We’ve seen the
progression of monsters evolve from a moaning and guttural monster from
Frankenstein to the smooth talking psychopaths Uncle Charlie and Reverent Harry
Powell. The birth of monsters in the silent film era has a huge influence on
the ways in which antagonists and monsters are portrayed. The face of fear has
definitely changed from a contorted one to a familiar one, bringing fear into a
new light.
In the film
Frankenstein, the monster was a towering immortal with doe eyes. His
monstrosity was never really captured at eye level, but rather slightly tilted
angles to show that there was a definite height difference. That can go further
to be interpreted as two different beings existing on different levels, and
movie as a story-line of the incompatibilities of monsters and men.
In Shadow of a Doubt and
Night of the Hunter, Uncle Charlie and Harry are both villainous characters
that come off as suave men who manipulate and extort vulnerable people. These
two talked a lot throughout the movie, at least a lot more than the occasional moan
and groan.
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ReplyDeleteYou make an interesting observation in stating that the "face of fear has...changed from a contorted one to a familiar one". In thinking about the different monster/villain characters we've seen in the films we've watched, there is a definite shift in the appearance of evil. We started with movies like "Frankenstein" and "Freaks", where the "bad guys" are easy to pick out because of how different or monstrous they look. But with "Psycho" tonight, we were presented with Norman Bates, a perfectly normal-looking guy who (as his "mother" says) looks as though he wouldn't even hurt a fly. Last week with "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" the villains were our own selves, and with "Rosemary's Baby" next week, part of the threat comes from within. Later slasher movies present the threat/bad guy quite obviously (i.e. the guy running around with the mask and chainsaw/machete/knife), but it is interesting to look at all the films we've viewed and will be viewing and think about what form the evils and threats come in.
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