Sunday, April 3, 2011

Horror Movies

Horror in general has a wide variety of categories from gore to psychological thrillers. I do not see a point in movies that are meant to disgust the audience with extensive, gruesome murder scenes and no plot. This does not scare me. The Saw movies would fall into this category. I prefer movies that are psychological because they force me to become scared and then challenge my reality. The best part of horror or thriller movies is building up the suspense. This is the aspect, that although can be apart of many genres, should definitely be incorporated in horror movies. This s reflected in the Night of the Living Dead because there is continual suspense with what is going to happen with the characters. I think the plot line is too slow, which does take away from the suspense. And the characters are not as developed because I do not have great sympathy for Barbara. I am curious to see how the characters attempt to stay alive because it seems extremely easy to kill the zombies. There is not enough immediate threat from the zombies, which, at times, makes me dis-interested in the movie. I think the plot line is crucial for movies, and would make a better horror movie; instead of focusing on special effects.

3 comments:

  1. I definitely agree that horror movies should have a plot. I think it's the best way to give the audience a reason why they should be scared. It makes the movie seem more irrational and not interesting. I don't like horror movies in the first place, so I don't understand why some people would prefer a horror movie without a plot. I can't connect the purpose of the movie and why I'm watching in the first place.

    As for In the Night of the Living Dead, I'm not sure why there are zombies and where the other guy came from. I can't seem to connect the story line either. Therefore, I can't really feel sympathetic towards Barbara either. I'm not sure if she will make it out alive if she's just going to be in shock the whole time. As for the first guy (I forgot his name, but the guy Barbara came to the cemetery with), I think he deserved to be 'eaten' since he was being a jerk. I find that his death follows one of the most stereotypical people who die first in horror films.

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  2. I agree with you for the most part. I do like scary movies in general but it is annoying when they lack plot and have cheesy dialogue. Purely gore flicks are not my cup of tea either. I would much rather have my mind twisted and scream out loud in the end in shock.

    One of my favorite horror/suspense films (or maybe it would be considered just a thriller) is "What Lies Beneath" with Harrison Ford and Michelle Pheiffer. If you have not seen it- it is great- it's the one where she sees the woman's ghost in the bath tub. There is not any killing during the majority of the film- it's more like a murder mystery... very eerie.

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  3. I also believe that horror movies are much better when they incorporate a plot that doesn't consist mostly of gruesome murder scenes. However, I disagree with you in regards to some of the Saw movies, the first and second in particular that have an interesting plot and leave you in suspense.
    I find Night of the Living Dead to be suspenseful and agree that it moves a little to slow, and I'm unable to connect parts of the story line.

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