Vampires, Lycans (Werewolves for the ignoramus!), Warlocks, Witches and other creatures of the night intrigue me. Back in my early teens, I used to ponder over literature about this creatures and learnt quite a bit about them. More than the creatures themselves, I guess it was the environment where the stories were setup that interested me more. There is something irresistably attractive about the big castles, grey and cloudy skies, remote European villages, god-fearing villagers, brave hearted protagonists from more distant lands to battle these creatures and last but not the least the creatures themselves and their super-powers!!
It was not just these. Mr. Hyde and Frankenstein were one of my favorites. If it weren't for the works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley amongst others, we probably would not have had a genre of modern entertainment at all. Agreed that today's horror genre is full of gore-obssessed, virulent and potent zombies (they are are not scary!!) whose one bite would turn you into one of them, but the classics such as Dracula, Frankenstein and Wolfen would still probably give anyone the creeps. Some of today's horror movies like Wes Craven's Dracula series and Underground, do present some of that eerie ambience.
Enough of the movies. Back to the creepy creatures. There are enough stories to link some of these creatures. Like, lycans were probably the only creatures capable of killing the vampires. The vampires, by enslaving the lycans, got them to protect their graves, thus stopping what could probably have been a war to the end between the two kinds. But later on, the lycans broke free (by breaking a curse) and fought the vampires to the bitter end.
Amongst all the exotic locations that have been visited in horror literature, Transylvania(which is believed to parts of Romania) has been described to no ends bound and oh boy, has it been described beautifully! If there actually existed a place like that, I would definitely love to visit it. Especially in Bram Stoker's Dracula. It has been described to be so picturesque and as you read through the novel, you feel as if you are moving through the land, especially in the initial chapters, where Jonathan Harker is making his way to meet the count. At the same time, there is an eerie music playing in your head that you would jump out of your skin at the slightest of disturbances.
Probably, what causes these places to become creepy is the way the setting in of mist at sunset is described. The mist when it settles down over the town, plays such a special part in the whole plot. The misty twilight provides a perfect cover for the evil creatures to make their way towards the innocent town-folk.
If the mist settling over entire villages in mainland Europe adds to the creep factor, horror sequences set in England have the mist, the rain and the dreaded moors. The moors were probably made most famous in the scary scenes of The Hound of the Baskervilles, where the hound hunted the Baskerville family members. We all know dogs and wolves(therefore, the lycans) are of the same family. And, it is but natural that they are used in the horror setting.
One movie that comes to my mind when I speak of moors and England is Sleepy Hollow. Though the setting is in New York and Sleepy Hollow on this side of the Atlantic, the entire movie was shot in England. I personally feel there could not have been any other apt place to film the movie. The headless horseman coming out of the trees (literally out of the trees!) probably could not have been shown to that effect in any place else.
Then come the protagonists. The one in a million soul, who believes that he/she can save mankind. It is always mankind, not just the folks in the area infested by the creatures. The most famous hunter/killer/savior of mankind of them all is Van Helsing. He comes in many forms - from being the archetypal vampire hunter in Bram Stoker's Dracula to the vampire hunter-turned into a lycan Gabriel Van Helsing in the movie Van Helsing. No matter who the protagonist is, that person always possesses that extra confidence in oneself that helps is vanquishing the demon creature.
One point that comes to my mind everytime I see a horror movie or read such a novel, is what the purpose was to create a whole genre of entertainment/belief. I say belief because there are people who take this the extra mile; they even think they are one of these creatures and behave accordingly. I feel there is more to this than just horror. There is more to this than just scare the bejeezes out of any person. It could be symbolic of what some people are. Going in a more literal way, vampires could actually refer to those people who survive by sucking the life out of others - those who make others' lives a complete misery just for their survival. The undead or the nosferatu, could be more of a state of mind than an existential level. The lycans and to some extent Dr. Jekyll (therefore Mr. Hyde), probably refer to those people who appear goody-goody on the outside, but actually have a meaner way inside. This meaner side to them is brought out once in a way. The trigger could be anything - in fiction, it is a vial of an instable mixture of chemicals or the full moon; in real life it could be anything from a desire of something to being plain simple diplomatic. Frankenstein is probably symbolic of those who are grossly misunderstood by society. These people want to be accepted by society just the way they are and the society is probably not ready for them. Or, the majority of the society feels threatened by such people and tries to subject them to cruelty and they have to take on a rough exterior just to protect themselves.
More on this topic a little later...
P.S: I got my TV fixed and I was totally inspired to write this while watching a horror movie!
It was not just these. Mr. Hyde and Frankenstein were one of my favorites. If it weren't for the works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley amongst others, we probably would not have had a genre of modern entertainment at all. Agreed that today's horror genre is full of gore-obssessed, virulent and potent zombies (they are are not scary!!) whose one bite would turn you into one of them, but the classics such as Dracula, Frankenstein and Wolfen would still probably give anyone the creeps. Some of today's horror movies like Wes Craven's Dracula series and Underground, do present some of that eerie ambience.
Enough of the movies. Back to the creepy creatures. There are enough stories to link some of these creatures. Like, lycans were probably the only creatures capable of killing the vampires. The vampires, by enslaving the lycans, got them to protect their graves, thus stopping what could probably have been a war to the end between the two kinds. But later on, the lycans broke free (by breaking a curse) and fought the vampires to the bitter end.
Amongst all the exotic locations that have been visited in horror literature, Transylvania(which is believed to parts of Romania) has been described to no ends bound and oh boy, has it been described beautifully! If there actually existed a place like that, I would definitely love to visit it. Especially in Bram Stoker's Dracula. It has been described to be so picturesque and as you read through the novel, you feel as if you are moving through the land, especially in the initial chapters, where Jonathan Harker is making his way to meet the count. At the same time, there is an eerie music playing in your head that you would jump out of your skin at the slightest of disturbances.
Probably, what causes these places to become creepy is the way the setting in of mist at sunset is described. The mist when it settles down over the town, plays such a special part in the whole plot. The misty twilight provides a perfect cover for the evil creatures to make their way towards the innocent town-folk.
If the mist settling over entire villages in mainland Europe adds to the creep factor, horror sequences set in England have the mist, the rain and the dreaded moors. The moors were probably made most famous in the scary scenes of The Hound of the Baskervilles, where the hound hunted the Baskerville family members. We all know dogs and wolves(therefore, the lycans) are of the same family. And, it is but natural that they are used in the horror setting.
One movie that comes to my mind when I speak of moors and England is Sleepy Hollow. Though the setting is in New York and Sleepy Hollow on this side of the Atlantic, the entire movie was shot in England. I personally feel there could not have been any other apt place to film the movie. The headless horseman coming out of the trees (literally out of the trees!) probably could not have been shown to that effect in any place else.
Then come the protagonists. The one in a million soul, who believes that he/she can save mankind. It is always mankind, not just the folks in the area infested by the creatures. The most famous hunter/killer/savior of mankind of them all is Van Helsing. He comes in many forms - from being the archetypal vampire hunter in Bram Stoker's Dracula to the vampire hunter-turned into a lycan Gabriel Van Helsing in the movie Van Helsing. No matter who the protagonist is, that person always possesses that extra confidence in oneself that helps is vanquishing the demon creature.
One point that comes to my mind everytime I see a horror movie or read such a novel, is what the purpose was to create a whole genre of entertainment/belief. I say belief because there are people who take this the extra mile; they even think they are one of these creatures and behave accordingly. I feel there is more to this than just horror. There is more to this than just scare the bejeezes out of any person. It could be symbolic of what some people are. Going in a more literal way, vampires could actually refer to those people who survive by sucking the life out of others - those who make others' lives a complete misery just for their survival. The undead or the nosferatu, could be more of a state of mind than an existential level. The lycans and to some extent Dr. Jekyll (therefore Mr. Hyde), probably refer to those people who appear goody-goody on the outside, but actually have a meaner way inside. This meaner side to them is brought out once in a way. The trigger could be anything - in fiction, it is a vial of an instable mixture of chemicals or the full moon; in real life it could be anything from a desire of something to being plain simple diplomatic. Frankenstein is probably symbolic of those who are grossly misunderstood by society. These people want to be accepted by society just the way they are and the society is probably not ready for them. Or, the majority of the society feels threatened by such people and tries to subject them to cruelty and they have to take on a rough exterior just to protect themselves.
More on this topic a little later...
P.S: I got my TV fixed and I was totally inspired to write this while watching a horror movie!
1 comment:
hey! this is just some sort of a wake up call! not been blogging off late ri'? c mon! buck up! am sure there are lots of things u wud wanna share n discuss.. wheres all the soapy josh gone i say?? :)
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