Hollywood blockbusters have come a long way since the era of slasher films. Today, audiences are treated to high-budget superhero and action movies that pack a punch and leave us spellbound. In this post, we evaluate Hollywood’s transition from the ’80s horror genre to modern superhero films.
In the 80’s, slasher movies were all the rage. With Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Halloween, horror films were the perfect way to scare audiences out of their wits. The plots were generally simple and often predictable: a group of teens dared to enter the woods or an abandoned cabin, and one by one they were killed by a ruthless serial killer. Audiences loved them. The formula worked well for the studios.
The horror genre went through a major transformation in the ’90s, with the advent of the teen-horror sub-genre. Movies like Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer brought horror to the nation’s suburban communities. They featured attractive casts and more complicated plots involving revenge plots and unexpected plot twists. These movies were a hit with young adults.
Come the 2000s, audiences started to embrace action movies featuring adrenaline-fueled adventures and larger-than-life heroes. The Fast and the Furious and the Bourne franchise were prime examples of physicality and endurance-based action. Then, in 2008, Iron Man took the superhero movie genre to new heights. It was the first Marvel movie, and after it’s impressive debut, Hollywood quickly realized that comic books were a goldmine.
Today, Hollywood continues to churn out superhero and action movies, with budgets of up to $300 million. We now have the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which consists of 23 interconnected movies, in addition to the DC cinematic universe. Big-budget action franchises like Mission Impossible and James Bond are still popular, while movies like John Wick have proved that even indie action movies can be successful.
In conclusion, blockbuster movies have come a long way since the era of slasher movies. They have evolved through the teen horror genre, the action genre, and now the superhero genre. Today, the genre covers all facets of action and adventure, and audiences continue to be entertained as they watch their favorite heroes save the world.