Horror is a very prolific genre that is always bringing us new material to both films and television series. On the other hand, most horror films and series end up bringing with them several archetypes and clichés – from predictable scares to typical locations for a horror story.
Let’s take a look at the 10 biggest clichés of terror. These are scenes, moments, and even characters that we hope to see in most films. When done well, these clichés work well, but they need to be applied with caution – otherwise, they tend to be predictable, generic, and boring!
Evil is “out there”
If there is one thing that Americans are known for, it is their “patriotism” that is often ridiculed by foreign countries. And if you doubt it, just watch several horror films produced in the United States – a good part of them show how some travelers face evil in other countries.
Whether in an isolated village in Sweden ( Midsommar ), in a convent in Romania ( The Nun), in an abandoned church in Mexico ( Truth or Dare ), or even in the Amazon Forest ( Anaconda ), it seems that terror always comes from “outside”, from other countries and cultures, but very rarely in the USA.
No signal…
This is a very common scene in horror movies: A distraught victim is running through the woods or hiding somewhere, while an assassin or monster is voraciously chasing her. That person tries to call the police or someone for help… but the cell phone is always without signal (or without battery).
It is quite revolting to see several films doing this without any explanation. Some examples of this are in ‘Blair’s Witch,’ ‘The Ruins,’ ‘Drag Me To Hell,’ ‘The House on the Hill’ and even some films from ‘The Mortal Games’ series . In this case it makes no sense that phone companies continue to profit …
… The Camera Cannot Stop Recording!
Here we have a cliché that is exclusive to “found footage,” a subgenre of horror that brings “real footage” made by the characters in the film itself. The important thing here is that they need to keep recording, even when their lives are at stake!
Although some films manage to “solve” this problem with the use of GoPro cameras, it is ironic to see characters battling frightening threats as they run around with a lot of stuff recording everything along the way. Doubt? Just watch some of the fils from the ‘Paranormal Activity,’ or ‘The Gallows franchise.’
The Abandoned Mansion
It is difficult not to find a movie set in an abandoned mansion – and by mansion, we are talking about any old and poorly maintained house, including churches, convents, warehouses, hospitals, and even schools. This is such a recurring “cliché” that it has spawned its own subgenre: that of haunted houses.
Be it in ‘The Conjuring,’ ‘The Amityville Horror,’ ‘Session 9,’ ‘Evil Dead,’ and even ‘IT’, we will always see a very strange and poorly maintained house, which serves as a den of hauntings and vengeful spirits. Oh, and there is always the possibility of the land being built in on sacred ground…
Have You Forgotten How To Run?
We rarely see characters in horror movies who are known for their intelligence… however, a cliché that is outdated and out of fashion is the scene in which the victim, usually a woman, is running from a monster or murderer and stumbles out of nowhere.
This is a well-known cliché, seen in films like ‘The Chainsaw Massacre,’ ‘The Cabin In The Woods,’ ‘Friday the 13th’ and several others. There are also variations of this cliché that only serve to delay the victim, such as a broken high heel or an object falling in a moment of panic (usually a house or car key).
If You Give In To Carnal Pleasures – You Die!
Rule No. 1 if you are a horror movie character: never, ever, under any circumstances, surrender to carnal pleasures. If you, at any time, disregard this rule to have sex with your girlfriend or boyfriend, one thing is certain: you will die violently.
Numerous films play with this cliché, the killer shows up just in time to “ruin it” for the naughty couple. The ‘Friday the 13th’ franchise is perhaps the best example of this, as Jason Voorhees has no patience for juvenile libido and will kill anyone who is unraveled in the deliciousness.
The Antagonist Never Dies
This item is an appeal to all protagonists of horror films. If you managed to escape the killer and shot or hit him in the head, leaving him on the ground … MAKE SURE HE IS DEAD! Many unfortunate people have already died because the unfortunate man did not bite the dust at first.
Any self-respecting horror film always has the scene in which the monster appears to have died – only to come back to life when the victim is already relieved to think he has finally defeated his executioner. A franchise that does this is ‘Halloween’, and ‘Scream’ successfully pokes fun of that cliché.
A Group of Teenagers
Within each cinematographic genre, it is common to have several archetypes for different characters. This provides the basis for the audience to understand and sympathize with the protagonists. However, the horror elevates that to the umpteenth power, with characters that are almost walking clichés.
We almost always have the following archetypes: the virgin or an innocent girl, the nerd, the jock, the brainless, the stoner … And the most incredible thing is that we know at first when and where these characters are going to die. Fortunately, movies like ‘The Cabin In The Woods’ debunk that cliché.
The “Final Girl”
An extension of the previous item is the ” Final Girl ” archetype. She is almost always the perfect, virgin girl, and is always the only person who can escape the onslaught of a murderer, even when it is completely unlikely.
Every franchise that has a great villain also has a final girl– we have examples like ‘The Nightmare on Elm Street,’ ‘Halloween,’ ‘The Chainsaw Massacre,’ ‘Scream’ and several others. These characters are almost always loved by fans. The film ‘The Final Girls’ satirizes this archetype very well.
That Darn Jump Scare
Finally, we can’t leave it out: the terrible, the horrible, the abominable jump scare. If you’ve seen any horror films – especially the most commercial ones – you’ve already met them. The music goes down, the screen gets darker, the tension increases… and out of nowhere, something jumps on the screen just to scare you.
The jump scare has many forms – whether in the mirror, under the bed, in the closet, in the car’s back seat – and some directors even manage to do innovative things with it (take, for example, films by James Wan). But, in general, they are cheap scares and we just can’t deal with them anymore …
