October is the perfect month to hunker down and begin your horror movie marathon. However, just because you pick a scary film does not mean you’ve picked a horror. Everyone these days uses the terms “horror” and “thriller” interchangeably, disregarding the difference between the two.
So, I’m going to deep dive into the worlds of Michael Myers, Freddie Kruger, Norman Bates and many more to decipher what the distinct features are and which is the scarier option.
What is a horror?
Horror movies are typically defined as movies which evoke strong emotions such as fear and dread in the audience. The audience sees this through frightening or unnatural events. Some classic tropes we expect to see in horror movies are: an abandoned house, jump-scares, creepy clowns, and “bad decisions” – which is when you are screaming at the character when they make the obviously wrong choice.
What is a thriller?
A thriller is a movie which evokes feelings of tension, excitement and suspense through high stakes, tension building situations. The plot is usually focused around the characters and their personal lives where something goes horribly wrong/sinister. Some classic tropes we expect to see in thriller movies are: an unreliable narrator – when the narrator only tells the story from their own point of view and potentially pushing the narrative in their favour-, disappearances or missing people, threatening letters or text messages and kidnappings.
Both horror and thriller movies evoke strong feelings in the audience’s, however, they build fear in different ways – as displayed by the differences in tropes. Classically, in thrillers the audience is more unsure of who the villain is until much later in the movie.
My Top 5 Horror Movies to watch this Autumn:
- ‘Halloween’ (1978) Directed by John Carpenter
- ‘Psycho’ (1960) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
- ‘The Babadook’ (2014) Directed by Jennifer Kent
- ‘Host’ (2020) Directed by Rob Savage
- ‘The Conjuring’ (2013) Directed by James Wan
The fear and suspense built in a horror movie is what grabs the audience in the first place. However, it’s the captivating plot that keeps the audience watching. Horror movies bring people closer together, whether that’s bonding over the intriguing plot or jumping out of your seats.
My Top 5 Thriller Movies to watch this Autumn:
- ‘Get Out’ (2017) Directed by Jordan Peele
- ‘The Silence of the lambs’ (1991) Directed by Jonathan Demme
- ‘The Shining’ (1980) Directed by Stanley Kubrick
- ‘Inception’ (2010) Directed by Christopher Nolan
- ‘Parasite’ (2019) Directed by Bong Joon Ho
Tension, intensity and thrill all wrapped up in one neat package, what more could you want? The epic build-up of suspense and fear is essential this Spooky Season for an adrenaline rush.
Both genres, in their own right, are terrifying. They execute terror and trepidation in different ways. But, which one is scarier? Everyone will have differing opinions on what they find “terrifying.” Ultimately, it is horror movies that intend to create fright and despair in the audience more so than a thriller. Thrillers tend to be more suspenseful and leave the audience with psychological questions rather than the gruesome and grotesque horror movies.
In these autumnal months there are no better genres to watch than thriller and horror. You cannot beat the fascinating and fearful movies that create feelings you never anticipated in yourself. The classics are timeless and the more modern movies will give you the fright of your life. Would you prefer to watch a fearful horror or a suspenseful thriller this Fright Fortnight?
Featured Image Credit: (L) Compass International Pictures (R) Universal Pictures.
