Yuku free message boards
Username or E-mail:
Password:
Forgot
Password?
Sign Up
Grab the Yuku app
Search:
Classic Horror Film Board
>
General Horror and Sci-Fi
>
WHAT IS IT ABOUT HORROR...
0 Points
Search this Topic:
Remove this ad
«Prev
1
2
Next»
Jump
Add Reply
Forum Jump
Welcome to the CHFB
Forum Guidelines
CHFB TURNS 20!
Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards
Universal Horrors
The Universal Monsters Blu-Ray Collection
Golden Age Horror
Kong - 8th Wonder of the World
Silent Horror
Poverty Row
The World of Sherlock Holmes
Murder and Mystery
Thrills and Chills
'50s Horror and Sci-Fi
'60s Horror and Sci-Fi
'70s Horror and Sci-Fi
Hammer Horror
The Psycho Ward
Foreign Horror
Japanese Giants
Horror and Sci-Fi of Recent Decades
Current Films
Second Takes on Films of the 2000s
Independent Films and Documentaries
Coming Soon
TV Terrors
Classic Horror on DVD, Blu-Ray and Streaming
Stream and Stream Again
Horror Film Books and Magazines
Horror by Candlelight
Horror Comics and Fantasy Art
Monster Toys and Collectibles
Classic Horror Movie Memorabilia
Horror Music
Old Time Radio and Audio Horror
Classic Horror Online
CHFB Member Reviews
Our Favorite Horror Hosts
Classic Disney Scares
Horror Film Stars
Men Behind the Monsters
Monster Kid Memories
General Horror and Sci-Fi
Horror Tech
Movie of the Day
Off Topic Discussions
Classic Horror News and Events
Birthdays and Holidays
DVR / TiVo Alert
Final Farewells
Classic Horror Polls
Classic Horror Classifieds
Monster Kids Helping Monster Kids
<< Previous Topic
Next Topic >>
Re: WHAT IS IT ABOUT HORROR...
Author
Comment
Vlad the Inhaler
Re: WHAT IS IT ABOUT HORROR...
#1
[-]
Sep 23 06 6:28 PM
Reply
Quote
More
My Recent Posts
I wonder if it has something to do with an aesthetic reaction. When I was young and saw
Frankenstein
for the very first time, I can honestly say that I had
never
seen
anything
like that before. I didn't know the word "mundane" then, but it was the most
unmundane
thing I'd ever beheld.
Later in life, we're more educated -- we can talk knowledgeably about set design, cinematography, lighting, and all the other technical components that are important to the horror genre. Our sophistication deepens our appreciation for the material, but in some way it also replaces the childlike wonder we experience at the sight of Kenneth Strickfaden's sparking machines. Or Dracula's castle.
More eloquently put, monster movies are just so freaking
cool
!
On a more serious note, there's plenty to be said for the theories regarding feelings of isolation, loneliness, and rejection, and children identifying with movie monsters on that level. I'm no expert, but I suspect the monsters in question would be more the bipedal, humanoid creatures like Frankenstein, Dracula, the Wolfman, and the Mummy, than the giant lizards, apes, insects, etc. of later years. (Kong excepted, of course -- that poor guy couldn't catch a break at all.
King Kong
is one of the few films that have ever made me cry.) It's much harder to identify with, or care about the motivations of, a 60 ft. praying mantis, even if it is fun to watch it kick ass.
Likewise, horror material gives us, starting at a young age, some of the tools we need to process concepts like Evil and Death. (A wise religious instructor might do well to incorporate horror into their catechism, but that's just me.) Stephen King once remarked that he'd learned that his books are very popular in hospices. You'd think dying people wouldn't "want to go there," but perhaps horror stories are an easier way to rehearse for death, than to listen to one's doctors explaining on and on about the technicalities of the experience.
Magical imagery; sympathetic characters; metaphoric ways to think about death; pretty girls fallen helpless under the monster's sway (oh, yeah, let's not forget about pretty girls and metaphoric ways to think about sex!), castles and graveyards and lowering skies all shimmering in black-and-white; ancient curses and forbidden knowledge; wise professors and mysterious gypsies; the technical fascinations of makeup and SFX; everything on the page and on the stage and behind the camera and in front of the camera -- that's why I loved horror as a kid, and why I still love it as a grownup (a grownup kid, more likely)!
Vlad
The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents.
-- H. P. Lovecraft
<< Previous Topic
Next Topic >>
Add Reply
Forum Jump
Welcome to the CHFB
Forum Guidelines
CHFB TURNS 20!
Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards
Universal Horrors
The Universal Monsters Blu-Ray Collection
Golden Age Horror
Kong - 8th Wonder of the World
Silent Horror
Poverty Row
The World of Sherlock Holmes
Murder and Mystery
Thrills and Chills
'50s Horror and Sci-Fi
'60s Horror and Sci-Fi
'70s Horror and Sci-Fi
Hammer Horror
The Psycho Ward
Foreign Horror
Japanese Giants
Horror and Sci-Fi of Recent Decades
Current Films
Second Takes on Films of the 2000s
Independent Films and Documentaries
Coming Soon
TV Terrors
Classic Horror on DVD, Blu-Ray and Streaming
Stream and Stream Again
Horror Film Books and Magazines
Horror by Candlelight
Horror Comics and Fantasy Art
Monster Toys and Collectibles
Classic Horror Movie Memorabilia
Horror Music
Old Time Radio and Audio Horror
Classic Horror Online
CHFB Member Reviews
Our Favorite Horror Hosts
Classic Disney Scares
Horror Film Stars
Men Behind the Monsters
Monster Kid Memories
General Horror and Sci-Fi
Horror Tech
Movie of the Day
Off Topic Discussions
Classic Horror News and Events
Birthdays and Holidays
DVR / TiVo Alert
Final Farewells
Classic Horror Polls
Classic Horror Classifieds
Monster Kids Helping Monster Kids
Share This
Email to Friend
del.icio.us
Digg it
Facebook
Blogger
Yahoo MyWeb
«Prev
1
2
Next»
Jump
Classic Horror Film Board
>
General Horror and Sci-Fi
>
WHAT IS IT ABOUT HORROR...
Click to subscribe by RSS
Click to receive E-mail notifications of replies