Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children.

- William Makepeace Thackeray

This quote (which you may remember being uttered by Brandon Lee in “The Crow”) really gets to the heart of a thematic convention that is often used in horror films as a way of isolating and effecting not only the protagonists but also the audience. For most people, the concepts of both Mother and God are associated with the notions of security and sanctuary, associations that stem from childhood. They are the powers which keep the darkness at bay, that can defeat the monsters under the bed and make the bad dreams go away. The convention in horror films is to undermine these two concepts and eliminate the sense of safety and protection that they provide.

Spoilers ahead for “28 Days Later”, “Alien”, “Nightmare on Elm Street” and “The Exorcist”.

Wes Craven’s “Nightmare on Elm Street” achieves this very directly. In a scene early on, Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) is asleep in a bed. Freddy Kreuger appears, pushing through the wall and in the process, dislodging a crucifix that hangs above the bed. The crucifix, often a tool for warding off evil (especially vampires) has no effect on this nightmare monster. Nancy’s mother, Marge, is also no source of help or protection; as the film progresses, she becomes increasingly drink-sodden and the climax of the film finds her in an alcoholic stupor, unable to save herself much less her daughter.

The science fiction classic “Alien” (wri. Dan O’Bannon) also subjugates both of these concepts. Being set in the future with all the action taking place on a spaceship, however, the traditonal notion of God in terms of religion is replaced by the new god of technology and science. These are personified in the character of Ash (Ian Holm). Ash is the Science Officer and it is he who initially disregards Ripleys instructions and lets the crew in through the airlock after Kane (John Hurt) has been attacked by the facehugger, thereby setting in motion the events which will be the crews downfall. Later on, after Ash attacks Ripley, it transpires that he is actually an android. The technology that is the god and salvation of the Nostromo crew has turned on them.

There is no sanctuary to be found from their “mother” either. In this case, “Mother” is the name of the ship’s computer, the onboard Artificial Intelligence which, amongst other “motherly” responisbilities, is meant to look after them while they are in hypersleep. But it is “Mother” who betrays them by taking them to the planet to discover the aliens and it is Mother who tells Ripley that the crew (Mother’s “children”) are expendable.

Last night I noticed that these concepts are also explored in “28 Days Later” (wri. Danny Boyle). After wandering through the deserted streets of London, Jim (Cillian Murphy) tries to find somewhere to rest (this is made more clear in the screenplay than it is in the film) and discovers a church - traditionally a place of sanctuary; but this church is where he has his first encounter with the Infected and, indeed, the first one that nearly gets him, is an infected priest. The church is no longer a safe haven.

However, 28 Days Later treats the concept of mother slightly differently as “famiily” and “parents” are one of the themes explored in the film. Jim’s own parents are dead but Selena (Naomie Harris) becomes a surrogate mother not just to Jim but also to Hannah in the new family group that additionally provides Jim with a new father figure, Frank (Brendan Gleeson). Selena, however, is, at first, a cold, uncaring and begrudging “mother”, fulfilling the protective “motherly” role but only for as long as it’s expedient to do so.

She gradually comes to accept this position more after seeing how the incomplete family unit of Frank and Hannah live for each other and not just themselves and how it gives them purpose and meaning. After Frank dies, Jim is not ready to take his place so Major Henry West (Christopher Eccleston) takes on the role, becoming, essentially, a cruel stepfather who eventually turns on the “family” for his own purposes. Jim escapes and returns to save the women and by the end of the film has taken over as the “father”, no longer needing a mother figure and is now on equal terms with Selena who, in turn, has fully taken on the caring and nuturing role that she eschewed at the beginning of the film.

Finally, “The Exorcist” (wri. William Peter Blatty). Being a film all about religion, God and the Devil, it’s a little more difficult to see how the concept of God is challenged. The concept of Mother is definitely subverted: Chris Macneil (Ellen Burstyn) cannot help or save her daughter Regan (Linda Blair) from the malevolent spirit that possesses her. Being atheist, Chris’ god is science and medicine, but neither of these can find a cure or explanation for Regan’s condition so she is forced to turn to the church. Of course, at first the church is reluctant to help but in the end, Regan is saved by a priest. Ironically, it is not the stalwart character of the exorcist, Father Merrin (Max Von Sydow), who is her saviour but Damian Karras (Jason Miller) - a priest who has lost both his mother and his faith.

So there we have it: if you want to scare people, you need to delve into their psyche and subconscious and take away the safety nets they have in place. Destroy their gods, kill their mothers and give them no place to run or hide.