Folk/Occult Horror

In today's episode on breaking down subgenres, we examine Folk Horror!

Isolated from the mundanity of modern life, Folk Horror delves into the nihilistic and mysterious part of life. Drawing on traditions, Pagan rituals, folklore elements, and myths, Occult Horror explores the eerie settings where mysteries come beneath the surface.

Folk Horror often engages with universal concerns that have preoccupied humanity since the dawn, and it's no surprise that it delves into the past and asks questions starting with 'what if..?'

This subgenre often invokes themes such as the eerie atmosphere of rural areas, religion, pagan rituals, the clash between tradition and modernity, local folklore, and local cults.

A sense of uncanny is prepared through the supernatural elements strictly tied to the natural elements and ancient beliefs, or cults.

Folk Horror immerses the audience in a setting where nature becomes an element of primal fear because nature serves as the utmost source of existence; therefore, what exists there becomes unknown and then leaves no chance to prepare for the danger.

Demons, creature-like humans, otherworldly beings, spirits, dark forces, witches, or worshipped figures are common entities in this subgenre. These beings often embody the eerie and uncanny elements in the movies and represent the unfamiliar darkness that lurks beneath the surface.

So basically, Folk Horror taps into the fear of facing the unfamiliar, the uncanny, and the mysterious. It provokes the unsettling nature of folklore and myths by questioning the boundaries of reality and providing a narrative framework and cinematography that makes us confront the eerie.

Films such as The Blood on Satan's Claw, Haxan, Don't Look Now, The Wicker Man, The Witch, Lamb, The Blair Witch Project, Midsommar, and Kill List are among the most influential examples of Folk Horror that help the audience to learn about Folk Horror 101.