Body horror
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
| Revision as of 09:32, 16 June 2007 WikiSysop (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Revision as of 09:32, 16 June 2007 WikiSysop (Talk | contribs) Next diff → |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| {{Template}} | {{Template}} | ||
| + | '''Body horror''', or, alternatively, [[biological horror]], is a term applied to works of [[horror fiction]] in which the horror is principally derived from a sense of physical "wrongness" with the body. Body horror mainly focuses upon radical [[shapeshifting|physical transformations]], bodily degeneration, mutant births, and the invasion/violation of the body by a disease or foreign organisms. Works of body horror integrate the [[psychological horror]] of one's body undergoing disturbing and irreversible changes with grotesque and [[shock value|shocking]] [[image]]ry. Frequently body horror is allegorical. ''[[The Fly (1986)|The Fly]]'' has been said to have been a metaphor for debilitating disease and the ravages of old age upon the mind and body. ''[[Rosemary's Baby (film)|Rosemary's Baby]]'' certainly draws from fears of rape and [[birth defects]]. | ||
| + | |||
| + | In horror literature, body horror can be found in many of the works of [[Clive Barker]], [[William S Burroughs]] and [[Mike Philbin]]. Comic books and graphic novels are no strangers to body horror either, with one of the best examples being ''[[Black Hole (comics)|Black Hole]]''. In the [[horror film]]s, [[David Cronenberg]] is largely attributed as introducing the concept to mainstream audiences. Other seminal examples of body horror movies include [[John Carpenter]]'s ''[[The Thing (film)|The Thing]]'', several films of [[Shinya Tsukamoto]] including ''[[Tetsuo: The Iron Man]]'', and the movie ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]''. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The animated television series ''[[Æon Flux]]'' by [[Peter Chung]] frequently makes use of body horror elements as [[plot device|plot devices]], particularly [[amputation]] and disease. [[Amputation]], body modification and loss of identity are key elements in the semi-cybernetic [[Borg]] from various [[Star Trek]] franchises. | ||
| + | |||
| + | == Notable films == | ||
| + | *''[[The Quatermass Xperiment]]'' (1955) | ||
| + | *''[[Rosemary's Baby (film)|Rosemary's Baby]]'' (1968) | ||
| + | *''[[The Exorcist (film) |The Exorcist]]'' (1973) | ||
| + | *''[[It's Alive (film)|It's Alive]]'' (1974) | ||
| + | *''[[Shivers (film)|Shivers]]'' (1975) | ||
| + | *''[[Eraserhead]]'' (1977) | ||
| + | *''[[Rabid]]'' (1977) | ||
| + | *''[[The Brood]]'' (1979) | ||
| + | *''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]'' (1979) | ||
| + | *''[[Altered States]]'' (1980) | ||
| + | *''[[Basket Case (film)|Basket Case]]'' (1982) | ||
| + | *''[[John Carpenter's The Thing]]'' (1982) | ||
| + | *''[[Videodrome]]'' (1983) | ||
| + | *''[[The Stuff]]'' (1985) | ||
| + | *''[[The Fly (1986)|The Fly]]'' (1986) | ||
| + | *''[[From Beyond (film)|From Beyond]]'' (1986) | ||
| + | *''[[Brain Damage (film)|Brain Damage]]'' (1988) | ||
| + | *''[[Dead Ringers (film)|Dead Ringers]]'' (1988) | ||
| + | *''[[Tetsuo: The Iron Man]]'' (1988) | ||
| + | *''[[Society (film)|Society]]'' (1989) | ||
| + | *''[[Jacob's Ladder (film)|Jacob's Ladder]]'' (1990) | ||
| + | *''[[Body Melt]]'' (1993) | ||
| + | *''[[eXistenZ]]'' (1999) | ||
| + | *''[[Dreamcatcher (film)|Dreamcatcher]]'' (2003) | ||
| + | *''[[Doom (film)|Doom]]'' (2005) | ||
| + | *''[[Slither (film)|Slither]]'' (2006) | ||
| + | *''[[Bug (2007 film)|Bug]] (2007) | ||
| + | |||
| + | == Notable persons == | ||
| + | *''[[David Cronenberg]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[John Carpenter]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Takashi Miike]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Shinya Tsukamoto]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Clive Barker]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[William S Burroughs]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Mike Philbin]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Peter Chung]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Franz Kafka]]'' | ||
| + | *''[[Brian Yuzna]]'' | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==See also== | ||
| + | * [[Cyborg]] | ||
| + | * [[Body modification]] | ||
| + | * [[Morphological freedom]] | ||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Revision as of 09:32, 16 June 2007
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
Body horror, or, alternatively, biological horror, is a term applied to works of horror fiction in which the horror is principally derived from a sense of physical "wrongness" with the body. Body horror mainly focuses upon radical physical transformations, bodily degeneration, mutant births, and the invasion/violation of the body by a disease or foreign organisms. Works of body horror integrate the psychological horror of one's body undergoing disturbing and irreversible changes with grotesque and shocking imagery. Frequently body horror is allegorical. The Fly has been said to have been a metaphor for debilitating disease and the ravages of old age upon the mind and body. Rosemary's Baby certainly draws from fears of rape and birth defects.
In horror literature, body horror can be found in many of the works of Clive Barker, William S Burroughs and Mike Philbin. Comic books and graphic novels are no strangers to body horror either, with one of the best examples being Black Hole. In the horror films, David Cronenberg is largely attributed as introducing the concept to mainstream audiences. Other seminal examples of body horror movies include John Carpenter's The Thing, several films of Shinya Tsukamoto including Tetsuo: The Iron Man, and the movie Alien.
The animated television series Æon Flux by Peter Chung frequently makes use of body horror elements as plot devices, particularly amputation and disease. Amputation, body modification and loss of identity are key elements in the semi-cybernetic Borg from various Star Trek franchises.
Notable films
- The Quatermass Xperiment (1955)
- Rosemary's Baby (1968)
- The Exorcist (1973)
- It's Alive (1974)
- Shivers (1975)
- Eraserhead (1977)
- Rabid (1977)
- The Brood (1979)
- Alien (1979)
- Altered States (1980)
- Basket Case (1982)
- John Carpenter's The Thing (1982)
- Videodrome (1983)
- The Stuff (1985)
- The Fly (1986)
- From Beyond (1986)
- Brain Damage (1988)
- Dead Ringers (1988)
- Tetsuo: The Iron Man (1988)
- Society (1989)
- Jacob's Ladder (1990)
- Body Melt (1993)
- eXistenZ (1999)
- Dreamcatcher (2003)
- Doom (2005)
- Slither (2006)
- Bug (2007)
Notable persons
- David Cronenberg
- John Carpenter
- Takashi Miike
- Shinya Tsukamoto
- Clive Barker
- William S Burroughs
- Mike Philbin
- Peter Chung
- Franz Kafka
- Brian Yuzna
See also
