The very first horror movies were called spook tales, a name that, to be frank, we think is a lot cooler than scary movies. The very first spook tale recorded was just a fragment called Le Squelette Joyeux created by The Lumière Brothers in 1895. The film shows a creepy skeleton dancing maniacally, capping off at just 45 seconds.
Where did horror films first flourish? During the First World War, the German government banned foreign movies from being shown in the country. This boosted the German film industry in 1914, as German movies were the only movies allowed. Because filmmakers took inspiration from their environment, which during that time was in wartime chaos, many movies captured warped, spooky landscapes and terrifying themes.
But, enough about then.
In 2017, the horror film industry grossed over $733 million in sales. Stephen King's It performed exceptionally well, along with other movies such as Get Out, Split and Happy Death Day.
Editor's Picks
Rocco Falleti
Get Out
Get Out
"There were a ton of unexpected twists, I mean, I was sitting on the edge of my seat the whole time. Jordan Peele knocked it out of the park; he's creating a whole new genre of scary movies."
Lydia Freudenberg
Conjuring
"It was the first scary movie I saw in the theaters. There was a guy next to me boasting about how he wasn't going to be scared, but he screamed the whole time. He actually almost fell out of his seat."
Zoe Glore
Trick 'r Treat
"There's this little character that has a creepy pumpkin mask on and he pops up in all of these places. You're NEVER ready for it."
Mallory Arnold
The Strangers
"My boyfriend made me watch this movie on our first date. I pretended like I was really cool and not scared at all, but secretly I was trying to look up the plot on my phone without him seeing because I was so freaked out."
Mallory Arnold is an editor. Feedback welcome at marnold@cityscenemediagroup.com.
