HORROR MOVIES 101

The Differentiation Of Horror Films

Main Entry: ¹hor·ror
Pronunciation: 'hor-&r, 'här-
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English horrour, from Anglo-French *orur, from Latin horror action of bristling, from horrEre to bristle, shiver; akin to Sanskrit harsate he is excited
1 a : painful and intense fear, dread, or dismay <astonishment giving place to horror on the faces of the people about me -- H. G. Wells> b : intense aversion or repugnance
2 a : the quality of inspiring horror : repulsive, horrible, or dismal quality or character <contemplating the horror of their lives -- Liam O'Flaherty> b : something that inspires horror
3 plural : a state of extreme depression or apprehension

I'm going to try and not generalize us movies fans too much, It's just the way I see it, feel free to critisize, thats the point of a forum.

When we think of horror films, a lot of us right off the bat will think, Freddy Krueger, Jason, The Exorcist, The Omen, Jaws,..... you know, classic stuff... some of us more seasoned ( nice way of saying old) will think, Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstein etc.

When I think of horror, I think of... Cape Fear, Mystic River, Silence of the Lambs, Vertigo, City Of God... etc

Something you might notice right away, all those movies could really happen, or have really happened to some extent or degree.

 I find it far more horrifying to watch films that have possibility to be reality as opposed to movies similar to Friday The 13th, Childs Play, Nightmare...., etc.

Now don't get me wrong, some of those slasher type movies I find very entertaining. Slither is one that comes to mind the quickest.. and mainly because they added comedic relief to help add reality to a near impossible situation. I do enjoy the poltergeist movies, and I can watch the Lost Boys over and over...but the movies that really scare me, are the ones that I could see actually happening to me.

A recent movie I've seen that wouldn't necessarilly be thought of as horror, would be

"I Stand Alone" by Gasper Noe.

If you have not seen this movie, don't watch it with your conservative grandmothers.

To help open the conversation, tell me I'm stupid... or list some movies that don't fall into the horror genre but obviously scare the living shit out of you.

Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

   Thank you for the post, Andy, and welcome aboard!

 You are quite right.. and you bring up an interesting point...   I, too, appreciate all of the "Human- Monster" type Horror films that "could actually happen"...   There are MANY...

 Some of the examples you gave are excellent examples... "Cape Fear" (original and remake) and "Silence Of The Lambs" (and all of the sequels/prequels) are perfect examples...   I would also add Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977) - Spout  to that list.

 But there are MANY, MANY movies of that type that are presented as "Horror Movies" as well...  A partial list would include:

 "Psycho" (all)

 "The Texas Cainsaw Massacre" (all)

 "The Hills Have Eyes" (original)

 "Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer"

 "Slaughterhouse"

 "Last House On The Left"

 "The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane"

 "Don't Look In The Basement"

 "HOSTEL"

 "Wrong Turn"

 "Detour"

 ...the list goes on and on... I think you get the idea...

  >>> Also, if you have had any experience with the 'supernatural' or if you have ever actually SEEN a 'ghost' (as I have)... then you would know that movies like "The Exorcist" or "The Amityville Horror" or "The Legend Of Hell House" could 'actually happen' as well...

Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

Thanks for the invitation! Always enjoy having intelligent conversation about something I like!

I have not had a solid experiance at witnessing the supernatural, so I guess that's why I immediately discounted those as "possible". And again, I'm not trying to discount those types of movies either, just simply stating that I get the real horror effect from the "reality possible" story lines more than what you had stated. 

I suppose that entire scenario leads to an argument on faith and belief.

You could always twist that conversation around, and wonder, was the amityville horror really just the focus of one mans dementia getting the best of him, and the point of veiw of the film is really his madness just portrayed as an evil spirit. Probably not, but I like to think that way about horror movies with ghosts and spirits as the main protagonist.

Like all of my fears, I'm secretly hoping they come true at one point. I guess this is me at my most masochistic. I truely would love to see the russian nuclear warhead Czar detonate, I would love to be stranded in a semi desert town, forced to live on my own, question the point to life. I would love to feel in first person that effects of insanity and dementia.

Like everyone I want my cake and eat it too, because obviously I don't want to be stuck with insanity or solitude. As for the nuclear bomb, I'm prepared to deal with the repercussions.

Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

One of the movies that I loved to death was American Psycho. It's not necessarily considered to be a horror film, but the fact that the main character, Patrick, is killing off several people and getting away with it conjures up some unsettling feelings. That premise, to me, seems incredibly possible.

100% thats a great example. I actually just saw that for the first time less than 2 months ago. Brilliant movie.

It's the personality characteristics that really make it creepy, because I can list probably 6 people I've known fairly well in my lifetime that act and think very similar to Patrick. So once you see a portrayal of someone like this who commits blatent devious acts, thats more than enough to incite fear.

Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

Let me say something first and that I am totally new to this site. Not even sure on where to even begin to start getting setup in here. I am very big independent film fan in all genres. I am  also huge into reading. You mentioned American Psycho which is a Bret Easton Ellis novel and that particular film and novel is so realistic, its not evn funny. You have to understand this is coming from a guy that was part of the whole club kid scene, gay or strait. Throw on top of that unlimited amounts of cash. People just dont realize how true this movie is because in our society if you live in these type of realms, this type of realistic horror and drama does happen.Certain people do look upon other people in a parisitical way and it does incite alot of fear and drawn out emotions. I mean look at the scene in the Paul Walker film Running scared were Vera Farmingo walks into the aparment of that sickly couple and kills them and then her explanation to her husband afterword on why she pulled the trigger.  Thats another prime example of horror and this movie wouldn't fall into horror film section.

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Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

indieabby88:

In many ways, I consider "The Last King of Scotland" to be a horror movie. Nothing scares me more than knowing most of the things that happened in that movie really did happen to people during the Amin regime, in one way or another. Real-life psychos and villains scare me more than any imaginary creation could.

This is a great topic, and while I formulate my response to it, I had to say this about your mention, Indieabby. I haven't seen Last King of Scotland yet, but I think what your describing falls into the way I feel about war movies. I'm not a big war movie fan, because they tend to glorify violence in the name of condoning it, but they do affect me more than most horror films. Not the same type of fear, but I am always on edge during a war movie, even(and especially) during the quiet bits. I actually get a little shake once in awhile. Partly it's what you mentioned about these events being real, and partly it's because in a war movie, more than any other film, any character can die at any moment. The violence comes quick, with no buildup, and is completely random.

Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

AndyLaBryn:

 I find it far more horrifying to watch films that have possibility to be reality as opposed to movies similar to Friday The 13th, Childs Play, Nightmare...., etc.

Now don't get me wrong, some of those slasher type movies I find very entertaining. Slither is one that comes to mind the quickest.. and mainly because they added comedic relief to help add reality to a near impossible situation. I do enjoy the poltergeist movies, and I can watch the Lost Boys over and over...but the movies that really scare me, are the ones that I could see actually happening to me. 

To help open the conversation, tell me I'm stupid... or list some movies that don't fall into the horror genre but obviously scare the living shit out of you.

 

Well, I won't call you stupid, because obviously that's not true. But I will give you a light slap upside the head for calling Slither a slasher film. If anything it's a splatter film.

 Anyway, to actually respond to your topic;

The types of horror movies I prefer are actually the opposite of what you describe, although that doesn't mean I don't enjoy them. Quite the opposite, Silence of the Lambs and Vertigo are two of my favorite films of all time. Those tend to be the exception, however. As much as I may love Henry, Portrait of a Serial Killer, or the first Halloween film, slasher flicks usually bore me. I only got an occassional enjoyment out of the entire Friday the 13th series, and although I enjoyed Hostel, High Tension, and to a lesser extent Saw, the new torture porn(or Gore-nography) flicks bore me almost as much as they disgust me(not with the visuals, but what they say about society). A lot of the time these movies exploit our fears rather than attempt to bring us through them and help us deal with them, which a lot of the greater horror films will do. A great example there is the Invasion of the Body Snatchers, which is like a rhorshach test. You either see it as a critique of Mccarythism, or an example of how communism could eventually take over our great nation, depending on your political view. 

I won't claim to be a paranormal expert, but I have seen a few things in my life that I can't explain, so maybe it's my wishful thinking that attracts me to ghost stories, or monster movies. The Changeling, Session 9, those are the movies that scare me. However, I can agree with the fact that things that can happen to you are inherently more frightening. Usually, however, I find it harder to suspend disbelief in a movie that is attempting to sustain realism.

 As for movies that aren't horror but frighten me? Well, Dead Ringers, one of Cronenberg's many, excellent non-horror films, has one of the most soul-crushing, claustrophobic final acts i've ever seen. There's a moment near the end of Breaking The Waves, where we know things are about to go horribly wrong for our heroine, and she does to. Emily Watson, in a movie full of geat acting on her part, gives this little look directly at the camera, with a half smile on her face, though she's absolutely terrified. It's a small moment, but gives me chills, and had me in tears. That was one of the most chilling moments I've seen, even though it doesn't sound like it.

 And then, the non-horror movie that scares me the most, and i've said it before, is Twin Peaks, Fire Walk With Me. Regardless of how you like the movie(I myself love it, most don't), there's a few scenes in that movie that give me chills each and every time. Specifically, there's a scene where Laura puts a picture of a hallway and an open door on her wall. While she sleeps the camera focuses on this picture, then goes to a closeup. The camera starts to move, and we realize we're in the photo. The sequence that follows me scares the bejesus out of me, even though I know by now nothing happens!

 
Sorry, that post was probably way to long.

oh yeah. Welcome to the group. 

Re: The Differentiation Of Horror Films

TheWorkingDead:

oh yeah. Welcome to the group. 

Heh, Andy actually posted that 7 months before you even joined!