The New Jersey Institute of Technology's
Electronic Theses & Dissertations Project

Title:	J-Horror : A discourse in cross-cultural communication and cinematic hybridity
Author:	Quillen, MaryLou
View Online:	njit-etd2007-077 (ix, 79 pages ~ 3.6 MB pdf)
Department:	Department of Humanities
Degree:	Master of Science
Program:	Professional and Technical Communication
Document Type:	Thesis
Advisory Committee:	Lynch, Robert Edward (Committee chair) Steffen-Fluhr, Nancy (Committee member) O'Connor, John E. (Committee member)
Date:	2007-01
Keywords:	J-horror Cross-cultural communication Horror films
Availability:	Unrestricted
Abstract:	Film visually communicates the idea of culture, leaving interpretation open to an impressionable audience. Though a genre's recognizable iconography can transcend boundaries, understanding a film's intended message still requires a certain amount of foreknowledge. J-Horror, the common term for Japanese horror among fans, is a sub- genre of Horror that has been catapulted into Hollywood's limelight due to adaptations such as The Ring (2002). Based upon a novel, Ringu, by Koji Suzuki and Nakata Hideo's 1998 cinematic creation of the same name, Gore Verbinski adapted the terrifying plot for Western audiences in his 2002 counterpart. With the cross-cultural transition, certain aspects of the premise and characters were changed. I posit these differences are more than artistic reinterpretation, and are culturally significant. However, while certain facets of fear are culturally specific, the horror film serves as a universalizing tool of communication, surpassing cultural boundaries.