What's the definition of a "horror" movie?

I've been reading through the list of movies that are tagged as "horror" on IMDB, and I can't seem to figure out what IMDB considers "horror". There are just too many inconsistencies in their list.


For example:

Manhunter (1986) is tagged as "horror", but The Silence of the Lambs (1991), and the other Hannibal Lector movies are not.

Jaws (1975) is not tagged as "horror", but all of the sequels are.

Take Shelter (2011) is tagged as "horror", but I have no idea why.

My Best Friend Is a Vampire (1987) and Once Bitten (1985) are both tagged as "horror", but neither of the Teen Wolf movies are. (Are vampires supposed to be scarier than werewolves?)


In the past couple of weeks, I've watched about 25 "horror" movies for the upcoming countdown, but I can't figure out what a "horror" movie should be.

Can any of you horror experts shed some light on this for me?

Thanks in advance for your help.

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Jurassic Park is horror. Hope that helps

Not according to IMDB. They have it tagged as "Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller", but not horror.

According to IMDB, none of the sequels are horror movies either.

Good luck with getting a decent response Gbg, for what it's worth IMDb genre tags are just as liable to inaccuracies/inconsistencies as anywhere else which is why imo it's better they are not taken in isolation as being in any way definitive.

I understand that, (I think), but here's the problem:

I want to submit a list for the Horror Countdown, but as many of you know, I don't like horror movies. The main criteria for determining which movies are eligible is the IMDB "horror" tag, so I've been reading IMDB's list of horror movies to find movies to watch.

The past countdowns were easier for me to create a list of my top 25 movies because there were a lot of movies in each genre, decade, etc. that I like. But if I go by the same method for the Horror Countdown, I'll end up submitting a list of 25 movies that include all the Abbott & Costello monster movies, the horror comedies like Saturday the 14th and My Best Friend is a Vampire, animated horror movies like Daffy Duck's Quackbusters and maybe Scooby-Doo, and maybe some horror musicals like Sweeney Todd and Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical.

I'd like to give some actual horror movies, (movies like Friday the 13th and Scream), a chance to make my list, but not being familiar enough with the genre, I'm trying to figure out how to separate the movies that are actually horror movies vs. movies that are not really horror movies.

That's why I'm asking for help in what would make a movie an actual "horror" movie, rather than just an errant IMDB tag.

(I hope that made sense.)

I personally think it’s horror. Had this debate a while back. It’s a confusing genre though. Will be interesting to see if someone can give a good definition.

I class a horror movie as something with a lot of suspense, and a movie that has a very un-easy feeling. I would class Silence Of The Lambs as one of the best horror movies ever made.

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Makes perfect sense to me.

Sadly though I think you're unlikely to get a definitive response as to what does and doesn't define a horror movie as it can mean slightly different things to different people and people's own biases come into play. You're probably more likely to get a better feel by asking for a consensus of opinion on whether various individual titles would be classified by most as horror or not.

At the end of the day, it's been decided that the SOLE eligibility for the countdown is IMDb genre tags so anything that specifies horror on there is fair game to make a ballot and perhaps the countdown no matter how 'horror aficionados' might think of it so I say just watch whatever you fancy and vote for whatever you like within that criterion.

Horror Movie - A motion picture which entertains by horrifying or frightening the audience. Many of the films treasured by viewers feature the threat of evil, ominous and stylish theme music, a catchy killer, and innovative gore effects. In view of the subjectivity and disagreement to determining genre, there is not one definition that will clarify why some movies are not tagged horror on IMDb. There could be any number of reasons for that. There are some in the film industry who have disdain for horror, some movies with similar fundamentals may try to distance themselves from the horror label with an eye toward critics and award season. Perhaps @mark f can provide his insight as to why he thinks some movies that could, do not have the tag. For more @gbgoodies , I can direct you to my Introduction post, where I delve into the many eras / movements of Horror Film History.

That the biggest baddest dinosaur of them all ends up in the role of savior, allowing the family to fly off into the sunset, keeps Jurassic Park from being a horror movie. It certainly has some scenes that impart fear on the audience, yet recognize the larger story- it's an adventure film which makes use of horror elements.

Perhaps that will help some, gbg.

I would class requiem for a dream as a horror movie but not Annabelle
I would class Come And See as a horror movie but not Final Destination

But that's just me.

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There is a difference and it s quite easy:
For example: "the others" is a horror thriller
The excorcist is a horror thriller while interview with the vampire is a drama horror
Horror thriller is the movie genre you are looking at here,because any other genre is not a horror movie

an intense feeling of fear, shock, or disgust. + a story or event recorded by a camera as a set of moving images and shown in a theater or on television; a motion picture.

We all don't feel the same things, so the definition is clearly subjective. The same would go for the comedy genre. I think the uncertainty of having a clear-cut definition is what makes the discussions about certain movies so much fun. It gives you a chance to champion a movie you feel deserves the honor of being called horror.

That's a pretty good response. Besides: 'fear, shock, or disgust', I'd also add the word, anxiety as to the defining characteristic of a horror film.

I hope it makes the countdown then!!!!

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Some guidelines:
- Villain is the protagonist or movie scenes unifying character;
- Good guys are underdogs;
- Concentration on graphic violence almost for it's own sake;
- Villain can be serial killer or alien creature or malevolent supernatural force manifesting in unnatural occurrences;
- Unsettling images and sounds.

That's what I thought, but it doesn't explain some of the comedies and animated movies that are listed as horror, or some of the movies that aren't tagged as horror. But it's the closest I've come to understanding what connects these movies.


I might have agreed with this, except according to IMDB, Silence Of The Lambs is not a horror movie. It's tagged as "Crime, Drama, Thriller".

Unfortunately, I think you're right. IMDB doesn't seem to have any rhyme or reason about which movies they tag as "horror", or why.

So if anyone wants to offer their opinion about what they consider the definition of "horror", I'll read all replies, and take everything into consideration when making my list.

But if I end up with a list that's looks like it was made by a child, blame IMDB.

Thank you. Both this post and your introduction post are helpful in defining "horror". I think I have a pretty good idea of what "horror" means. It's just confusing because IMDB's tags are badly screwed up for some movies, and that's the only criteria I can use to figure out which movies are eligible.

@Nostromo87, Have you considered allowing some of the movies that should be eligible for the countdown, but aren't, only because IMDB didn't tag them properly?

According to IMDB, Requiem for a Dream is NOT a horror movie, but Annabelle IS a horror movie.

And IMDB shows that Come And See is NOT a horror movie, but Final Destination IS a horror movie.

This is why I'm so confused about horror movies.