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What scares you? And will you watch a movie that makes you face it?

posted 5 years ago by artguylarry (498)
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Fear is subjective. What scares one person might be laughable to another. I'm not talking about what STARTLES you. I mean what SCARES you. People who consider themselves fans of horror might enjoy the fear factor, but there is a distinct difference between being scared by a movie and being scared by what scares you. And your willingness to watch it. Case in point:

I just finished watching Dead Silence, a movie not well received by horror fans, as it is considered by most to be cheaply made and poorly acted, and it really kinda was. But I consider myself to be "automatonaphobic", having a sickening, crippling fear of ventriloquist dummies. So why did I watch Dead Silence, of all movies? Because I enjoy horror. I enjoy the fear factor at its most gripping level. And that level of fear is never more gripping than when you're facing what scares you the most from the comfort and safety of your TV screen. This movie, laughable as it is to most with its ridiculous plot twist and lackluster ending, was at times almost tear-inducing for me. The hall of dummies, the rotting marionette, all gut wrenching for me, and I loved every minute of it. Oh, if I was physically surrounded by it all, I would be dead from a heart attack. But to watch what truly scares me on screen is thrilling.

[–] LenkoPenko (157) 5 years ago

That's an interesting question and after giving it some thought, all I can say is that I'm not sure.
As much as I love movies and am capable of being affected by them emotionally, I can't say I've ever been scared by a horror movie. The only one that has come close was the first Cube film, due to its unsettling premise and a somewhat "plausible", yet terrifying scenario of people being rendered helpless by their abysmal situation. I wasn't scared, but I admit the thought of being in that situation was somewhat unsettling indeed.
That's also the type of horror film that gets to me the most (and the type I enjoy the most), the "realistic" type, as opposed to supernatural horror.
I think that's also why I love the found footage genre, since it gives the movie this extra bit of "realism".

Some examples:
The Bay - not sure how plausible the premise is, but I sure enjoyed the whole found footage aspect of it, which really contributed to the sense of helplessness.
The Poughkeepsie Tapes - just pure insanity, but something you know could happen.
Bone Tomahawk - just a perfect combination of living in an era where breaking your leg renders you pretty much useless and can easily lead to an amputation, coupled with the type of enemy that has no regard to human life.

It seems what really gets to me is being helpless, lol.