Candy and Bug, which helped insure there was going to be an audience for horror made by filmmakers who had a bit more on their mind, when those films which brought the term “elevated horror” to popular vocabulary.
There is also an often expressed sense that there haven't been any dominant trends in horror in the last five years or so, which like so much of what's been happening in the film industry more broadly, is being suggested to be one of the results of the streaming era. There's truth to this too, but I do think when we look back at the first decade of the 2000s and the then 2010s, this process was. already underway.