Resident Evil: Horror film and the construction of religious identity in contemporary media culture

This paper argues that horror movies are an important component of meaning exploration in contemporary media culture and as such should have a place in our explorations of contemporary theology. Like other forms of art and media, film has always presented itself as an alternative stream of meaning making, by presenting stories about life to an ever-growing audience. In the past few decades, the growth of electronic media, such as television and film, along with the continual decline in Church membership, has given the structures of electronic media communication a new power as a meaning-making institution. An analysis of horror movies shows a number of important themes that are not foreign to formal theological discourse. Hence they posit an alternative centre for religious meaning making. These themes impact on the religious identity of participants in contemporary popular culture, including members of established Christian communities, who draw on stories from popular culture in understanding what it means to be Christian.