Horror literature/movies

[MR. Macabre 666]

Most horror movies are formulaic, thus you have haunted house movies, ghosts, monster chasing, zombies, and a few others.

And since I am past the age of being scared by horror movies, I watch them rather as expressions of ideas. For example, I recently enjoyed a horror movie "Immaculate" although it was rather formulaic, it explored interesting ideas of unwanted pregnancy and forced birth.

Consequently, movies that scared me the most were not horror movies. Like, I watched the movie "Roswell" (1994) when I was a kid and it scared the shit out of me because I fell for bad logic and the trope that it was "real".

And it seems that for the most people the "real" factor is the thing that scares them the most, and thus a lot of horror movies claim to be based on real events - although they are not.

That's why these days if I want to scare myself, I watch documentaries and go "That's what they're putting in food!!" or "These people are so close to getting power!!"

If you want to see something different in the horror genre, you should watch the films HEREDITARY, MIDSOMMAR, and THE WITCH. 
Probably 3 of the very best films on my all-time list.

[MR. Macabre 666]

Horror isn't the genre for me.  Psychological thrillers are sometimes interesting.

When I was a teenager the book "The Exorcist" came out.  I was at my regular babysitting gig that often lasted late in the night, if not the wee hours of the morning.  The house was, at that time, at the end of that part of town so there were no houses across the street, little traffic, and little light...nighttime was very, very dark.  After the kids were asleep I was sitting in the breezeway reading the book.  It was getting scarier and I was reading faster and faster when suddenly Pepper started barking outside and a man yelled, "Shut up you son of a bitch!".

That was it for me for reading horror.  I nearly needed to be scraped of the ceiling after that, my heart may still be pounding a bit from it, I remember it so clearly.

It doesn't matter that I later learned it was a neighborhood guy a couple years older than me who was trying to walk of some of the night's partying before going home to his parents' house.

Speaking from experience The Exorcist is not a good choice for a teenage dates.

I have to admit that the book did kind of creep me out. I read it as a teenager living in a catholic household.

[arewethereyet]

Speaking from experience The Exorcist is not a good choice for a teenage dates.

I have to admit that the book did kind of creep me out. I read it as a teenager living in a catholic household.

I grew up in an area that was well over 90% Catholic.  So, yeah, it was a bit creepy for me too.

[Disagreeable]

As far as horror goes, I've started being curious about the Saw movies. I might watch them. But I have also heard that they're not "proper" horror as they're merely "gore porn". Thoughts?

[A. Secular Human]

When at Uni, I went with my stoner buddies to see Andy Warhol's Frankenstein...in 3D.

Boy howdy, was THAT a treat!

[MR. Macabre 666]

As far as horror goes, I've started being curious about the Saw movies. I might watch them. But I have also heard that they're not "proper" horror as they're merely "gore porn". Thoughts?

People can call the "Saw" movies whatever they want, if you're a horror fan, I'd say check them out, in order of course. I have no problem watching gory movies, never have. The thing with these films that no one usually talks about is the fact that the victims usually deserve the punishment inflicted upon them. They also are given a choice that would/could be less severe than death.
It all depends on what they're willing to do to live, how much do they value life? 

These movies are worth watching just for Tobin Bell's character "Jigsaw".

[brewer]

As a pre-teen I used to like Tales from the Crypt, Errie, I think Weird was another.

Then I discovered porn mags, Thanks Dad!

[A. Secular Human]

As a pre-teen I used to like Tales from the Crypt, Errie, I think Weird was another.

Then I discovered porn mags, Thanks Dad!

I preferred Elvira's Movie Macabre, and anxiously awaited the commercial breaks, when Elvira would make snarky comments before returning to the movie.  She wore a slinky dress like Morticia in the original Addams Family TV show, except Elvira looked like she could pop out of the top of the dress at any moment. (She never did, sigh.)

Cassandra Petersen was "Elvira, Mistress of the Dark".

BTW, Carolyn Jones (the original Morticia, died at the young age of 53.

[brewer]

As a pre-teen I used to like Tales from the Crypt, Errie, I think Weird was another.

Then I discovered porn mags, Thanks Dad!

I preferred Elvira's Movie Macabre, and anxiously awaited the commercial breaks, when Elvira would make snarky comments before returning to the movie.  She wore a slinky dress like Morticia in the original Addams Family TV show, except Elvira looked like she could pop out of the top of the dress at any moment. (She never did, sigh.)

Cassandra Petersen was "Elvira, Mistress of the Dark".

BTW, Carolyn Jones (the original Morticia, died at the young age of 53.

That reminds me that we had late night 'Creature Feature' here, Friday or Saturday. Hosted by a Dr. San Guinary. It was a mix of syfy and horror. Google tells me it's still around, but not here/different person hosting (same name).

[A. Secular Human]

Last night, I added Midsommar to my "to be watched" list.