Horror Films, What Gets It Right?

The point of a horror film is to scare you and there was a time when horror films were amazing, “The Exorcist”, “The Omen” (1976), “The Shining”, “Psycho” and “Halloween”.  These are films that set up a story with characters you care about with whom you are invested.  The task is met through story and characters. 

Look at “Halloween”.  The back-story of Michael Myers, as well as the character of Dr. Sam Loomis (played brilliantly by Donald Pleasence) creates both intrigue as well as atmosphere.  We get great lore and that lore gives us connection.  It is a damn scary film and a fantastic achievement.  The film was made on a low budget and had a limited time to shoot.  John Carpenter made a classic horror film and his score will bring chills down your spine all on its own.

If you want to talk about another truly scary film look at “The Omen”.   One of the most fascinating and scary things about that film is the unknown.  That film has the truest tone and sense of the unknown possibly in horror film history.  This is a film that doesn’t rely on jump scares or blood or even violence when you think about it.   It simply relies on the fear of the unknown… the “what ifs”, so to speak, and at the same time we care enough about the Thorn family to be invested.  The audience is also wondering about the photographer character, Jennings, who for a good part of the film we know nothing about…again, the unknown.  These are some of the tools that make for great horror and why “The Omen” is a classic that still holds up.  The last frame is one of the scariest things I have ever seen on film.

Now, let’s look at “The Shining”.  In “The Shining”, we have a family, the supernatural and insanity.  If that isn’t a setting for an awesome horror film, what is? The thing about “The Shining” that makes it SO damn scary is we care about the Torrance’s and we not only watch Jack deteriorate but we watch his family deteriorate with him.  The supernatural combined with the setting of The Overlook Hotel in the middle of nowhere, adds terror.   When that film ends, you are left with an unsettling feeling… a feeling of something being off so to speak.  The same can be said for “The Exorcist” and all the other films I listed up top.  After watching these “true horror” types of films, you are legitimately scared.  You get in your car and it creaks and the sound leaves you unsettled.  You might not sleep so tight. 

In my eyes, half the battle with horror films (or any films for that matter) is having a character or characters to care for; this is the main task of filmmaking.  That’s what is lacking the most in horror, the connection to the stakes and to the characters.  You can easily have high stakes in a horror film but if I don’t care about any of the characters then I’m not going to care if they live or die, get away or get possessed.  I need to care.

In 2013, there aren’t many horror films that that leave a lingering effect and make you care and connect to the characters.  It seems the horror genre has become about making a quick buck in October.  The art of truly evoking emotion, both in connection to the characters as well as scaring the daylights out of you has been lost like a leaf blowing off a tree on a cool October day.

-George McCann