By Mariyah Ramirez 

As the spooky season approaches, horror fans should prepare themselves to explore all the subgenres of horror movies since there are so many options to choose from. 

Some fans of horror prefer the blood, guts, and gore. However, others may enjoy the psychological horror genre where they are mentally or emotionally frightened. 

The horror genre, with its roots dating back to the 19th century, has always sought to prey upon people’s biggest fears or nightmares, employing techniques involving gruesome imagery and jump scares. As a genre, it’s meant to make your skin crawl and strike fear into your heart. 

Horror directors often decide to intertwine their storylines with other genres like sci-fi, mystery, and drama with the intended purpose of lulling the audience into a sense of comfort before scaring them. 

The horror genre didn’t truly make its mark in the mainstream until the Universal Monsters were created. Notable films, based on 19th-century literature, within this era include “The Mummy,” “Frankenstein,” and “Dracula,” which have firmly established these iconic monsters as the faces of horror.

As the film industry expands, horror is constantly changing and evolving. 

Typically, a horror film features a menacing antagonist or creature, such as Micheal Myers, Chucky, and the Creature of the Black Lagoon.

Each subgenre adheres to its own set of rules when it comes to horror. For instance, the psychological genre focuses on the horror of surviving. Within this subgenre, there are home invasion films that tend to involve a group of people who are being threatened by an anonymous figure who is typically masked. “The Purge” is a well-known example of this subgenre where any crime including murder is legal for 12 hours commencing at the siren.

Drawing from the rich tapestry of myths and legends, the classic and mythological subgenre of horror has the ability to make us believe something sinister might be lurking in real life. This is exemplified by tales like La Llorona. 

The Horror genre boasts an extensive and ever-evolving array of subgenres catering to diverse tastes and evolving with changes in society and the passage of time.