1. Fear of the Rest of the World
Many post-9/11 American horror films have also explored another new fear: the rest of the world. The Hostel films, along with Turistas, Borderlands, The Ruins, and others, all show Americans traveling abroad only to encounter horrific ends in foreign lands. In the Hostel films, its noted that the Elite Hunters have to pay top dollar for the right to torture an American victim, making it seem like a killing a US citizen is the Dom Perignon of torture. In The Ruins, its not even foreign citizens that kill the American travelers, but the plant life. Even the very soil of a foreign land seems out to get us. These films reveal a deep unease about Americas place in relation to the rest of the world, and the fear that maybe those outside our borders dont think to highly of us. No doubt some of the reason for this fear is because of the fact that 9/11 and other attempts at terrorist attacks were perpetrated by those outside our country, but a lot of it also comes from the fact that in the past decade, specifically during the years of the Bush presidency, the image of America was not great outside our borders. When American marched to war against Iraq, it found itself without the support of many of its usual allies in the international community (besides the UK), and as the war dragged on and revelations were made about the way the US treated prisoners and tortured suspects, there was a very firm feeling that the rest of the world was looking down on our country. No wonder, then, that these horror films seem to show a world outside our borders that is ready and willing to harm Americans. Like Torture Porn, these sort of films have seemed to decrease in number over the last few years, perhaps an indication that with a new President and new policies, Americans are feeling better about the way the rest of the world thinks of them. Again, though, only time will tell. It should be noted that while Ive drawn many parallels between terrorism and changes in American horror, in no way am I trying to state that America is the only country affected by terrorism. Attacks in England, Spain, and countries throughout the world have had profound effects on their societies and cultures, and have certainly been integrated into their art, including film. However, since I am not an active member of those cultures and societies, I did not want to try to draw assumptions or conclusions about what those attacks meant to those nations, since I felt it would be irresponsible without firsthand knowledge. Feel free to comment with any major changes you see developing in American horror, what you think they mean, or where you hope the genre goes in the future.