Suburban Gothic

Suburban Gothic is a sub-genre of Gothic Literature, visual art, and cinema.

Like its predecessor, Suburban Gothic writing is dark and disturbing, often employing psychological and supernatural devices to drive the plot along. It uses these devices not so much to entertain, but to explore social issues and to challenge the suburban dream.

Suburban Gothic strives to break down the facade of normality that pervades suburbia. The knights and heroes of traditional Gothic literature have been replaced in most cases by a heroic underdog figure. The grotesqueness of its characters lay not in the dis-figuration of the body but of the mind, delving into the dark and twisted psyche of its characters.

In most cases in Suburban Gothic literature good does not prevail. Wrongs are often left unrighted and are, in fact, often can not be righted. They are, in fact, often compounded when confronted.

This genre of writing is exemplified in the works of Edward Bloor and Robert Cormier, and in some of the works of Stephen King.

Visual artists who explore suburban gothic themes include Australian Tanja Stark and Americans Gregory Crewdson and Thomas Cummins.

Suburban Gothic shows its face considerably in contemporary film. The genre is composed of mixing elements of thriller, drama, dark comedy, and even fantasy, all in contrast to the idyllic settings of fences, lawns, and boxes. This style has seen an impressive build-up under the wings of such auteurs as David Lynch, Larry Clark, Todd Solondz, and Todd Field. A flourish in these dark suburban films has grown over the last several decades, filling the void for Gothic enlightenmnet. Archetypal portraits of the grotesque suburbs can be seen in such films as: Blue Velvet, Edward Scissorhands, American Beauty, and Donnie Darko.

Films

• Bad Ronald (1974)
• The Stepford Wives (1975)
• Carrie (1976)
• Halloween (1978)
• Poltergeist (1982)
• Christine (1983)
• Fright Night (1985)
• Blue Velvet (1986)
• The 'Burbs (1989)
• Parents (1989)
• It (1990)
• Edward Scissorhands (1990)
• The People Under the Stairs (1991)
• Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)
• Short Cuts (1993)
• Spanking the Monkey (1994)
• Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)
• Scream (1996)
• Lawn Dogs (1997)
• Gummo (1997)
• Happiness (1998)
• Apt Pupil (1998)
• Idle Hands (1999)
• Election (1999)
• American Beauty (1999)
• Julien Donkey-Boy (1999)
• Storytelling (2001)
• Donnie Darko (2001)
• In the Bedroom (2001)
• Bully (2001)
• Ken Park (2002)
• One Hour Photo (2002)
• Spun (2003)
• The Stepford Wives (2004, remake)
• Mean Creek (2004)
• Palindromes (2004)
• Crutch (2004)
• Bubble (2005)
• Little Children (2006)
• Snow Angels (2007)
• Disturbia (2007)
• Teeth (2007)
• An American Crime (2007)
• The Girl Next Door (2007)
• Beautiful (2008)
• Lake Mungo (2008)
• Let the Right One In (2008)
• Life During Wartime (2009)

Television

• Are You Afraid of the Dark?
• Goosebumps
• Eerie, Indiana
• Twin Peaks
• The X-Files
• Desperate Housewives
• The Oblongs (animated)