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Sam Raimi – How Does Horror Comedy Work?

A horror comedy, in theory, seems very hard. Comedy provides joy by making us laugh, and happy. While horror movies prey upon our deep emotions, disturbing and unsettling us. If successful, they thrust us out- causing uncontrollable laughter or genuine fear. While their aims are different, comedy and horror movies both affect us on a base level. This sets them apart from other genres of movies. So what happens when the line between these two genres fade out? What is so fascinating about horror comedies is that there are so many radical ways to approach it. Maybe the most appropriate method is putting comic features as well as characters in scary movies (which started way back 1948). There is also the medi-textual approach that balances both genres (having a horror and comedy scene).

There is another method used by one of the experts in the horror-comedy “Sam Raimi.” Unlike most horror comedies, there is a scary part and funny part. In this case, the funny parts are the scary parts and vice versa. What Sam Raimi understands is that the creation of a scary movie is more or less the same as the construction of a comedy. There is the setup and a payoff, suspense and then a scare.

Horror movies, like action, is the kind of genre that relies totally on the manipulation of a formal element (the controlled perspective, or the style of editing that can be utilized to create vivid stretches of pregnant intention or immediate action).

The makeup of a scary movie and that of a comedy are the same (a payoff and setup). These two genres rely mainly on ‘timing’ to get the best results. Without the few seconds of intensity to arouse some form of anticipation, both the laugh and scare will fall flat. On an emotional level, these two genres have a significant disparity, but on a physiological note, there is so much in common.

However, when the two genres are being combined, the result can be a very strange satisfying experience which plays with two main opposing sides of our subconsciousness and at the same time gratifying both. And so, even if you decide to play it out through an open comedic situation, dialogue, or gags through a unique creation of Sam Raimi or just as Edgar Wright does, it is entirely up to you.

There is no wrong or right method to produce a horror-comedy movie, but Sam’s approach is much subtle than most directors in the game. The outcome of the integrated piece is hard to recognize and very unexpected, thus making it thrilling, potent, and surprising. So instead of making these two scenes a distinct unit, he intertwines them, making it the same thing. Like the ‘Evil Dead’ movie by Sam Raimi in 1981, the primary tool in his approach tones just like me musical note. Playing them in the right sequence to put the viewers in a role of ‘mind blowing’ experience.