The Return of the Repressed

The return of the repressed is the process in which repressed elements are preserved in the unconscious state, they then reappear, in consciousness or in behaviour. Normally in the shape of secondary and more or less unrecognizable "derivatives of the unconscious." This can apply to horror films as in many of the films they killer or villain has psychological issues, sometimes from a bad childhood and it lays dormant for years and then comes back full force in later life.