#also now i want to rewatch the descent for the 100th time thank u

[heartoferebor]

Ooooh for the horror movie ask meme! 1, 2, 5, 6, and 9!

1. What was the last horror movie you watched?

I'm watching a lot more shows than movies atm! The last horror things I watched were Midnight Mass (fun though it didn't get me quite as much as Hill House did - mostly because the only thing I connect with religion is trauma and zero comfort) and Archive 81 (ultimately disappointing - a super intriguing setup and premise but in the end quite the letdown. Also, did they really have to straightwash one of the main characters?). The last horror movie I actually watched was a rewatch of Cabin in the Woods. Fuck the Whedong, but this is a DAMN good movie. The last horror movie I watched that I haven't seen before was the og Candyman, I think.

2. What is the scariest horror movie you’ve seen?

Oh my god I'm gonna ramble here bc like. This is SO SO subjective and a LOT of it doesn't just depend on the person but also on where you are at the moment in time when you watch a movie, both mentally and physically (I read Pet Sematary three days after my beloved childhood pet died. It was a very, very bad idea. I had nightmares for months). I think it is GENUINELY impossible to find an objective measure of how scary a movie it is. Like GENUINELY. So I'm gonna pick a few. I should also say that I get scared quite easily (or, well, used to. I have seen so many horror movies now that it takes a wee bit more to get me really terrified). I love being scared. That's why I watch horror movies - if I put on a horror movie I do it with the express purpose of wanting to be terrified. Give me that sweet sweet adrenaline and cataclysmic release of fears in a safe and controlled environment, thank you!

First shoutout goes to X-Files S1E3 "Squeeze" which I watched at 11 years old and that gave me nightmares for DAYS. I also saw The Haunting around the same time and it made me afraid of Stairwells for a good long time. Both of these are still very good today but they don't scare the crap out of me any longer. But back then...next big one I remember is Blair Witch Project which scared the crap out of me at 14 plus a few others, especially Japanese horror, that definitely did things.

Nowadays, the scariness factor is a bit different because it mostly relates to mental states etc. I'm going to throw three different ones in the ring here. Once again, I know more than one person who doesn't find these scary at all (also I just realised these are all fairly new which, hu. There's definitely old stuff that scares me too)

1) His House. This has got to be my favourite horror movie that came out in recent years. The acting, direction, cinematography etc was superb and it's, in my opinion, genuinely scary in a lot of different scenes.

2) The Descent. I've watched it so often now that the scariness has worn off a wee bit but even now it's still creepy as fuck. Just the entire atmosphere of being lost in an unknown cave system and tracked by unknown creatures is !!!!!!!!!

3) Hereditary. Yes YES I know! What a predictable answer. And shoutout to all the non-horror people who went to the movies to loudly proclaim how NOT scared they were. Great for you! You know what? I was scared. It's fantastic. And part of the fear isn't just the supernatural bit, it's the more relatable ones. But what if the demons haunting you will haunt your family? How much am I my parent's child? Will my dead sister ever stop tearing through my nightmares?

Putting the rest under a cut cause this is getting too long because I RAMBLE TOO MUCH.

5. List your top five horror films

I've actually done this before, except, I couldn't stick to a top 5. Here was the Top 10 from way back when and a more recent Top 10 with some extra recommendations!

Very quickly I'd say His House, The Descent, Hereditary, Ringu, Lake Mungo

6. What is your favorite genre of horror? (paranormal, slasher, etc.)

DEAD KIDS AND GHOSTS AND WEIRD FOREST CREATURES. Aka haunted house/haunting movies and folk horror. I prefer horror with a supernatural twist be that ghosts, demons, etc.

Least favourite are slashers and zombie flicks athough I enjoy the occasional good one.

9. Do you have any pet peeves for horror?

Also, I've talked about this in the previous post, but the whole jump scare thing. If you'll forgive me, I'll just copypaste that part of the answer -

Jump scares are overused and bad and if your movie relies on jump scares to be scary it’s a bad movie (best example: The Nun). You know what scares most people about jump scares? The SUDDEN LOUD MUSIC. You jump in your seat as a literal physical reaction and it’s like. Eugh. FIlmmarkers, stop using my body (and my autism-induced noise oversensitivity) against me and start using my brain and heart against me! And if you do that I’ll grant you your jump scares. Hereditary has, I think one or two? And they are INCREDIBLY effective because they are used to sparingly and because the movie earns them by creating a perfectly dreadful atmosphere without them first. Seeing a character going down a dark corridor and knowing something will jump with a loud violin screech is not scary. Seeing a character going down a dark corridor and seeing faint movement behind them, a shadowy face perhaps that slowly materialises on the ceiling above them, fingers that slowly creep closer - THAT is terrifying. I’ll take Samara crawling out of the TV in slo-mo any day over boogieman hopping out of the closet as the former is much scarier.

On a second, slightly more hilarious note, I am so tired of Lovecraft discourse. Is every dudebro trying to rip off Eldritch monsters and holding Lovecraft up as the end-all of horror boring and annoying as fuck? Heck yeah. Was Lovecraft a horrible racist antisemite whose personal philosophies found their way into his writing and influence our thinking about 'The Other' to this yeah? 100%. Do I think nobody should use Eldritch monsters in anything ever because of this and its this always boring and badly done? Nah! Take 'em tentacle babies, be aware of the pitfalls, and have fun. Sheesh.

Ask me about horror movies!