Ask any self-respecting horror fan what they think of terms like ‘elevated horror’ and ‘social thriller’ and they're sure to spit blood.
Such nomenclature, which has been applied over the last decade to movies like The Witch, The Babadook, Hereditary, Get Out, Relic and Saint Maud, are loaded with the patronising implication that ‘normal’ horror is base. These terms are used by marketing bods (and, sadly, film journalists) who think that traditional horror is all about masked maniacs knifing teenagers (not that we're opposed to that kind of film), and that any genre effort exploring such serious themes as grief and mental illness, loneliness and faith, race and gender, must be hoisted clear of the cesspool.
In truth, horror's always done it. Try on Nicolas Roeg's Don't Look Now (1973) or George A. Romero's Night Of The Living Dead (1968) for size - they fit like a dress made by Buffalo Bill. Or check out the sophistication of Val Lewton's genre movies for RKO Pictures in the 1940s (Cat People, I Walked With A Zombie, etc.) and James Whale's horror films for Universal in the 1930s (Frankenstein, Bride Of Frankenstein, The Old Dark House, The Invisible Man).
And that's just the tip of the iceberg. So instead of stealing titles away from the genre, how about we give
