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The Horror film in American Cinema has been a staple for a countless
number of years. From the early beginnings of film, we have been
fascinated by the ability of celluloid to scare the Be-Jesus out of us. There
really is something primal in watching a Horror film – a sensation deep inside
your gut that flutters to and fro aching to be released. It is in fact this feeling
that has lead to the Death of the Horror film. Studio executives confusing
greed with fear have caused an irrefutable downfall of a once great genre.
I recall from my younger days sleepless nights waiting and listening, lying
perfectly still in my bed, then the relief that is brought by sleep. Closing my
eyes and drifting away, feeling safe in my warm “blankie.” Then you hear it,
a noise, something foreign and barely intelligible. You arise in a dark forest
and hear the echoing sound that has plagued your mind before. A cool
breeze blows over you as the moon peeks out from behind the nighttime
clouds. Then you see it, a glimmer of steel. What is it? You draw nearer
and nearer. You hear a twig snap in the not-so-distant darkness. Then you
see it. An 18-inch machete piercing the body of someone familiar as they
gurgle their last breath. Then it’s your turn, and as you feel the icy touch of
the cold steel blade drive through your spine and you hear the cracking of
bone and sinew…YOU’RE AWAKE!! Your body in a cold sweat and your
heart beating so fast your chest feels like it will burst. This is fear. This is
what the Horror film is capable of doing.
As a child, I was subjected to this genre quite frequently. It was a family
favorite you might say. We would all gather around the television and bask
in the glow of Freddy Krueger or Jason Voorhees or Michael Myers, a.k.a.
the “Big Three.” The first time I saw Nightmare on Elm Street, I couldn’t
sleep by myself for nearly a month (I was 8). I had dreams of Freddy and
Jason slugging it out to see who got to split me open. That was of course
long before the, in my opinion, flop Freddy vs. Jason (which amazingly has a
6.1 user rating on imdb.com). I remember for years after the sequels had
run their course and there were no more Friday the 13th’s or Nightmares, I
longed for a blast from the past, a return visit from my two favorite
“slashers.” Well, I finally got it in 2003 with this film. Let’s just say even
though I enjoyed the movie, it in no way accurately represented these two
evils. It effectively made them a joke. It had its moments, but was not so
good for either series as a whole. The original Nightmare scared the hell out
of me for a long, long time, and the first Friday gave a whole new meaning to
summer camp. Now of course since I am older, I realize that Friday the
13th was actually a film about abstinence, but I digress.
I guess what I am getting at here is the new wave of Horror films, with the
exception of a very, very select few have effectively destroyed the genre.
It's all about making a scene really dark and then running something in front
of the camera, typically a cat or mysterious shadow, or my personal favorite
the telephone ring/loud knocking sound/sharp music note “trick.” I just love
it when a filmmaker insults my intelligence, don’t you. It used to be about the
mysteriousness of the unexplained like in Poltergeist or the anticipation of
something that would bring you to the absolute breaking point and then
never actually reveal itself, effectively allowing your subconscious to scare
itself by imaging the horror, called the Hitchcock method. These tools are
now long lost relics of a time now forgotten.
The genre did show some promise with 1996’s Scream
about a gigantic alligator terrorizing the residents around the lake. This was
not terrible, believe me I know terrible. Oliver Platt is mainly the only reason
to watch this one though.
Following the H20 debacle, Scream 3 (2000) was released and was an
absolute stinker, but it did have a Jay and Silent Bob cameo that later tied in
to Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001). The “death rattle,” as it were,
came around 2002 with the emergence of films like feardotcom, Swimfan,
Cabin Fever, and the crushing blow, Jason X. The tenth installment of the
Friday series was also the death of the genre. Kind of appropriate that one
of the “Big Three” is single-handedly responsible for the death of an entire
genre as it was once known.
I think the error that is being made today is that filmmakers are relying more
on digital effects than ever before and are forgetting the “Hitchcockian”
methods that made the Horror genre great. Now given they make a
difference when used well, but mindless use of digital effects detracts from
we don’t like loose ends. Japanese films are meant to be taken at face
value. Things are evil because they are evil, no explanation needed. It is
the most important rule of watching Japanese Horror. Accept everything for
what it seems to be, no questions asked, that is what I like about these films.
If I might relay a bit of advice that I have found useful in my pursuit of fear,
look for movies you have never heard of because chances are if a Horror
film has had an enormous publicity push then it will probably be a huge
bomb. Some of the best Horror films I have seen were movies I had never
heard of at the time. Evil Dead (1981), Leprechaun (1993), Joy Ride
(2001), Child’s Play (1988), Funhouse (1981), and believe it or not, The
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974); all movies I had never heard of when I
watched them for the first time; none disappointing either, in my opinion
anyway. As an intro to the genre if you’re not a fan I recommend one of the
“Big Three;” A Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th, or Halloween.
Pick one of the series and watch all of the films. I personally own the
Nightmare series and watch it at least once a year, sometimes twice. I
guarantee you won’t be disappointed.
It is this fright fan’s hope that the breath of fresh air from the recent
Japanese invasion will resuscitate this staple of American Cinema. Genres
come and go but the Horror film has been a staple from the beginning.
From William Castle to Alfred Hitchcock, John Carpenter to Wes Craven, and
Tobe Hooper to Sam Raimi, let’s hope for the sake of our children and our
children’s children that another great Horror film director will come along to
scare abstinence into all of them for years to come. Here’s to safe sex.
Rusty Johnson
