Analysis of comedic actions and placements in horror films

It has often been said that all comedy is rooted in fear, and that the things that we laugh at are closely related to the things which frighten us. This can be seen in almost any haunted house film, from the 1913 silent horror film The Haunted House to Paranormal Activity in 2007. This is because haunted places are full of objects and actions that make physical comedy happen, like sudden appearances and disappearances, both os which are important elements of slapstick comedy. Slapstick is the most ancient and enduring means of visual comedy. We seem to take a constant delight at seeing people being hurt and humiliated by accidents and acts of violence.






















Of course, it can also be seen in films like Ghostbusters. Although the effects are much more elaborate in a big budget film like this (use of cgi for some of the ghosts), the principals of comedy are just the same. For example, when the ghost appears from the subway station, there is a sudden apperance joke. And when the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man starts to terrorize the citizens of New York, it is a joke of an object coming to life, which is also a joke about proportion, considering how large Stay Puft is.




















Another good example of comedy horror is the hit 2004 film Shaun of the Dead, itself a spoof of George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead, which is a sequel to his film Night of the Living Dead. As this film made about the same as Ghostbuster's budget was (approx $30 million), there is a distinct lack of and elaborate effects like in Ghostbusters. However, there are still elements of the same principals of comedy. For example, when Shaun, Ed, Liz, Dianne and David have to mimic the zombies actions in order to get to the Winchester pub, this is a joke immitation, another timeless form of comedy, as the sheer imputence of it is funny. However, they end up using parody in the film: this is immitation with a little exaggeration on the person, or people in this case, being immitated.