Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Studies (JHSSS) ISSN: 2663-7197 www.hsss.org 48 The Supernatural in Contemporary Philippine Horror Films Dennis Primne Corbita 1 & Maria Luisa S. Saministrado, PhD 2 1 Instructor of English, Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental, Philippines 2 Professor of English, Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental, Philippines Corresponding Author: Dr Maria Luisa S. Saministrado, E-mail: msaministrado@gmail.com ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Received: May 03, 2019 Accepted: June 15, 2019 Published: July 31, 2019 Volume: 1 Issue: 4 This study examined the supernatural characters in the selected Filipino horror films from 2004-2009 and how their character traits, appearance, wants and desires enhanced the development of the plot through their actions. It explored as well different Filipino cultural practices portrayed in the films. Using the New Criticism Approach, the films were viewed several times to familiarize the researchers with the scenes, observe the supernatural characters’ description, and re-mark key statements to further substantiate the analysis done in the paper. The study found out that there are seven different supernatural characters present in the films. They are the ghosts, aswang, tiyanak, engkanto, demonyo, manananggal, and mangkukulam. The ghosts generally appeared with pale faces and dark smudges around their eyes. Although some engkantos looked connatural with the ghosts because of the similarity of their looks, they had reasons possessing pretty faces to lure the human characters. The tiyanaks, contrary to typical child demon, grew from babies to young children. They were kids aged nine to ten years old and they played outside in broad day light. The aswangs, on the other hand, remained in their human forms with sharp teeth. Unlike the archetypal aswang, the aswang in the movies acted on revenge for having been scorned at. The demons were greatly feared since they bring death to anyone they meet. The manananggal, who could sew his torso and the lower part of his body, refused to kill innocent people. Instead, he became a vigilante protecting the innocent and attacking and killing the bad folks. Two different characteristics of mangkukulam were portrayed in the films; the first type is a good mangkukulam who sought change and does not practice evil sorcery while the second type practiced black magic. The evil mangkukulams were typically the same. The study revealed that the supernatural characters’ desires and their actions propelled the plot. The main characters and protagonists oppose the forces of these supernatural characters mainly for survival and instinct. It has also been found out that the films reflect the strong affinity of the Filipinos towards superstitious beliefs. KEYWORDS Supernatural characters, horror films, plot, antihero, Folklore, New Criticism 1. INTRODUCTION Movies have become one of the pastime activities of people around the world. Every now and then, new movies are produced and brought to the theatres worldwide. In the Philippines, watching movies gets hold of the attention of the audience from children, teenagers and adults. Students either flock to movie houses during their free time or buy DVDs and watch them at home. In literature classes, it is observed that students are more eager to watch literature in movie adaptations than discuss the literature itself in a typical classroom setting. It is the intention of this study to further advocate the incorporation of movies in English classes. Literature and all its forms include not only that of what is written on the pages of a book, but also what is readily provided for to the audience by popular media. Literature is not only about short stories, poetry, or novels. Like