Last week, the Los Angeles Times ran an editorial from one of their film critics about how he has given up on horror movies. He illustrates his decision in a polite and well-written manner, providing his evidence for this choice without denigrating the genre or those enthralled by it. At the end of his article, he questioned how others could such films, but not in a judging manner. He just simply doesn’t understand the appeal…
“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become increasingly aware of the unavoidable pain and suffering all around (how could I not?) and that in turn has made me increasingly squeamish about how many reminders of how scary things can get I’m willing to subject myself to on-screen. Where’s the entertainment in that?”
“But when Kumail Nanjiani, star of “The Big Sick,” tweeted about “Chain Saw,” calling it “terrifying” and adding, “it crawls inside and stays,” my immediate reaction was to ask, Why is that a good thing? Why do I need to open myself to more images to be unnerved about? Why would I want to put myself in the hands of someone whose sole intention is to make me feel as awful as possible?”
I’m not going to slam his article or his opinions. Not every genre or subgenre is for everyone and we all have the right to like what we like and dislike what we do not. Besides, there are many out their who also film the same way. That said, I’ll do my best to offer a counter opinion.
The answer that I think the author of that piece have given up searching for within the horror genre is summed up in a single word: CATHARSIS. At its core the purest reason for horror’s existence is to offer catharsis. It allows you to face not only your own fears, but the fears of others, and see them through to a cathartic end while you sit in a safe space. Sure, there’s a rollercoaster aspect to many of the films. A great many of them are incredibly artistic and insanely imaginative as well. These are all great aspects of the genre. At the end of the day, however. It’s all about catharsis.
Catharsis for your fear of hitchhikers (Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hitcher).
Catharsis for your fear of foreign lands (Dracula, Hostel).
Catharsis for your fear of what lies in the deep (Jaws, Deep Rising).
Catharsis for the great unknown of space (Alien, The Thing).
Catharsis for your fear of cities (Maniac, CHUD).
Catharsis for your fear of classic suburbia (Halloween, Blue Velvet).
Catharsis for your fear of racism (Get Out, Tales from the Hood).
Catharsis for your fear of government (They Live, The Purge).
Catharsis for your fear of religion (The Exorcist, The Omen).
Catharsis for your fear of pregnancy (Rosemary’s Baby, Inside)
Catharsis for your fear of neighbors (Fright Night, The ‘Burbs).
Catharsis for your mistrust of saccharine holidays (Black Christmas, Krampus).
Catharsis for your fear of disease (The Fly, 28 Days Later).
Catharsis for your fear of yourself (The Wolf Man, Psycho).
And, as always, catharsis for your fear of your own demise. The list goes on and on. If there’s a thing out there in the world (or within your own mind) that terrifies you, rest assured there are also a few GREAT horror movies out there that tackle that very issue head on. That’s perhaps the thing I love most about the genre, next to its aforementioned vast imagination.
I don’t harbor any grudges against people who refuse to watch horror movies. To each their own. I am constantly judged by those who don’t watch them, often getting weird looks either due to my viewing habits or a horror movie t-shirt that I’m walking about in. I’m fine with that, because I am utterly comfortable in my love of the genre and my life in general.
That said, to cast a bit of judgment back in their direction, I often find them to be very repressed. They are often apt to bottle up their own fears and insecurities until they emotionally explode. If that’s how they choose to more through life, then more power to them. Horror offers are release valve for such things, however. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I love to pull that valve almost daily. I truly believe that I am a happier and healthier person because of it.
So that’s why I revel in horror and everything it represents. Catharsis. We all have stress in our daily lives and we live in very stress-filled times. In order to cope, sometimes we need to let off some steam before those anxieties overtake us. Watching horror movies has been, is, and always will be a great way to do that.
P.S. – Also, never forget that one of cinema’s happiest and most loving couples is Gomez & Morticia Addams. There’s a reason for that. Ask anyone who regularly hangs around horror fans or deals with those who make such films and they’ll tell you that the majority of us tend to be incredibly well-adjusted people. So are the Addams’!
