Are These Horror Films?

[GhostDog]

As an avid horror fanatic and all-around cinephile, I've found myself pondering a question recently. Are the following films horror movies? The following films are the selected few that I have repeatedly seen on lists, top tens and just generally affiliated with the horror genre. I'd like to say that I enjoy all of these films, some are even my personal favorites. So I'd like to ask my fellow horror enthusiasts to weigh in on the matter. Are the following films in any way horror films?

Battle Royale (2000)
Directed by Kinji Fukasaku

In the future, the Japanese government captures a ninth-grade class and forces them to compete in a deadly game where victory is achieved by killing their fellow students.

Horror Credentials: Certainly a movie with horrific subject matter. Battle Royale features teenagers graphically murdering each other as they try to survive. Two students in particular fuel the bloodshed, the first being Kazuo an amoral mute psychopath and the only student to willingly volunteer, and Mitsuko a sociopathic seductress who kills with glee.

American Psycho (2000)
Directed by Mary Harron

A dark and violent satire of the American 1980's that follows Patrick Bateman, a Wall Street financier and prototypical yuppie who hides a psychopathic alter ego from his peers.

Horror Credentials: Could be considered psychological horror. The protagonist is a mentally unhinged, self-obsessed serial killer who graphically murders, rapes, and mutilates strangers and peers alike.

Se7en (1995)
Directed by David Fincher

Two detectives, a short-tempered but idealistic rookie and a veteran nearing retirement, hunt down a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as his modus operandi.

Horror Credentials: Another possible psychological horror film. Se7en is a dark tense film that features horrific murders each centered on one of the seven deadly sins each more graphic than the last.

The Terminator (1984)
Directed by James Cameron

An unrelenting cyborg assassin know as a Terminator is sent back in time to prevent the birth of John Connor, future leader of the Human Resistance, by hunting down his mother Sarah, and her protector from the future, Kyle Reese, and killing them.

Horror Credentials: A slasher flick with a twist. An unstoppable killing machine mercilessly hunts down Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese. The Terminator mimics voices, massacres an entire police station and surgically removes his own fleshy eye before dropping it into a dirty bathroom sink.

Donnie Darko (2001)
Directed by Richard Kelly

A mind-bending journey through suburban America that follows a delusional teenager, who in the wake of surviving a near-fatal and bizarre accident, is plagued by visions of a dead man in a demonic rabbit suit who manipulates him to commit a series of crimes that have extenuating consequences.

Horror Credentials: Psychologically disturbing, Donnie Darko features dark and sinister elements throughout. And Frank, a mumbling corpse in a grotesque bunny suit is intensely scarring.

Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Directed by Jonathan Demme

Clarice Starling, a young FBI trainee, seeks the aid of the imprisoned Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer, in tracking down a psychopath nicknamed Buffalo Bill, who collects skin from the women he kills.

Horror Credentials: The horror is split between the calculative Hannibal, who plays mind games with FBI Agent Clarice Starling, and the psychotic Buffalo Bill, who kidnaps and starves women before using their skin to craft a suit of flesh. Their respective climaxes, Hannibal escaping his cell by killing and partially devouring his guards, and Buffalo Bill stalking a blinded Clarice in a pitch-black basement, are both suspenseful and chilling.

Predator (1987)
Directed by John McTiernan

While on a mission in a Central American jungle, a group of elite commandos are ritualistically stalked by an extraterrestrial hunter, who collects trophies from his prey. As the commandos are picked off one by one, the film culminates in a primal fight to the death between the commando leader Dutch and the alien hunter.

Horror Credentials: In true slasher fashion, the Predator relentlessly hunts down any victim he deems worthy prey with an arsenal of alien weaponry. The Predator is an invisible hunter who collects skulls as trophies, eerily mimics random words and hangs his skinned prey.

Cape Fear (1991)
Directed by Martin Scorsese

Recently released convict, Max Cady uses his knowledge of the law and it's loopholes to mercilessly pursue and terrorize his former counselor who he blames for his 14-year imprisonment. In his unflinching pursuit of vengeance against public defender Sam Bowden, Max Cady manipulates the law, stalks Sam's family and seduces Sam's teenaged daughter. Culminating in a ferocious climax on the raging tides of Cape Fear.

Horror Credentials: Max Cady is a psychopath with a southern drawl capable of despicable acts that include poisoning the family dog, raping and mutilating Sam Bowden's colleague, and committing several gruesome murders. The final scene of Max Cady screaming in tongues before ultimately sinking beneath the dark stormy waters without breaking eye contact with his victim is simply chilling.

If I missed any films with similar questionable status feel free to mention them in the comments below?

[GhostDog]

I was looking for a general consensus from an audience of horror enthusiasts.

[Angra]

MHO

Horror:

Battle Royale
American Psycho
Donnie Darco
Predator
Terminator


Thriller:

Se7even
Silence of the Lambs
Cape Fear


But i guess it's a matter of opinion. Especially Terminator and Donnie Darko are hard to put in just 1 category.

[Anthropophagus]

I`m not interested in labels,if the movies are good enough for me then that's fine.Call them what you will.

[GhostDog]

Thanks for the contribution guys.

[metternich1815]

I tend to cast a wide net for what is and is not a horror movie. As with all genres, it is a difficult genre to define. The lines involve some degree of subjectivity. As for my own opinion, I consider almost all of those as definitely horror. The only ones that are, to me, debatable are Donnie Darko and The Terminator.

With Donnie Darko, I see the horror elements of the film, but it just does not feel like a horror movie. With the Terminator, I lean on the side it is a horror, but others have argued it is not. It definitely has the feel of a horror film. The problem with both of those films are that they encompass several genres. The Terminator has elements of romance, action, science fiction, and horror. Donnie Darko has elements of romance, comedy, horror, science fiction, fantasy, and psychological thriller (and possibly more).

As for the whole thriller debate, in my opinion, not all thrillers are horror, but there are some that definitely qualify. Examples of thrillers that are horror, in my opinion, are The Silence of the Lambs, Cape Fear, Seven, and American Psycho (Frailty is a good example too). Films like North by Northwest, Double Jeopardy, Rear Window, and Vertigo are examples of thrillers that lie outside the horror genre, in my opinion. Battle Royale could probably be argued as within the horror thriller category as well.

Predator is, without question, a horror film, in my opinion. A film is not not horror, simply because it has elements of science fiction. In fact, I pretty much group all the science fiction films of the 1950s in the horror genre. In regards to Predator, in addition to the aforementioned elements, I also think it has slasheresque elements. I call it slasheresque because it definitely has elements of a slasher film, but is not a slasher. Alien (1979) is slasheresque as well.

Some have little interest in what is within a genre and what is not probably because the lines given, admittedly, are often arbitrary. Personally, I find it a fascinating topic, though, ultimately, there is definitely a subjective element to defining the genre.

[GhostDog]

Originally Posted by metternich1815

I tend to cast a wide net for what is and is not a horror movie. As with all genres, it is a difficult genre to define. The lines involve some degree of subjectivity. As for my own opinion, I consider almost all of those as definitely horror. The only ones that are, to me, debatable are Donnie Darko and The Terminator.

With Donnie Darko, I see the horror elements of the film, but it just does not feel like a horror movie. With the Terminator, I lean on the side it is a horror, but others have argued it is not. It definitely has the feel of a horror film. The problem with both of those films are that they encompass several genres. The Terminator has elements of romance, action, science fiction, and horror. Donnie Darko has elements of romance, comedy, horror, science fiction, fantasy, and psychological thriller (and possibly more).

As for the whole thriller debate, in my opinion, not all thrillers are horror, but there are some that definitely qualify. Examples of thrillers that are horror, in my opinion, are The Silence of the Lambs, Cape Fear, Seven, and American Psycho (Frailty is a good example too). Films like North by Northwest, Double Jeopardy, Rear Window, and Vertigo are examples of thrillers that lie outside the horror genre, in my opinion. Battle Royale could probably be argued as within the horror thriller category as well.

Predator is, without question, a horror film, in my opinion. A film is not not horror, simply because it has elements of science fiction. In fact, I pretty much group all the science fiction films of the 1950s in the horror genre. In regards to Predator, in addition to the aforementioned elements, I also think it has slasheresque elements. I call it slasheresque because it definitely has elements of a slasher film, but is not a slasher. Alien (1979) is slasheresque as well.

Some have little interest in what is within a genre and what is not probably because the lines given, admittedly, are often arbitrary. Personally, I find it a fascinating topic, though, ultimately, there is definitely a subjective element to defining the genre.

I completely agree that some films especially the unique are often hard to categorize and that doing so is sometime superfluous.

But I was hoping to having an in depth discussion on what makes these films horror movies or, at least, why people consider them horror movies more often then not.

By the way, I love Frailty. A great film it is very much in line with the others on the list.

[Kandarian Demon]

The only one of these movies that I would consider horror is Predator... and that just shows you that there really is no clear answer to that question.

There are also movies that I consider horror that I know a lot of other people definitely don't.

[Giganticface]

I have a really broad definition of horror, too, but like metternich I believe films can legitimately be multi-genre. I consider genre classifications to be additive, rather than exclusive. I consider all of the films on your list horror in some sense.

However, for the sake of discussion, if I were to give each of those films one major genre, it would be this:

Battle Royale - Adventure. Although since body parts get splattered all over the place, and children are killing each other, I'd say it's also a "gore" film, which isn't necessarily horror, but usually is. And also an exploitation film.

American Psycho - Black Comedy. Although since he murders people violently, it's a good candidate for being classified as Horror -- the psychotic killer variety, ala Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (subject-wise, not tone-wise). Since the movie is about the killer, not the victims, to me, that doesn't meet one of the core qualities of a horror film. I'd put it in the same realm as Sightseers.

Donnie Darko - Drama. However, it's also *almost* equal parts Horror. The film truly is about the victim, tormented by his own psychological plight. And it's pretty dang creepy. This one was the toughest choice for me.

Predator - Action. And to a lesser degree, Sci-Fi. However, I agree with metternich that it's like a slasher, and you could make a case that it's Horror at its core.

Terminator - Action. Although it contains plenty of horror elements -- not as typical as Predator though. Also, obviously, largely Sci-Fi.

Se7en - Crime Thriller, based on its primary plot structure. The detectives aren't really under attack by the killer, and you only find out that they are via the twist. However, it's hella gritty, and extremely influential to the post-2000 horror style that uses that crisp, desaturated look with disturbing set pieces. It belongs on horror lists, of course.

Silence of the Lambs - Crime Thriller, for the same reasons as Se7en. The main character (Clarice) isn't really under attack by Hannibal, and she's the one chasing Buffalo Bill, not the other way around. It's not structured like horror. However, the violence is darn close to horror, and Hannibal is an iconic villain in the horror genre. The scenes with Buffalo Bill qualify as horror scenes, it's just that we don't really know his victim, as she's not really a character in the film, so we don't really see it from her perspective. I do think it's closer to horror than Se7en though.

Cape Fear - It's been too long since I've seen this one, so I won't really comment. I don't remember considering it primarily horror when I saw it though -- more of a thriller with a really bad bad guy.

[The Bloofer Lady]

Donnie Darko is the closest one to what I might say is horror. Predator and The Terminator sci/fi and most of the others being crime drama. Battle Royale is sort of hard to pinpoint.