Monster movies offer insight into humankind

Vampires. Mummies. Creatures from the black lagoon. Hulking inventions of science. Zombies. Monsters.

Some stem from timeless legends and others come from recent works of fiction, but the fact is that monsters are archetypes and the pillar of the horror genre. Although certain trends have come and gone — serial killers and the Saw-style torture films among them — monsters have remained prevalent even in the modern era.

Long-running franchises still offer new tales of classic characters and modern stories add fresh takes on old concepts, for better or for worse. 2010 saw the release of both a remake of The Wolfman, a monster classic, and a new Twilight film. As the year draws to a close, the television adaptation of Robert Kirkman’s zombie apocalypse comic The Walking Dead is set to debut on AMC.

So for all of their mileage, what is it about monsters that make them so endearing to horror fiction fans?

Monsters thrive as a topic in fiction because, like all good fantasy, they are used as a way to explore human nature. By setting the conflict in the context of the supernatural, monster stories give writers a way to analyze humanity in ways that are not available in conventional fiction.

A good horror story offers not just suspense, but also a look into the inner workings of man.

Classic monster stories embraced this idea. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein: Or, the Modern Prometheus, was not just about Victor Frankenstein creating his monster. The story touched on the growing Industrial Revolution and themes such as the relation of science to society, as well as the idea of “playing God.”

Bram Stoker’s Dracula is another example. Although it is on one level a book about people fighting an Eastern European vampire, Stoker’s novel carries many levels of meaning and philosophy. It explores Victorian sexuality and mores. Dracula was a force of nature, a walking taboo. By confronting the women of the story, Stoker was forcing readers to confront sex and desire in Victorian society.

Ultimately, it is a book on modern culture versus tradition. Jonathan Harker and Abraham Van Helsing are able to defeat the Count, through their use of modern technology and science. Dracula tries these methods, but falls back on his supernatural abilities, which only leads to his demise.

In the early 20th century, as cinema developed, filmmakers looked for stories that would not only get audiences into the theater, but also make the new medium memorable. They chose monster fiction. With Universal Studios leading the movement, classic monster myths and novels came to the silver screen. Beginning with Dracula and Frankenstein in 1931, Universal created more than a decade of high-profile monster movies; collectively, the characters are known as the “Universal Monsters.”

Even with the changes Hollywood made to the source material, these films took the time to add a level of introspection beyond the frights. The Frankensteins of Universal were a family perpetually haunted by their past actions, stuck in a vicious cycle of violence because of the inhuman creature.

In The Wolfman, a new story based on old legends, the filmmakers contrasted the old world and tradition with the United States and modernity, all while offering an examination of a father’s relationship with his son.

However, in recent decades, the point of monster fiction has slowly become obscured. Monsters are no longer a tool to explore the human psyche. Now, they are nothing more than a gimmick, brought out to add some color to generic stories or add a bit of gore to a film.

In a way, it follows the decline in suspense in horror fiction. Who wants to wait in terror for what could be around the corner when the surprise can be seen right away?

Nowhere is this more evident than vampire fiction. The once-terrorizing monsters — creatures that have haunted humanity in legend for centuries — are polarized to the extreme. They are either mindless, virus-driven beasts, as with the comics and film 30 Days of Night, or they’re overly sentimental beings caught up in love triangles, a move started by Anne Rice and codified by Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series.

Yet the reason monsters remain popular,is that, at their best, monster stories say something about humankind. There is a purpose to the genre, one that should be rediscovered if monsters are to stay relevant.

And maybe it has. 2010’s remake of The Wolfman offered a classic horror tale, and improved on the original’s clash of cultures. The Walking Dead, an award-winning comic and soon-to-be television series, uses the zombie apocalypse of its setting to explore how survivors would react in the situation. The story is not fighting the undead, but trying to stay sane in a world of perpetual struggle.

Monsters thrive because they offer more than just a fright. They last not because they’re a gimmick, but because they say something about the world around them. Isn’t that what a good story should do?