In this article, we attempt to unravel the family-based haunted house film patterns in both Malaysia and America. Certain types of tropes and attributes have been used by horror filmmakers over the years to define the family motif-pattern of haunted houses in the media. Some of these elements have undergone change over time but most of them still adhere to the rules that constitute the family-based haunted house film patterns based on two Malay films and two American films. These rules were compared and contrasted by applying a combination of two theories which were formulated by Propp and Bailey. Application of these formulas has resulted in the findings of twelve plot functions as examined in this article. Upon analysis of the corpus, it has also been found that there are 10 existing attributes of a haunted house. The findings suggest that the haunted house film pattern is not merely a motif but it is also able to exhibit a number of themes which are considered prominent in haunted house films such as the Manichean clash between good and evil. The convergence and divergence between the Malaysian and American horror flicks show that cultural and religious practices govern the ways in which good and evil are expressed.

Keywords: family; patterns; structure; Haunted House; gothic; horror

Aguirre, M. (2013). A Grammar of Gothic Report on a Research Project on the Forms of the Gothic Genre. Romantic Textualities. Vol. 21, 125-134.

Azlina Assari and Jamaluddin bin Aziz. (2013). Mencabar Ideologi Maskulin: Wanita Dan Saka Dalam Filem Seram Di Malaysia. Malaysian Journal of Communication. Vol. 29(1), 113-126

Bailey, D. (1999). American Nightmares: The Haunted House Formula in America Popular Fiction. Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press.

Bansak, G.E. (1995). Fearing the Dark: The Val Lewton Career. Jefferson:

MacFarland.

Bay, M., Form, A., Fuller, B. (Producers) & Douglas, A. (Director). (2005). The Amityville Horror. (Motion Picture). USA: Metro-Godwyn-Mayer (MGM).

Blatty, P.W. (Producer) & Friedkin, W. (Director). (1971). The Exorcist. (Motion Picture). USA: Warner Bros.

Brittle, G. (1980). The Demonologist: The Extraordinary Career of Ed and Lorraine Warren. Los Angeles: Graymalkin Media.

Bronte, E. (1897). Wuthering Heights. London: Penguin Group.

Castle, W., White, R. (Producers), & Castle, W. (Director). (1959). The House on Haunted Hill. (Motion Picture). USA: Allied Artist.

Castle, W. (Producer & Director). (1960). 13 Ghosts. (Motion Picture). USA: Columbia Pictures.

Chase, D.R., Warren, L. & Warren, E. (2014). Ghost Hunters: True Stories From the World's Most Famous Demonologists. Los Angeles: Graymalkin Media.

Curtis, B. (2008). Dark Places: The Haunted House in Film. London: Reaktion Books Ltd.

De Chomon, S. (Producer & Director). (1908). La Maison Ensorcelee. (Motion Picture). France: Pathé Frères.

De Rosa-Grund, T., Safran, P., Cowan, R. (Producers) & James W. (Director). (2013). The Conjuring. (Motion Picture). USA: Warner Bros.

Duffey, M. J. (2011). Lessons Learned: The Anneliese Michel Exorcism: The Implementation of a Safe Thorough Examination, Determination and Exorcism of Demonic Possession. Oregon: Wipf and Stock.

Fennel, A., Herman, N.T. (Producers), & Hough, J. (Director). (1973). The Legend of Hell House. (Motion Picture). USA: 20th Century Fox.

Fonseca, J.A. and Pulliam, J. (2016). Ghosts in Popular Culture and Legend. California: Greenwood.

Goodman, D.F. (2005). The Exorcism of Anneliese Michel. Oregon: Resource Publications.

Goldstein, E.D., Grider, A. S. & Thomas, B. J. (2007). Haunting Experiences Ghosts in Contemporary Folklore. Utah: Utah State

University Press.

Haron Din and Tn Hj Mokhtar Kasan. (2014). Kaedah Merawat Santau. Kuala Lumpur: PTS Publishing.

Hawthorne, N. (1896). The House of the Seven Gables. Mumbai: Wilco Publishing House.

Heidi, V.D.W. (2002). Malaysian Cinema, Asian Film: Border Crossings and National Cultures. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

Jamaluddin Aziz & Azlina Assari. (2014). Saka and the Object: Masculine Dominance the Mother and the Contemporary Malay Horror Films. AJWS. Vol. 20(1), 71-92.

LaChance, A. S. (2017). Confrontation with Evil: An In-Depth Review of the 1949 Possession that Inspired the Exorcist. Minnesota: Llewellyn Publications.

Nickel, J. & Bartholomew, E.R. (2015). American Hauntings: The True Stories behind Hollywood's Scariest Movies from The Exorcist To The Conjuring. California: ABC-CLIO, LLC.

Poe, A. E. (2003). The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales. New York: Penguin Groups.

Rosenberg, T., Lucchesi, G., Boardman, P. H., Vinson, T., Flynn, B. (Producers) & Derrickson, S. (Director). (2005). The Exorcism of Emily Rose. (Motion Picture). USA: Screen Gems.

Roth, D., Wilson, C., & Arnold, S. (Producers) & de Bont, J. (Director). (1999). The Haunting. (Motion Picture). USA: Dreamworks Pictures.

Saint-Jean, M. (Producer) & Moll, D. (Director). (2011). The Monk. (Motion Picture). France: Diaphana Films.

Stark, R. (Producer) & Moore, R. (Director). (1976). Murder By Death. (Motion Picture). USA: Columbia Pictures.

Teo, David (Producer) & Ahmad Idham (Director). (2008). Congkak. (Motion Picture). Malaysia: Metrowealth Productions Sdn. Bhd.

Teo, David (Producer) & Azhari Mohd Zain. (Director). (2011). Flat 3A. (Motion Picture). Malaysia: Metrowealth Movies Productions.

The Holy Quran. (2001). Abdullah Yusuf Ali. (trans). Hertfordshire: Wordsworth Editions.

Osman Ali. (Producer & Director). (2015). Jwanita. (Motion Picture).

Malaysia: Empire Film Solution.

Osselaer, V.T, Smaele, D.H. & Wils, K. (2017). Sign or Symptom?: Exceptional Corporeal Phenomena in Religion and Medicine in the Nintenth and Twentyieth Century. Leuven: Leuven University Press.

Othman Hafsham. (Producer & Director). (1987). Rahsia. (Motion Picture). Malaysia: Cinematic.

Prest, J. G. (Producer). (2011). Anneliese: The Exorcist Tapes. (Documentary). USA: The Asylum.

Propp, V. (1968). Morphology of the Folktale. Texas: University of Texas Press.

Propp, V. (1997). Theory and History of Folklore. Minneapolis: University

of Minnesota Press.

Radcliff, A. (2001). The Mysteries of Udolpho. London: Penguin Books.

Rosmawati Mohd Rasit. (2012). The Position of Religious Malays Films in Malaysia from the Perspectives of Islamic Da’wah. Jurnal al-Hikmah. Vol. 4(2012), 148-160.

Stoker, B. (1897). Dracula. London: Penguin Group.

Walpole, H. (1901). The Castle of Otranto. London: Cassell & Co.

Wan Mohd Hafiz Wan Hussein. (2015). Puaka Balai Gombak. (Motion Picture). Malaysia: Showbiz. Words and Peace.

Wee, V. (2014). Japanese Horror Film and Their American Remakes. New York: Routledge.

Wise, R. (Producer & Director). (1963). The Haunting. )Motion Picture). USA: Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer.

Zirange, Rajaram Sitaram. (2013). Angela Carter’s Heroes and Villains: A Dystopian Romance. 3L: The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies. Vol. 9(2), 89-98.