It just kind of occurred to me that M. Night Shyamalan's "The Village" is kind of reverse-folk horror, in that the rural, isolated setting and characters from who's perspective we are situated, are almost more under attack from the modern world rather than the other way around.
I just got into folk horror and this video makes me want to check out more. It’s probably gonna become my third favorite genre (because I like slashers and gialli which are similar genres but also have differences).
I just subbed. I am 60 and as a child I remember Blood on Satan's claw and the Witch finder General being on TV when I was very young. Those stuck with me for life.
Brilliant work! You are not doing yourself justice by just describing it as just 'a beginner's guide'. The quality is outstanding - the script, visuals, music, everything...
I'm glad The Ritual made this list, I had a feeling it would. I'm wondering if the 2008 remake of Long Weekend would also classify as folk horror. There are no skewed beliefs per se, apart from the male lead's blatant disrespect of nature, but there are clear signs of mystical, primordial powers ruling the land and not pulling punches when crossed.
why does every intro to/guide/list always spoil everything. was like "oh cool ill watch the wicker man" then you were like "and he gets burned alive at the end". :(
My favorite subgenre of folk-horror is the "you married into the wrong family" type. Cannibals and racists and cultists galore. Fun stuff. It subverts the security you feel with your closest romantic relationship while highlighting fears about meeting their families.
😑 these movies r based on books. From far before the 70s. Folk horror tales are hundreds of years old. Would love a video about earliest written folk horror
I LOVE Folk Horror. The first introduction to it for me was Netflix’s The Ritual. I loved it. I still love it. Since then, I’ve discovered films like Midsommar, Get Out, The Wicker Man, The Village, and so on. They are amazing. Something about them is just so oddly comforting.
You should check out a film called "Kill List" made by the English director Ben Wheatley. It is a jarring film that slips and slides in and out of the folk horror genre. Well worth a watch.
Blood on Satans Claw is a horror classic - terrified me as a kid! Big shout out for The VVitch too - Anya TJ, Ralph Ineson and Kate Dickie gave Oscar worthy performances!!
In Blair Witch, the Witch may not show up in the movie, but her presence is constantly there, from the eerie sounds in the woods (children laughing creepily, knocking or axing on wood, etc.), down to the last scene, where the guy is turned to the wall in the position the serial killer said the witch told him to kill his victims, right before Heather is killed. So, I'd argue it's very difficult to discard the supernatural element in Blair Witch Project, and ascribe all that happens to the trio of students losing their minds or something.
I must disagree with the first statement, the unholy trilogy came more than 20 years after The White Reindeer (1952) which is probably the real first folk horror movie in cinema history. It is based on pre-Christian Finnish mythology and Sami shamanism, is set in Finnish Lapland and centers on a young woman being killed by vampires.
Per your guidelines applied to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, I think Pumpkinhead (1988) would also apply as folk horror. Children of the Corn (1984) and The Dark Secret ofHarvest Home (1978) have also been mentioned.
the folk horror chain 1. rural location 2. isolated groups 3. scewed morals or beliefs 4. supernatural or violent happenings I think that "supernatural happenings" are VITAL to the genre itself, so i would change that last link to "supernatural AND violent happenings." folklore itself means "common knwoledge of the people" which I firmly believe refers to certain peoples culture, beliefs and tales. for example, in medieval times it was believed that in the wilderness there were monsters and mythical supernatural and dangerous creatures, so no one ever really left urban areas. the three above are pretty accurate, but I think that this video fails to consider fantasy and unrealistic beliefs, like the previously mentioned creatures, or witches or tons of other myths. folk horror is not entirely centred on the horror of humanity, it also has a fantastical tone and aesthetic to it that neither The Chainsaw Massacre OR Get Out could ever have. they are "realistic" (in some twisted way) and the story could easily happen. it was years ago that i watched The Chainsaw Massacre, so I don't really remember much about it, but I don't think the belief in sacrifice or something religious or supernatural is mentioned. and Get Out is centred on a bunch of racists who treat black people as slaves. I think those movies could be considered a different kind of horror. the first one, a SLASHER; the second one, a psychological thriller/horror movie (that's a different discussion). whilst The Witch, Midsommar AND The Lighthouse are, I think, the best representation of folk horror so far.
No way. There doesn't need to be supernatural happenings for something to be folk horror. That would exclude 2 of the 3 films in the unholy trinity, as well as one of the movies you mentioned as the best representation (Midsommar).
If you grew up in the UK during the 1970's/1980's, you will be well versed in folk horror. Terestrial television regularly aired films like The Wicker Man and Blood On Satan's Claw and all stops in between. Hammer horror films, Tales of The Unexpected, Children of The Stones, Chocky etc all have a folk horror feel to them. Great fodder for young minds. I'd go as far to say that we were children of folk horror. oh and as an aside, one of my favourite folk horror films is the 1971 Australian film "Wake In Fright".
Definitely agree - it was everywhere in British kids TV of the 70/80s The Witches and the Grinnygog was one too also I remember vaguely something about a witch being buried under a stone in Avebury that was a TV play
@@petewelsh9978 We also had odd kids programmes like Pogels Wood and Bagpuss, even Ivor The Engine could slip into what would now be known as folk horror. Play for today on BBC2 could throw up some strange images and ideas and of course Tales Of The Unexpected often had the folk horror vibe, often in an urban setting. Cheers.
Great Vid. I always knew that folk horror was a genre but it was always difficult for me to explain what exactly it is. This made it much clearer. I also think that a big part of folk horror is the feeling of helplessness, powerlessness and strangeness. You are completely at the mercy of a higher and unexplainable power, which you know is evil. It can be a supernatural power like the devil and witches in the vvitch or a whole cult like in Midsommar.
So excited to see this on RU-vid! I love the podcast. To me, folk horror appeals on one hand to the intrinsic, primal fear of the powers that we worshipped and feared centuries ago (and fear still) and on the other hand to the demonization of everything pagan that most organized religions bred into us for centuries. The very real feeling of otherness, of uneasiness it generates is what makes it one of my favourite horror subgenres, if not my favourite.
Wonderful video - very excited to see one of my favourite podcasts jump to video. However, there's one nuance in Scovell's folk horror chain that I think is missing from the video and that's in the use of the word 'happening'. The video seems to use it as just "something that happens", whereas ''happenining' can also mean "an unconventional dramatic or artistically orchestrated performance, often a series of discontinuous events involving audience participation", which I think is more apt in the folk horror context, highlighting how so many of subgenre's climaxes center around this performance/audience notion (ritual sacrifices in 'The Wicker Man', 'Kill List', group rituals in 'The Blood on Satan's Claw', 'The VVitch', 'Midsommar'), making it more useful as a demarkation from other types of horror. Still - great video - very much looking forward to what else the channel has to offer.
Ah wow, that's fascinating! I must've missed that somehow, but you're right, that sense of audience participation definitely comes through in most folk horrors. Thanks Niels!
Hmmm. 100% agree with Southern Gothic as an overlooked folk sub genre, but do not agree with Texas Chainsaw being folk horror. The differences being it isn’t the entire town that’s hostile, just the Sawyer brothers. The Sawyers lived in a large isolated property from the town itself. The police were investigating the grave robbing, and so were not in on anything the Sawyer brothers were doing. Sally and her group were attacked by Leatherface because he was developmentally disabled and simply attacked any stranger that came around, like a poorly trained guard dog. Kirk and Pam first, then Franklin and Sally. The Older Sawyer brothers decided to kill Sally to protect Leatherface. There is no religious deviance that the entire community adheres to. The community isn’t a bunch of cannibals trying to eat everyone that comes thru for a bizarre religious sect. I believe the aforementioned plot points are not folk horror. The folk horror chain needs to be more specific, by its criteria even ARMY OF DARKNESS is Folk Horror.
Just thought I'd mention that a good parody of 'hicksploitation' films would probably be 'Tucker and Dale vs Evil'. While it still uses many stylistic and thematic features of folk horror, it uses these to parody the genre's conventions by having the arrogant college kids be villainised next to the misunderstood rural folk. BTW. Thanks for the great vid!
I definitely think of it as folk horror. Principally, because it centers around the "strangers in a strange land" trope. And the horror comes from the "community".
Does The Stepford Wives fit the Folk Horror template? Small wealty town in Connecticut, a few prominent male citizens who belong to the Stepford Mens Club rather than the Rotary club or RAOB and their wives whose friends keep deminishing, the men think the women should look hot bake cookies and not think for themselves and at the end we're led to conclude it's technology turned bad
Great video and analysis, but I think you broadened the folk concept without going to the heart of the issue and bringing more examples from around the world. By your logic, a french film such as Frontier(s) should be folk horror. But the Unholy trinity reveals the heart of Folk horror in th title itself: the clash between nature and civilization. This is usually represented as the isolated character who represents civilization (religion, technology, academy, legal authority, etc.) in the middle of a natural setting with people closer to following natural cruel laws (which for civilized people seem barbaric). Just my opinion. Thanx!!!
i wish you didn’t use the same footage of a woman being hanged so many times. it’s very disturbing to see and one time was just enough to get the point across
One thing about early slasher films of the 80s they are heavily rooted in folk horror. I see a lot of folk horror elements in “Friday The 13th” series..
I don't think isolated groups and skewed morals & beliefs are the correct interpretation. I think it is an isolated setting (often rural), rather than a group within an isolated setting, combined with the arrogance of modernity, refusing to adapt to that rural ecosystem, which leads to violent (often supernatural) happenings. If you look at the 1978 Austrialian film 'Long Weekend', you will find all of the requirements of Folk Horror, without an isolated community possessing skewed morals. The intractability of the rural setting's ecosystem and the arrogance of the city couple, attempting to impose their will on it, leads to the violence. What generally doesn't get considered is that at the end of most folk horrors, the act of violence results in a re-balancing of the setting, which allows it to continue after the trauma of an invasion which attempts to change things. The violence is effectively the reaction of an immune system, fighting off an infection, which results in the recovery and continuance of the environment. The Witchfinder General, The Wicker-Man's police officer and the Satan's Claw's demon, are the infections which have to be combatted. The same goes for nature's fighting off the city folk in The Long Weekend.
These are outstanding videos! I adore your intro. You'll be able to tell from my own that I love the static on an old TV 😆 I'm with you on The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. It's never really worked for me as a slasher. Thinking of it as Folk/Hocksploitation Horror fits really well.
very interesting. never would have though of chainsaw massacre or get out as folk horror but the way you explained it really makes sense. I think I would add children of the corn to the list as well.
Great video. I think you could make a case for Mario Bava's "Black Sunday" though. Maybe. That's from 1960. Also, I'd say City of the Dead (1960.) And then there's "The Lottery," by Shirley Jackson.
Love this video! I was introduced to the podcast last year and I'm now making my way through all the films discussed in the different series. I watched The Wicker Man when I was a teen and there was something about it that made me quite uncomfortable, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Having explored folk horror more thoroughly over the last year, I've noticed that it's one genre that really gets under my skin, yet I love the aesthetic and am obsessed with watching it. I finally watched Witchfinder General last month, and I'm so glad I did! Just need to watch The Blood on Satan's Claw and I've watched the trilogy. Thank you for making such an amazing podcast!
Valerie and her week of wonders from 1970 I would out in there as well . While is an absurdist / surrealist version of a folk horror piece , it’s still part of the sub genre .
Thomas Tryon's HARVEST HOME (also 1973 same year as Wicker Man) novel and the TV mini-series were both very disturbing entries in Folk Horror back when I read and saw them as a kid. In the United States, at least, I doubt there is a horror writer that wasn't influenced by them. I think you see a lot of that book in Stephen King as well but most directly CHILDREN OF THE CORN.
if get out and texas chainsaw massacre are 'folk horror' then so is Friday the 13th. rural location : crystal lake isolated group: camp counselors skewed morals: sex & drugs violent supernatural happenings: Jason not a great way to define a 'genre' i'd say.
Currently on this series of the podcast. This helped make more sense of the genre. Now if some of these films were easier to find! Excellent work Mike!
A film that I'd argue loosely qualifies as Folk Horror is Children of the Corn. It hits many of the same notes, but in that case, the community's isolation is created by something evil, rather than the evil being a product of the isolation.
Candyman would be folk horror, but its in a city. This idea of identifying folk horror is flawed. Candyman is African American folk story of a slave spirit that kills those who summon it.
In my opinion if it's a ritual that deal with or does thing IN NATURE or it comes from nature (the woods, swamps, mountains etc) its folk horror. Let me know if you disagree as i would love to discuss this further.
Interstingly, The Virgin Spring was an inspiration for Wes Craven's The Last House on the Left, so I suppose seeing The Virgin Spring as a kind of horror film isn't as much of a stretch as one might think.
Deadly Blessing, the Incubus(1966) , Eye of the Devil, Something Evil, Burnt Offerings and Southern Comfort. The original Dark Shadows was full of folk horror. Great stuff!
Deadly Blessing is pretty solid and underrated Craven's flick, Bit messy writing wise, but it's blend of folk and religious horror with almsot gialloesque slasher is great! :) Also - SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T SEEN DEADLY BLESSING - it's Wes Craven's film with two killers before Scream :))
Really good video. I agree with the classification of TCM, Straw Dogs, Deliverance as Folk horror, that works well. Another great contemporary example I don’t think I heard you mention is Adam Nevill’s The Ritual, it has all the “links”. Just a point about Witchfinder General, referring to it as a true story is stretching things a very long way indeed, it’s merely a story inspired by a historical character in the same way Ed Gien inspired countless films including TCM.
Thank you. Very nice video. I want to create instagram blog with different information about horror movies and books, so your channel is very inspiring!
