Answer · confidence: partial
Why do people argue over old silent films being horror, and how do I decide?
Research question: Why do people disagree about whether an early silent film counts as horror at all, and how would a curious reader decide?
The records show that the common account of horror's origins dates the genre to Universal's 1931 monster movies 1, and scholars single out key texts for their perceived historical importance 2. Disputes persist because genres should not be taken for granted 8, and Derrida argues that a genre's line of demarcation makes borderline works seem impure or monstrous 3. Popular usage of horror also differs from philosophical definitions, and terror is often confused with horror 1113; one proposed test separates terror as external and spatial from horror as internal and tied to time, absence, and memory 14. A curious reader could check how marketing signals a film's classification 10 and note that a film may carry several genre labels 6, but the records do not classify any specific early silent film, though Méliès's 1896 Le Manoir du diable features the devil 5 and Murnau's 1926 Faust retells the Faust myth 7. The newest fact in this set is from 2026 3.
Checked 2026-10-21. Only documented and supported facts are used.
Dig deeper on this questionSources
[1] supported
The general trend in horror cinema studies dates the genre's beginnings to the release of Universal's 'monster movies' starting with Frankenstein and Dracula in 1931.
"The general trend in studies of horror cinema has been to date the genre’s beginnings around the release of the series of Universal’s ‘monster movies’ beginning with Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931) and Dracula (Tod Browning, 1931)."Preferisco l’inferno: Early Italian Horror Cinema (2016)
[2] supported
Film scholars identify specific texts as key turning points that lay the ground for subsequent works, based on their perceived historical importance.
"The desire to search for the antecedents, roots and origins of any genre leads film scholars to identify certain texts as key turning points that effectively lay the ground for what follows. While this view of genre can be overly deterministic, it is nonetheless true that some texts rather than others are given the status of key reference points based upon their perceived historical importance."Preferisco l’inferno: Early Italian Horror Cinema (2016)
[3] supported
Derrida argues that once a genre announces itself, it imposes a norm and a line of demarcation, and crossing that line risks impurity, anomaly, or monstrosity, which helps explain why people dispute whether a borderline work belongs to a genre.
"As soon as genre announces itself, one must respect a norm, one must not cross a line of demarcation, one must not risk impurity, anomaly, or monstrosity."The Genre Question: Form, Ideology, History in Cinemas of India (2026)
[4] supported
The film is classified as a Canadian psychological horror film directed by Peter Medak and released in 1980, which is a 1980 colour film rather than an early silent film.
"L'Enfant du diable ( The Changeling ) est un film d'horreur psychologique canadien réalisé par Peter Medak , sorti en 1980 ."L'Enfant du diable
[5] supported
Georges Méliès directed and wrote an early film called Le Manoir du diable in 1896, featuring the devil, with Jehanne d'Alcy.
"Le Manoir du diable , réalisé et écrit en 1896 par Georges Méliès avec Jehanne d'Alcy ."Méphistophélès
[6] supported
The source lists the film's genres as both psychological horror and fantasy, so genre labels for the film are not single-category.
"Genre : horreur psychologique ; fantastique"L'Enfant du diable
[7] supported
Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau directed Faust, eine legende allemande in 1926, a film that retells the myth of Faust selling his soul to Mephistopheles.
"Faust, une légende allemande , réalisé en 1926 par Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau , reprenant le mythe de Faust vendant son âme à Meph"Méphistophélès
[8] supported
The document argues that genres, though they seem generally accepted, should not be taken for granted, which is the basis for disputes over how a film is classified.
"This reflection reveals how genres, whilst seemingly generally accepted, should not be taken for granted."'Violent exchanges : genre, national cinemas and the politics of popular films': case studies in Spanish horror and American martial arts cinema (2007)
[9] supported
Mephistopheles is defined less as a tangible evil than as the personification of negation, which sets him apart from other traditional forms of the Devil.
"Plus qu'un mal tangible, il se distingue des autres formes que prend traditionnellement le Malin par sa personnification de la négation"Méphistophélès
[10] supported
Marketing materials can settle how audiences are expected to classify a film, using cover art and taglines to signal horror.
"leaves the potential audience in no doubt about the genre of the film."'Violent exchanges : genre, national cinemas and the politics of popular films': case studies in Spanish horror and American martial arts cinema (2007)
[11] supported
Definitions of horror have been confused with definitions of related negative emotions, especially terror, which is one source of disagreement about what counts as horror.
"The definitions of horror have been confused with definitions of related negative affects and emotions, particularly terror."Feeling Absence: Horror in Cinema from Post War to Post-Wall (2014)
[12] supported
Some films are read as both art and horror, and marketing can emphasise this double identity, as with a DVD tagline calling the film an art-shocker.
"a line reflecting the double existence of the film as both an art and a horror 'shocker'."'Violent exchanges : genre, national cinemas and the politics of popular films': case studies in Spanish horror and American martial arts cinema (2007)
[13] supported
Horror as it is popularly understood does not match horror as philosophers and critical theorists have defined it, so a film may be called horror under one definition and not another.
"horror in the popular imagination does not align with the concept and feeling of horror proper as it has been written about and understood in continental philosophy and critical theory"Feeling Absence: Horror in Cinema from Post War to Post-Wall (2014)
[14] supported
The author proposes a test for separating the two: terror is an external phenomenon tied to space, spectacle, and the proximity of a threat, while horror is an internal, metaphysical phenomenon tied to time, absence, and memory.
"terror is an external phenomenon bound up with space, spectacle, and the proximity of a threat, while on the other hand, horror is an internal, metaphysical phenomenon linked to time, absence, and memory."Feeling Absence: Horror in Cinema from Post War to Post-Wall (2014)