The Spire

Will Donahue ‘24

Chief Copy Editor

There must always be a genre supreme in Hollywood. In the 1940s, it was the movie musical. Shortly after that, Westerns seized the crown in both film and the emerging television landscape. We even had a short-lived boom of fantasy movies in the 1980s following the success of Star Wars. And of course, superhero movies dominated the box office throughout the 2010s. But we are now well into the 2020s, and the superheroes’ crowns (masks? capes?) are starting to slip. The people yearn for a new genre to sweep them off their feet. And as one of the people myself, I must cast my vote for gothic horror.

Of course, I’m not delusional. I know that horror movies do not have the broad appeal of cowboys or superheroes – gothic horror movies least of all. But I cast my vote all the same. There’s just something about those grand decaying castles, those existential fears, and those ancient curses that I simply cannot get enough of. Like a good fantasy movie, a good gothic horror can immerse you in a unique atmosphere – one that inspires as much wonder as it does suspense and supernatural dread. It’s a genre that lives and dies by its setting, more so than any other subgenre of horror. Sure, it will probably never have superhero-level popularity – and I’ve made my peace with that. I just need more of it.

And thankfully, we’re about to get more of it. Robert Eggers’s Nosferatu, a remake of the 1922 German film of the same name, will be hitting theaters this Christmas. The original Nosferatu is a cornerstone in the gothic horror genre, and Count Orlok – otherwise known as the titular Nosferatu – remains one of the most iconic vampires in all of moviedom. The remake may have a bizarre release date (this could have been a perfect October watch), but we’re in good hands with Eggers; his previous films The Witch (2015) and The Lighthouse (2019) are notable for their deliciously dark atmospheres. And if that’s not enough of a sell, we’re also getting Willem Dafoe as a crazed vampire hunter and Bill Skarsgård (Pennywise in It) returning to play another of horror’s greatest villains. This remake could very well do justice to a gothic icon.

We’re also getting what is possibly my most anticipated film across all genres: Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein. Del Toro’s Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) sits comfortably among my favorite movies of all time, and he has proven himself time and again to be a master of the gothic, the grim, and the grotesque. And of course, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is perhaps the most influential work of gothic literature in history. Oscar Isaac and Mia Goth are set to star in the adaptation, and Jacob Elordi has recently replaced Andrew Garfield as Frankenstein’s Monster. And though I have never seen Elordi act (sorry, I’m not putting myself through Saltburn), I understand that he is quite tall. With a solid design and proper practical effects – both of which are guaranteed in a Del Toro project – he could make a convincing Monster.

That said, Nosferatu and Frankenstein are only two upcoming films, and two films do not constitute a gothic horror renaissance. We’re still a far cry from the days of the 30s and 40s, when gothicism and classic monsters were all the rage in horror. And considering Universal’s failed Dark Universe franchise (which started and ended with The Mummy starring Tom Cruise), it will probably be a while before studios see the value in bringing Dracula and friends back into the mainstream. But like I said, I don’t need full-blown mainstream. I just need more.

Copy Edited by Will Donahue ’24