Scary movies

Preface- If you are sensitive to spoilers then I will warn you that spoilers don’t bother me so there might be some in here.

The start of spooky season makes me think of Halloween and scary movies. I know many people who cannot or will not watch scary movies and I totally understand. Personally, I have never shied away from dark things. I don’t think it is a bad thing to be well rehearsed in dark things. As long as you don’t lose yourself in it and realize it’s a necessary part to a whole, but only one part. I think many good things can come from the dark and sometimes you need the darkness in order to see the light. I remember the controversy with the Harry Potter books involving magic being evil but I all I saw was human struggles and, in fact, I saw that good ends ups winning over evil, though not without sacrifice of course.

I used to be jump really easily and was made fun for that so what better way to lesson that response than by watching scary movies that make you jump? The movie is supposed to make you jump, that’s the idea. It’s called a jump scare for a reason. The fact that is supposed to jump scare you helps me anticipate what might be coming up next to prepare. Essentially, I just go into the movie prepared for anything to jump out and scare me, which is like an adrenaline rush. Having knowledge of what to expect beforehand helps, but anxiety loves to come in and throw around What If’s. I also realized that it is okay to jump. It is a natural body response that other people experience as well while watching a scary movie, so that helped too. Realizing I wasn’t a weirdo who jumps at random things I was able to reframe how I viewed it, less of a personal failing and more of a natural thing I could not help.

 

I remember being entranced by the movie Jaws. I think because it was something that could actually happen that scared me. I mean, think about it. It was a big, scary creature lurking that you couldn’t always see or know where it is but knew was out there somewhere and could strike at any moment. That is often what anxiety feels like to me. Your brain knows what might be out there (and even just that ‘might’ is all you need) and you cannot quite pinpoint what or why, you just find yourself anxious waiting something bad to happen, which is no way to live. 

I really think I started to watch scary movies to experience the feelings and emotions of going through all the scary things in the moment just to turn it off, like every movie, and everything be okay. It is the buildup of adrenaline and the anticipation of what could happen that gets you more than what actually happens. One time I turned off the sound for a scary movie (with subtitles on) and made many 'scary' scenes not as scary and I realized it's mainly the music. By learning that, I have learned that the only thing you can do is try to only deal with what is in front of you right now, not what could be or has happened. And really I do not have the capacity anymore to entertain 'possible' scenarios which might never happen. At some point you have to trust that you will be able to handle what ever comes your way and let go of the need to know everything. 

I really liked psychological horror or any movie that makes you think. I really loved the idea behind the Saw series, though I feel like it started to become something way too complicated. The message was clear to me. Appreciate what you have because others would do anything, ANYTHING, to have what you have. Even just appreciating your life more. Some people do not like the films brutality but I try to find the lesson in the darkness. Everything you encounter or consume can be a learning opportunity to learn more. Sometimes watching something dark with open up long lost memories you have yet to deal with and get into your head so you have to be careful. The movie Oculus was like that. It really made me question reality and I highly recommend it if you can deal with psychological horror. There is very little blood but some movies don’t need it at all to be scary.

Honestly, I believe there is more harm in avoiding dark things than the dark things themselves. When we avoid it so much it becomes a bigger, worse thing than it actually is. The more you just look at the good or positive, the more of a shock the real world will be because not everyone is good and the world is very negative. Negativity catches on faster than positivity. The more you are not well versed in the dark, the more easily you are taken advantage of and I believe that might be other reason why I loved scary movies so much. I got to experience everything in a safe way, while staying present and observing. Anyone who has grown up with trauma knows how that can be cathartic. It tells myself that we can go through and experience something, even if just by watching someone else go through it, and come out okay. Sometimes if it has been a while since I have watched anything scary, I like to put something on as a test to make sure it still doesn’t bother me.

I recently watched this movie on Netflix called Don't Move and in it this girl is shot up with something that slowly paralyzes her and she ends up fighting back against the guy, who is familiar if you have seen American Horror Story. He plays such a good creepy bad guy and the girl is great too. I could not imagine that happening to me. I have nightmares of me freaking out in the moment and doing the exact wrong thing like slamming on the gas pedal instead of the brake to avoid crashing. Any movie where the victim ends up fighting back and triumphing is fun to watch. This movie called the Descent is highly recommended if you like to watch females kick some cave alien butts and come out on top in the end.

For me the scariest movies that stick with me are the ones that could be true. Like the virus turned zombies in 28 Days Later to ritualist sacrifices in Midsommar. The one that really freaked me out was about a flesh-eating virus called Cabin Fever. There have been movies that came out after but the first one in 2002 and remake in 2016 are the only ones I would recommend. It is very bloody so if you are easily squeamish with anything I would avoid them. If you are paranoid after COVID it might not be for everyone, but I remember legitimately not able to turn away from watching the movie. It is not the best horror film but anything dealing with something foreign inside your body, especially something alive, freaks me out. It just really gets under my skin. Pun intended. 

The horror film about spiders coming out of the sink (I think it is Arachnophobia) will always stick with me as spiders are scary to me. And when the creepy girl Samara comes out of the TV in the Ring freaked me out and made it hard for me to sleep. The movie really got to me mainly because of the horse scenes as I have always loved horses and it was very realistic and shocking. That movie definitely was memorable for me as far as movies that freaked me out. And they did not have to get as bloody as some other scary movies do. 

Regarding realistic scary movies that are not bloody makes me think of a few movies made by Jordan Peele that really stood out to me, starting with Get Out. Oh my gosh, this movie. It had me guessing and wondering all the way through. It is a mind trip so be warned but it is worth it. I liked that it was different than other scary movies and was very eerie. You can tell something is off from the start of the movie but you can’t quite put your finger on it until everything start coming together. Ah I might have to watch that again. I also saw Jordan’s other movie Us and thought it was freaky though I didn’t like it as much as Get Out.

The Hostel movies really shocked me but what really got me in the first one was how the two guys totally switched their strategy once things became real and they realized they were about to hurt a real person. It reminded me how easily it is to get caught something that is not actually for you. And then when the chick started fighting him back and the power shifted from him to her in the end was crazy. I laughed in a few scenes. Yes, laughing in scary movies can be a good thing and not always because its cringy. I loved Tucker and Dale vs Evil and how it mixes comedy and horror together. Highly recommended.

Sometimes I think what makes a movie really scary is when you cannot tell that there is a reason or a ‘why’ behind it. I find myself constantly searching for the ‘Why’ but sometimes there is no reason. The movie The Strangers and The Hitcher really stood out to me because they said flat out in the movie that there is no reason why they were doing what they were doing, they were just doing it because they answered the door or gave them a ride. Some people are just evil and do evil things. It is all about power, which I think we as humans hold onto the most when more things are out of our control. Maybe it is our obsession with knowing the ‘Why’ that makes villains like this so intriguing to me. Scary movies remind you of what it means to be human. It preys on your fears and brings them to light, which many people cannot or do not want to deal with. But in the end, it all comes down to doing what you have do to survive at all costs, no matter what.