The Horror Film
The dawn of the nuclear age had a tremendous cultural impact, inviting new fears into the public consciousness. This site is intended as an exploration into the nuclear age and its impact on one of America's coping mechanisms, the horror film.
The horror genre of film is a cultural reflecting pool of what frightens us. Our history is motivated by our fears, which manifest in political and social issues. These issues have correlating cinematic commentaries, for example, abortion (Rosemary's Baby, 1968), class conflict (Land of the Dead, 2005), women's liberation (The Stepford Wives, 1975), religious fundamentalism (Frailty, 2001), immigration (District 9, 2009), the civil rights movement (Night of the Living Dead, 1968), the AIDS epidemic (Shivers, 1975), capitalism (Aliens, 1986), and, of course, nuclear arms.
The horror genre of film is a cultural reflecting pool of what frightens us. Our history is motivated by our fears, which manifest in political and social issues. These issues have correlating cinematic commentaries, for example, abortion (Rosemary's Baby, 1968), class conflict (Land of the Dead, 2005), women's liberation (The Stepford Wives, 1975), religious fundamentalism (Frailty, 2001), immigration (District 9, 2009), the civil rights movement (Night of the Living Dead, 1968), the AIDS epidemic (Shivers, 1975), capitalism (Aliens, 1986), and, of course, nuclear arms.
