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->''"The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door."''
-->-- "[[Creator/FredricBrown Knock]]"

Horror is a Genre of fiction that exploits the {{Primal Fear}}s of viewers with things ranging from the UncannyValley, BodyHorror, and [[{{DramaticIrony}} Dramatic Irony AKA Suspense]] to cause the viewer anxiety, fear, and ultimately thrills. It uses various HorrorTropes to cause these effects; however, partly due to the rise in complexity of SpecialEffects, overuse, and [[FanDisillusionment viewer desensitization]], several of these are now [[DiscreditedTrope cliché]].

This is a very broad genre, it can go from tasteful and timeless tales of psychological [[{{DramaticIrony}} suspense]] (a trademark of people like Creator/AlfredHitchcock) to gross out horror (which tends to become campy). It often employs the [[OthernessTropes supernatural]], but [[HumansAreBastards "normal" people]] are more than sufficient to scare audiences when used properly.

'''Subgenres of horror include:'''
[[index]]
* '''ActionHorror:''' Horror combined with action. Terrifying monsters are confronted by [[ActionHero tough, eager, well-prepared heroes]] who the audience knows are capable of fighting back.
* '''[[CosmicHorrorStory Cosmic Horror]]:''' Paints a picture of human insignificance dwarfed by a cold, uncaring universe which will never even notice how casually it destroys us.
* '''DarkFantasy:''' Horror meets {{Fantasy}}; it depends on the story which parent genre it belongs to more. With Dark Fantasy, the horror elements are an aesthetic first and foremost. Roughly speaking, dark fantasy has all the elements of horror, but uses them to create an adventure rather than emphasize threat.
* '''DefangedHorrors:''' Horror aimed at children that tones down the more graphic and disturbing elements.
* '''DigitalHorror:''' A genre of horror media that utilizes digital media and weaponizes nostalgia to scare the viewer.
* '''ExplorerHorror:''' Horror meets AdventureGame; minimalist storytelling that largely relies on atmosphere and surrealism.
* '''FoundFootage:''' Horror taken with an InUniverseCamera.
** '''AnalogHorror:''' A more recent WebOriginal subgenre of Found Footage, most often in the form of TV broadcasts and VHS tapes.
* '''GothicHorror:''' The oldest subgenre. Derives its horror from the fear of transgression against the natural or divine order of things and of the alienation suffered by both the transgressor and their innocent victims as a result.
* '''HorrorComedy:''' Can refer to {{Comedy}} stories which parody horror tropes for laughs ([[BlackComedy often in a very morbid manner]]) or Horror stories which use comedic scenes.
* '''{{Horrorcore}}''': Horror-themed HipHop.
* '''MascotHorror:''' A video-game only variant that involves a horror story marketed by a seemingly child-friendly {{Mascot}}, often with themes of SubvertedKidsShow. Related to but distinct from other cases of horror media with mascots (i.e. slasher films, creepypastas).
* '''PsychologicalHorror:''' Uses in-depth explorations of human mental anguish to horrify.
* '''PsychosexualHorror:''' A subgenre that explores psychosexual development as a subject matter, including themes of sexual development and sexual activities.
* '''ReligiousHorror:''' Uses the unknowns and symbolism of organized religion, including tales of the apocalypse, {{Satan}}, TheAntiChrist, and {{cult}}s, to scare viewers, and desecrates what is considered comforting and holy in order to shock them.
** '''FolkHorror''': Subtrope of Religious Horror where the horror comes from the folkloric aspects of the religion.
* '''SciFiHorror:''' The purpose of this genre is to use horror to show how scientific knowledge can be used for evil ends, how cutting edge research can go horribly wrong, how crippling a lack of knowledge can be, or if you want to be campy how people get the bejeezus scared out of them in the future.
** '''SpaceIsolationHorror:''' Traps [[ClosedCircle a person or small group of people]] in a [[EnclosedSpace rapidly deteriorating survival bubble]] that they can't leave, but can't stay in, playing off a fear of being completely alone.
* '''SplatterHorror:''' Horror that uses the [[BloodyHorror fragility of the human body]] to scare.
* '''SurrealHorror:''' Horror that relies on strange or bizarre imagery in order to unsettle viewers. Essentially, it's what you would expect from an actual nightmare.
* '''SurvivalHorror:''' Plays on fears of nature, re-casting its human protagonists as prey and victim of creatures or forces more numerous and powerful than they are. The central focus is on stripping away the protections of the modern, "civilized" world, leaving the protagonists at the mercy of some natural or pseudo-natural force like disease, the undead, barbarian hordes, inbred hillbillies, aliens, wild animals, etc.
* '''TeenHorror:''' Horror fiction with a focus on teenage, college-age, and/or young adult protagonists, usually geared towards a target audience within that age range.
* '''WorkplaceHorror:''' Horror can take place in the mundane setting of a job. There's often an expectation to keep performing your job regardless of what monsters, stalkers, or conspiracies are lurking around the shelves and office cubicles, despite your own survival instincts telling you to get out of there.
[[/index]]

Horror and SpeculativeFiction also overlap very well. The latter provides the WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief, and the former the creepy crawlie to terrorize the hapless astronauts. MysteryFiction meshes nicely as well, with cerebral brain teasers and [[OntologicalMystery ontological mysteries]] to captivate and terrify the audience.

Works of horror will sometimes include AnAesop or morality play, especially if it includes a KarmicTwistEnding, or is a SlasherMovie. In these cases, a few characters [[SortingAlgorithmOfMortality will usually survive]], especially if they [[GenreSavvy catch on quickly.]] Other times, it will go for a MindScrew and throw calamity after tragedy onto the hero with a DownerEnding or CruelTwistEnding.

[[index]]
[floatboxright:
+HorrorStoryCreatorIndex
By Media:
+HorrorAnimatedFilms
+HorrorAnimeAndManga
+HorrorComicBooks
+HorrorFanWorks
+HorrorFilms
+HorrorLiterature
+HorrorSeries
+HorrorTabletopGames
+HorrorVideoGames
++ExplorerHorror
++SurvivalHorror
+HorrorVisualNovels
+HorrorWebAnimation
+HorrorWebcomics
+HorrorWebOriginals
+HorrorWesternAnimation
]
[[/index]]

'''[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: Suspense: ]]
'''

Suspense, though not technically horror, tends to get lumped with horror because they both want the same thing: to scare the viewer. However; both go about it different ways. Suspense relies on themes, tight plot, and subtlety over brute force. It uses camerawork with lots of shadows, and tends to either evoke claustrophobia, or isolating vastness. Lots of silence punctuated with creaking doors, or ambient sounds hinting at approaching danger. If there's a monster, it will appear in brief glimpses and silhouettes, and generally try [[NothingIsScarier to leave more to the imagination.]]

'''[[/folder]]

[[folder: Splatter horror: ]]
'''

Splatter horror goes to the other extreme. Excess rather than restraint. [[ScreamerTrailer Shock treatment]] instead of slow, ambient build-up. Visceral rather than cerebral. This is not to say it's not effective, which it can be, but that it can very easily get out of hand and leave so little to the imagination that the viewer quite quickly goes from afraid, to surprised, to the concession stand for more popcorn. Note that Administrivia/TropesAreNotBad. The films ''{{Film/Psycho}}'', ''{{Film/Se7en}}'', and the original ''Film/SawI'', for instance, mix Splatter and Psychological Horror to great effect, and the drama of the live action version of ''Series/TheWalkingDead2010'' is only enhanced by the tension of knowing that AnyoneCanDie a gruesome, visceral death at any moment.

As mentioned earlier, horror movies do not age too well. Generally, those films with the least reliance on special effects will seem less dated. Those with excessive visuals of monsters, gore, and other creepy things tend to drift into {{Narm}} and {{camp}} after a decade or two, once people become desensitized to them. Monster and supernatural horror movies in general are under more pressure to survive, but quite a few have become {{cult classic}}s.

[[FilmPosters Posters]] for horror movies will usually be red and/or black, with lots of blood and pain. Other times, gray and mysterious. See also the SlidingScaleOfComedyAndHorror.
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!!Examples

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Cosmic Horror]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion''
* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica''
* ''Manga/{{Remina}}'' and ''Manga/{{Uzumaki}}'' by Creator/JunjiIto.
* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}''
* ''Anime/DigimonTamers'' (Near the end)
* ''Manga/MadeInAbyss''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''Film/{{Eraserhead}}''
* ''Film/RedMist''
* Most movies done by Creator/JohnCarpenter, particularly ''Film/TheThing1982''.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* Almost anything by Creator/StephenKing
* ''Literature/TheTaking'', and a few other things by Creator/DeanKoontz.
* ''Literature/HouseOfLeaves''
* Almost anything by Creator/HPLovecraft, except many of his Dreamlands-stories, some which contain little to no horror elements.
* ''Literature/TheKingInYellow''
* The works of Creator/GrahamMasterton, especially ''Literature/TheManitou'' and others, including ''Literature/DeathTrance''.
* The works of Creator/ThomasLigotti, such as ''Literature/MyWorkIsNotYetDone.''
* ''Literature/BloodMeridian'' which blends the genre with TheWestern.
* ''Literature/VirtuallyReality'' by R.R. Hood

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness''
* ''VideoGame/CallOfCthulhuDarkCornersOfTheEarth''
* ''VideoGame/CallOfCthulhuTheWastedLand''
* After TheReveal, ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}'' (before you discover the truth [[GenreShift it masquerades as]] GothicHorror)
* ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'' and ''VideoGame/PokemonUltraSunAndUltraMoon''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Gothic Horror]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* ''Literature/{{Dracula}}''
* ''Literature/TheMonk''
* ''Literature/TheCastleOfOtranto''
* ''Literature/TheMysteriesOfUdolpho''
* ''Literature/ASicilianRomance''
* ''Literature/{{Viy}}''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live Action Film ]]

* ''[[Film/ThePitAndThePendulum The Pit and the Pendulum]]''
* ''Film/CrimsonPeak''
* ''Film/Dracula1931''
* ''[[Film/NosferatuTheVampyre Nosferatu the Vampyre]]'' (1979)

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* A favourite genre for ''Series/DoctorWho'', especially associated with Creator/TomBaker's early-to-mid tenure (see "The Brain of Morbius", "Pyramids of Mars", "Horror of Fang Rock" and "Image of the Fendahl" for just the more obvious ones), though some show up earlier and later than that - see the Second Doctor's "The Evil of the Daleks" and the late Fourth Doctor "State of Decay".

[[/folder]]

[[folder: London Dungeon ]]

* ''Ride/LondonDungeon''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Splatter Horror]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''Film/{{Braindead}}''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* The short story ''Jerry's Kids Meet Wormboy'' by David J. Schow in the book ''Zombies: Encounters With The Hungry Dead''. The intro to the story even calls it the "literary equivalent of Peter Jackson's ''[[Film/{{Braindead}} Dead Alive]]''."
* Various Works by ''Edward Lee''.
* ''Literature/TheManInTheCornerRoom'' by Creator/AsiHart and to great extent also ''Literature/InTheRealmOfCarnalHorror''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Music ]]

* Music/{{Eminem}}'s {{Horrorcore}} songs are a cartoony variation, combining excess with shocking VulgarHumor to raise [[LightmareFuel giggles and gasps]] ([[TheNewRockAndRoll and lectures from your parents]]).

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Splatterhouse}}''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Suspense]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''Film/FiveGirls''
* ''Film/TheAlphabetKiller'' combines suspense with conventional horror, as the protagonist is visited by the ghosts of the eponymous killer's victims.
* ''Film/TheBirds''
* ''Film/CarnivalOfSouls''
* ''Film/TheDevilsBackbone ''
* ''Film/TheFactsInTheCaseOfMisterHollow''
* ''Film/TheHealing''
* ''Film/TheOrphanage''
* ''Film/TheLastWinter''
* ''Film/TheWickerMan1973'', also a ReligiousHorror film
* ''Film/TheCabinetOfDrCaligari''
* ''Film/{{Nosferatu}}''
* ''Film/TheBlairWitchProject''
* ''Film/TheMothmanProphecies''
* Many things by Creator/StephenKing

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV ]]

* The ''Series/DoctorWho'' stories "The Edge of Destruction", "The Tenth Planet", and "Cold War". In fact, most serials that come under the subgenre "Base Under Siege" (like "The Ice Warriors" and "Fury From the Deep" for just a couple of examples).

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''{{VideoGame/Deadnaut}}'' uses this type of horror on the player's end, cramming them into a small operating booth with nothing to occupy their ears other than muffled gunfire and the occasional distant scream.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Web Original ]]

* Literature/KAZe
* Franchise/TheSlenderManMythos
[[/folder]]


[[folder:Survival Horror]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

* ''Manga/AttackOnTitan''
* ''Manga/CageOfEden''
* ''Manga/{{Gyo}}''
* ''Manga/IAmAHero''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Fan Works ]]

* ''Fanfic/ISurvivedTheEnchantedWoods''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''Film/{{Colin}}'' , although the protagonist is [[spoiler: not actually a survivor]]
* ''Franchise/EvilDead''
* ''Film/{{Feast}}''
* ''The Fly'' (Both [[Film/TheFly1958 original]] and [[Film/TheFly1986 remake]]. Especially the remake.)
* ''Film/HanselAndGretel2013''
* ''[[Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968 Night]]'', ''[[Film/DawnOfTheDead1978 Dawn]],'' and ''Film/DayOfTheDead1985''
* ''Film/ResidentEvil2002''
* ''Film/TheThing1982''
* ''Film/Troll2'', although it's more enjoyable [[{{Narm}} as a comedy]]
** For similiar reasons, ''Film/ManosTheHandsOfFate'' and ''Film/Plan9FromOuterSpace''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

* ''Literature/ExpeditionZ''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV ]]

* The ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "Midnight".

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Multimedia ]]

* ''Franchise/GakkouNoKaidan''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games (See Horror Video Games for more examples) ]]

* ''VideoGame/AlienIsolation''
* Parts of ''VideoGame/BioShock''; the rest of it is standard Horror.
* ''VideoGame/CondemnedCriminalOrigins''
* ''VideoGame/DarkFall''
* ''Franchise/DeadSpace''
* A game mod for ''VideoGame/DontStarve'' called "The Screecher."
* ''VideoGame/FatalFrame''
* ''Franchise/FiveNightsAtFreddys''
* ''VideoGame/TheForest''
* ''VideoGame/TheLastOfUs''
* ''VideoGame/{{Penumbra}}''
* Certain games of the ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' series, most recently [[VideoGame/ResidentEvil7Biohazard the seventh installment]].
* ''Franchise/SilentHill''
* ''VideoGame/SirenGames''

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Workplace Horror]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* ''Film/TheBelkoExperiment''
* ''Film/CemeteryMan''
* ''Film/PoultrygeistNightOfTheChickenDead''
* ''Film/SorryToBotherYou''
* ''Film/WillysWonderland''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''VideoGame/TheClosingShift''
* ''VideoGame/{{Control}}''
* ''VideoGame/DoYouCopy''
* ''Franchise/FiveNightsAtFreddys''
* ''VideoGame/GoingUnder''
* ''VideoGame/HappysHumbleBurgerFarm''
* ''VideoGame/HellPie''
* ''VideoGame/TheMortuaryAssistant''
* ''VideoGame/NightOfTheConsumers''
* ''VideoGame/NightDelivery''
* ''VideoGame/NoDelivery''
* ''VideoGame/TheStanleyParable''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Web Animation ]]

* ''WebAnimation/SpookyMonth''
* ''WebAnimation/WillyWonkaMakesAnOompaLoompa''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Web Original ]]

* ''Blog/TalesFromTheGasStation''

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow''

[[/folder]]
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