The Horror Film and the Family: Evolving Dangers in post-war Britain 1950-1979

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Drawing on the fields of film studies, sociology and cultural history, this research will position the horror film as a lens through which the anxieties pertaining to family life in post-war Britain can be examined. From 1950-1980, popular conceptions of the family changed significantly with new legislative methods and shifts in traditional gender roles. Historically, periods of radical social upheaval have brought a rise in concerns for the changing family unit. This research will explore why the horror film was identified as a threat, and how detailed examination of production and reception of this cultural object can help identify deeper social anxieties. The debate about the family will be mapped through a range of sources, specifically, the British Newspaper Archives to explore how anxieties about the family became connected with anxieties about the horror film. Using material from the National Archives, it will also consider how successive governments attempted to shape and protect the family. Analysis of policies and social studies such as the Finer Report (1974), can be examined within the context of this research to illustrate how the perceived dangers to the family evolved over the period. In order to support findings from this primary research, drawing upon existing sociological and historical literature will be vital. This work will place historical and sociological critiques of the family alongside anxieties expressed about the role of culture in threatening the family, thus connecting cultural anxieties with social anxieties.The importance of culture in shaping attitudes cannot be underestimated and exploring a series of problematic texts, such as horror films, allows for a careful examination of the exchange between social attitudes and cultural forms. As the designated gatekeepers of on-screen morality, the files at the BBFC, will be integral in demonstrating what was found objectionable and the influences behind the decision to censor, such as media pressure, earlier decisions or shifts in public opinion. The archives of trade journal Kinematograph Weekly located at the University of East Anglia will provide invaluable insight into the distribution practices and box office reports to identify the viewing culture surrounding the horror film. Whilst at the BFI National Archive this project can access key materials from their Special Collections which are concerned with those making the films. From the National Archive papers, government attitudes towards the cinema contained in the findings of reports like the Wheare Committee (1950), which investigated the effects of cinema on children, will also be crucial. This research will also look to determine the methods of control through legislation such as the Cinematograph Act (1952) and the Obscene Publications Act (1959), to explore how anxieties about film and cinema were shifting to address the challenges of the new medium.Building cases studies of specific British horror films, the intention is to determine the cultural significance of the horror film; why it so often courted controversy and how this relates to concerns about the family. Textual analysis of each film will be deployed in order to illustrate how the family was represented in the in the horror genre. This will then be brought together with exploration of the materials available at specific archives across the country in order to examine how this was interpreted, assessed Bringing these areas of study together will enable this research to contribute to discussions on the evolution of a key sociological construct, the family, by identifying the anxieties surrounding it in post-war Britain through the cultural form of the horror film. It will also offer a fresh perspective on British horror cinema through critical evaluation of the censorship, media coverage andlegislative methods taken to address, counter, contain or neutralize it.