ABOUT
RESUME
waiting for printed book to come in so I can add my physical pictures to the website—they will be slotted underneath each corresponding film.
Foreword
As a devout horror movie lover, I found myself being very drawn to a specific sub-genre of it. Periodic horrors are movies that take place during a certain era that is in our past—Victorian, Elizabethan, Medieval, you name it. A lot of effort has to be put in to these works in order to create a realistic and immersive experience, which is hard given that in our day and age, we will never have experienced these eras and time spaces firsthand. This is where we rely on the writers, directors, cinematographers, and actors to deliver us a deliciously frightful yet compelling film set in that time period.
In this exhibition catalog, I aim to showcase the beautiful period pieces that have been critically acclaimed over the years. Creating dark films like the ones I have decided to exhibit in this book takes an extensive amount of research in not only the costuming, but the general history and current events of that time period.
Use of language and dialect is especially important to truly sell the viewers on an authentic performance—though it’s imperative to not confuse your audience and provide them only the information they need in order to understand and digest the movie.
Of course, these are all buffers to enhance the story being told to us. What truly makes these films great are the cinematography and plot, and how it keeps grip onto our fast-beating hearts with no mercy.
Dread Through the Ages aims to showcase the art that is periodic horror.
Specificities
14th Century
There is not a single shot during the entire movie that doesn’t feel meticulously crafted and well thought out.
The Green Knight is highly metaphorical and it’s easy to come away feeling like some aspects were not fully understood, yet it is always interesting and inviting. The dated language may be difficult to grasp on occasion, but it is undeniably well written and offers unique dialogue and conversation. Whilst on his journey, Sir Gawain meets many intriguing characters and creatures, faces tests that challenge him in more ways than one and discovers the most beautiful settings outside of what he is used to. This is essentially a medieval, mystical coming-of-age story, and is bound to impress fans of both.
The Green Knight
Dir. David Lowery
2 h 10 min.
Aspect ratio. 1.85 : 1
Starring:
Dev Patel
Sean Harris
King Arthur’s headstrong nephew embarks on a daring quest to confront the Green Knight, a mysterious giant who appears at Camelot.
In 1630 New England, panic and despair envelops a farmer, his wife and their children when youngest son Samuel suddenly vanishes.
Dir. Robert Eggers
1 h 32 min.
Aspect ratio. 1.66 : 1
Starring:
Anya Taylor-Joy
Ralph Ineson
The Witcher
1630
There is something in the woods.
The beauty, and the terror, of this film is its simplicity. Eggers reveals early on that the threat is real, not made up, but he just as readily doesn’t dwell on it. He allows William and Katherine to do the most egregious stuff to themselves, while at the same time painting Thomasin and her interactions with her remaining siblings with naturalistic efficiency. In fact, the dynamic between the children is refreshingly authentic, and I loved how the young woman could show such unforced tenderness one second and the very next treat them—especially the twins—with an acidic sense of whimsy and wit bordering on shameful. It’s how children, especially siblings, act with one another, the way the most innocuous and playful of moments can suddenly turn into something unintentionally monstrous one of the story’s most strikingly personal attributes.
17th Century
Brrrr! And whewww! Here’s a chilly one!
Frankenstein will freeze you to the shivering degree while you’re viewing the current Universal from your comfortable plush seat in the steam-heated Mayfair Theatre. We needed a weird, shadowy, spooky picture. There hasn’t been one for quite a while. And Frankenstein isn’t the ordinary tale of murder and mystery. It’s a study of a chemical experiment—one which clutches at you icily and holds you until the romantic ending guarantees satisfaction after an hour’s worth of gripping, intriguing horrors.
Frankenstein
Dir. J. Searle Dawley
16 min.
Aspect ratio. 1.37 : 1
Starring:
Edward Van Sloan
John Boles
This iconic horror film follows the obsessed scientist Dr. Henry Frankenstein as he attempts to create life by assembling a creature from body parts of the deceased.
Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.
Dir. Robert Eggers
1 h 50 min.
Aspect ratio. 1.19 : 1
Starring:
Robert Pattinson
Willem Dafoe
The Green Knight
1890
The Lighthouse is itself a tall tale...
...the kind sailors might have once told over a frothy tankard of ale with a faraway look in their eyes. It is a folk tale deeply rooted in that tradition, soaked to the salty skin with superstition and sinister iconography. And yet... The Lighthouse is an altogether taller tale than most. There are plenty of moments where you’ll have no bloody idea what you’re watching. Other times it feels like an endurance test—like you’ve been stranded on an island in a storm with little chance of rescue. But surrender yourself to its strangeness and you might also find some enchantment in its light.
1901
Have you ever seen a gothic horror romance?
Throughout it all, del Toro and his cast wink a little, but not too much. Crimson Peak is more glorious tribute than sendup, merely exaggerating the genre’s already campy elements—and adding a few grotesquely rococo touches, a del Toro specialty. So a picture of the Sharpe’s dead mother hanging from the wall is a little too severe, and all of that blood-red clay oozing everywhere is as comical as it is ravishing, and Jessica Chastain positively luxuriates in Lucille’s starchy evilness. There’s even a small, yappy dog that chases balls thrown by no one in particular (“I thought you took care of that thing,” Lucille hisses to Thomas.) Del Toro and his cast are clearly having the time of their lives. It’s wonderful to see a film made with this much joy and passion.
Crimson Peak
Dir. Guillermo Del Toro
1 h 59 min.
Aspect ratio. 1.85 : 1
Starring:
Mia Wasikowska
Tom Hiddleston
King Arthur’s headstrong nephew embarks on a daring quest to confront the Green Knight, a mysterious giant who appears at Camelot.
King Arthur’s headstrong nephew embarks on a daring quest to confront the Green Knight, a mysterious giant who appears at Camelot.
Dir. Luca Guagagnino
2 h 32 min.
Aspect ratio. 1.85 : 1
Starring:
Dakota Johnson
Tilda Swinton
Suspiria
1977
This is deeply unsettling film.
It may be overly long but all that takes place in the film adds to layers of fear it possesses. The backdrop and conflict of the film make it an intriguing watch and add to the depravity if the world that the film takes place in. Everything from that to the way they dance and certainly the music and imagery make this film so very terrifying. It gets under your skin, certain scenes in particular are hard to watch. Overall this a fantastic and severely underrated film, that I personally prefer over the original. Definitely worth a watch despite the 2 and half hour runtime because everything scene is important and integral to the plot, no scenes feel out of place or useless. I cannot recommend this film enough, just go watch it and see for yourself, you won’t regret it.
