Adam Lowenstein, The Jewish Horror Film: Taboo and Redemption

Frankely Judaic: Explorations in Jewish Studies

Jews are no strangers to horror. They’ve encountered and dealt with horrifying events throughout their history - exile, destruction of two temples, expulsion, blood libels, ghettoization, genocide, terrorism. The list goes on and on. And so, it’s perhaps not surprising that Jewish critics and filmmakers have done some really interesting work in the horror film genre, creating what scholar Adam Lowenstein refers to as Jewish horror, although what that term means, exactly, is complicated. In this episode. Lowenstein, a professor of English and film and media studies at the University of Pittsburgh, guides us through the history of Jewish horror films, from The Golem in 1920 to the present day, exploring how Jewish (and sometimes non-Jewish) filmmakers have used film to investigate questions around what it means to be human, and the dark forces within us that, when unleashed can lead to dehumanization and horror.