Is it a psychological thing? A lot of scholars claim that horror has enduring appeal because the best horror films reflect unease about our own times, like how Romero depicts racism in Night of the Living Dead. Yet, with films like Paranormal Activity (great movie, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't seem to have a big social message behind it), are horror movies departing from this thematic territory? Or, with the proliferation of horror from all manner of studios, is it just that those "social message" horror films are getting buried?

Discuss.

I believe Rosemary's Baby had a strong message

+1

Never trust old weird neighbors and never eat stuff others make for you when you're pregnant.

Yes, and when your man ****s you in the middle of the night when your unconscious then he probably wants to sell his soul to the devil

Arguable, yes, but an 80s film. It seems like nowadays these types of message movies are being made far less frequently.

Scream 4 and the social commentary on celebrity

That's in reference to classic, enduring horror. Works for novels too (Frankenstein, Dracula anyone?). It's not saying that any horror movie with a strong social message will become popular, it's saying that the scariest and most impactful horror films and novels are the ones which are reminiscent of the horrors of the real world