Hammer Horror Homework Jan 2010

FILM STUDIES AS LEVEL, UNIT FM2, SECTION B, UK HORROR FILM

CONTEXT WORK: CASE STUDY ON HAMMER STUDIOS








Hammer Studios, an independent film company set up in 1947 at a large country house, became synonymous with the horror – particularly gothic – genre, developing a style of film making which was successful in Britain, as well as America.

Why Horror Films?
Hammer Studios could have developed film ideas in any genre. What contextual factors led to the decision to make horror films?

Study the following list of contextual facts and suggest why Horror might have been a suitable genre for the studio.

• Distribution and Genre: to get films distributed, studios had to make a deal with one of the three main cinema chains which dominated British cinema exhibition at the time – Odeon, Gaumont (both owned by Rank) and ABC. Rank already had a deal with Ealing Studios which made family-friendly films and war films, rarely showing the new ‘X’ certificate films.


• Television: television was black and white and dealt with rather ‘old-fashioned’ material


• Style: stories told in mainstream film up until this point were traditionally English


• American Finance: American studios like Warner and Universal had been looking for opportunities to co-produce films that might appeal to US audiences


• Copyright: initial successes such as ‘Dracula led to Universal Studios in the US selling the remake rights for other Gothic Horrors.


• A time of change: the 1959s in Britain was a time of change and a new generation. The ‘teenager’ as a specific social group had not been recognised or targeted by film before this time. In addition, women’s domestic roles were changing as they joined the workforce, and Britain and the US felt threatened by Communism.




• Classification: in 1951 the X certificate was introduced in Britain, and a new ratings system was introduced in the US. The potential for making an X certificate film as a selling point began to be realised.




What is Gothic Horror?

Watch a series of extracts and trailers and make notes to identify general characteristics in the following areas:

Mise en Scene and Iconography (especially lighting, colour, props, settings)







Plot/Narrative (for each, note down what seems to be the story) – what patterns do there seem to be?






Binary Opposition (sometimes called Duality) – what opposites seem to be common?





Addressing common anxieties or concerns and fears – what evidence do you find of both literal and metaphorical fears being represented in the films?





Evidence of film content resulting in ‘X’ or before that ‘H’ (for ‘Horror’) certificate (adults only)?