Modernization reflected creatively: Central European capitals in the mirror of horror movies

    Alexander Sautkin Info
    Elena Philippova Info
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2018.5519

Abstract

The article deals with the creative interpretations of Central Europe by means of cinematography in the context of discussions about whether modernization means Westernization. The position is asserted that within Europe the ideal type of modernization is persistently associated with the West. The constructed in horror films images of Central European capitals are analyzed, with the example of such films as Short Night of Glass Dolls (La Corta notte delle bambole di vetro, 1971), The Spider Labyrinth (Il nido del ragno, 1988) and Hostel (2005). Prague (Chech Republic), Budapest (Hungary) and Bratislava (Slovakia), represented in these films, are marked with features of pseudo-modernity, which destroys the representatives of Western civilization or forces them to degenerate into monsters.

Article in English.

Kūrybiškai reflektuota modernizacija: Vidurio Europos sostinės siaubo filmų veidrodyje
Santrauka
Straipsnyje nagrinėjamos kūrybinės Vidurio Europos interpretacijos, pasitelkiant kinematografijos priemones diskusijų, ar modernizacija reiškia vesternizaciją, kontekste. Tvirtinama, kad Europoje idealus modernizacijos tipas yra nuolat siejamas su Vakarais. Analizuojami siaubo filmuose konstruojami Vidurio Europos sostinių įvaizdžiai, pasitelkiant tokius filmų pavyzdžius, kaip Trumpa stiklo lėlių naktis (La Corta notte delle bambole di vetro, 1971), Voro labirintas (Il nido del ragno, 1988) ir Nakvynės namai (Hostel, 2005). Šiuose filmuose vaizduojamus Prahą (Čekija), Budapeštą (Vengrija) ir Bratislavą (Slovakija) ženklina pseudomodernybės, griaunančios Vakarų civilizacijos reprezentantus arba priverčiančios juos išsigimti į pabaisas, bruožai.

Reikšminiai žodžiai: Vidurio Europos sostinės, kinas, kūrybinė refleksija, siaubo filmai, modernizacija, orientalizacija, stereotipai.

Keywords:

Central European capitals, cinema, creative reflection, horror films, modernization, orientalization, stereotypes

How to Cite

Sautkin, A., & Philippova, E. (2018). Modernization reflected creatively: Central European capitals in the mirror of horror movies. Creativity Studies, 11(1), 172-183. https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2018.5519

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Published

2018-09-26

Issue

Vol 11 No 1 (2018)

Section

Articles

Copyright

Copyright (c) 2018 The Author(s). Published by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University.

License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Sautkin, A., & Philippova, E. (2018). Modernization reflected creatively: Central European capitals in the mirror of horror movies. Creativity Studies, 11(1), 172-183. https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2018.5519

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