Media

How is gender represented in horror films?
In this essay I will be exploring the representation of gender in horror films. To explore how gender is being represented, I will be analysing and comparing the similarities and differences between two films that were released at different times. The two horror movies that I will be analysing will be Sinister, which was released in 2012 and directed by Scott Derrickson   , and insidious, which was released in 2010 and directed by James Wan. I think I will find that women in horror movies in general tend to have a key role based on the type of situation they are in whereas men typically are given a more dominant role among a group of women.
When doing my research I discovered that women in horror movies tend to play key role in the narrative. The gender of women The gender of women is stereotypically represented in horror movies such as women being portrayed as ‘objects’ as well as women being represented as being much more emotional than men. And this can be seen through the mise en scene and the costume which are worn by women. .Women in most cases are portrayed as sexual objects in horror however the main factor of the type of clothing is based on age because the audience would be more attracted to a younger female therefore meaning the audience would be likely to have a visceral reaction with a younger female rather than an older female, this would link to the male gaze theory. However there is no limit in age for men in horror movies as they are always seen as being masculine and always catch the attention of the audience hence the reason why men never have to go nude to get the audiences attention. However men are typically represented as the hero and take on more active roles which is why they are always the centre of attention within contemporary horror movies.

The reason behind this is because men are usually portrayed to be dominant within movies and this can be seen generally through most movies. Well for...