Scared Senseless: The Rise of Sensory Horror
Open Access
- Author:
- Perez-Reyes, Eduardo
- Graduate Program:
- Media Studies (MA)
- Degree:
- Master of Arts
- Document Type:
- Master Thesis
- Date of Defense:
- June 24, 2022
- Committee Members:
- Anthony Olorunnisola, Program Head/Chair
Kevin J Hagopian, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Matt Mc Allister, Committee Member
Lisa Sternlieb, Committee Member - Keywords:
- film
horror
sense
blindness
deafness - Abstract:
- Plot devices in mainstream horror movies which are employed to make the characters, (and the viewer), question their senses are nearly as old as the genre itself. However, in recent years, sensory-based horror films have become more prominent than ever. For this thesis, I intend to examine and analyze so-called “sensory horror” films which have been released throughout the decades. I will be defining a “sensory horror” as a film in the horror genre which has a premise hinging on the usage or absence of at least one of the five senses. These types of movies typically feature a Monster, (or several Monsters), who manipulate and/or exploit a sensory disadvantage borne by the protagonist. Through the analysis of these films, I intend to determine not only the appeal of sensory horror to consumers of the genre with focus being placed on Hush (2016), Lights Out (2016), Don’t Breathe (2016), A Quiet Place (2018), Bird Box (2018), and The Invisible Man (2020). (For further information on the plots of these films, please see the Film Appendix at the end. Reading this before proceeding with the rest of the thesis is heavily advised, as I will be making multiple references to plot points in every film listed there). I will be examining a selection of films which can be viewed in the appendix. I don’t intend to analyze these movies one at a time, but rather examine them repeatedly from different perspectives based on varying aspects of the sensory horror subgenre, as well as the patterns of sensory horror in video games, which have been strikingly echoed on film. The goal of this essay is not to analyze why these films are “popular”. Though their popularity is evident by the fact that they have been viewed by millions upon millions of people across the world, it is impossible to give an all-encompassing explanation for why their appeal is so widespread. Every single person who has watched them in a theater, on streaming, or on a torrent, has had a slightly different motivation for doing so. Instead, this essay seeks to examine why these films are effective. Or at least, how the seek to be effective; what strategies they employ for engaging and seducing the viewer into contemplating both the narrative and sociopolitical implications of their worlds – worlds where sight and sound are terrifying.