Horror and the Social Scene: What are you afraid of?

Horror is terrifying, disgusting, frightening and scary.

Photography by Reggie Ocampos

In the Western world, this fiction and cinematic genre has been known for its vampires, werewolves, dystopian societies, zombie apocalypses, and serial killers—ranging from the slashers to the survivals to the supernaturals.

In Asia, though, horror looks somewhat different. Due to the cultural, religious and societal differences, horror from countries like Japan and Indonesia have perfected the art of shocking and haunting their audiences—both at home and abroad.

Yet, with these horror movies, one fact remains clear: these stories, that frighten us and leave us feeling repulsed, are metaphors for our society. From the serial murders of 1960s America came the slashers horror like “Silence of the Lambs;” with the Cold War and the fears surrounding potential nuclear attacks came the space-themed horror and invaders like “It Came From Outer Space.” We also see religious and cultural folklore as a strong influence on creating new, demonic monsters like in Malaysia’s supernatural horror film “Roh.”

In this sense, our present shapes our horrors, both real and fictional. Our culture, our society and our politics all combine together in horror, reflecting back our greatest fears in the shape of ghostly possessions, costumed serial killers or dangerous aliens. What makes our daily reality also makes our nightmares.

Whatever monster creeps around our darkened corners, we know, somehow, it starts with us.