MovieChat Forums > Arachnophobia (1990) Discussion > How was this a comedy-horror?

How was this a comedy-horror?


When I saw this movie, all I saw was horror, no comedy whatsoever. Did I miss anything? Please let me know what parts made this film become slated as a comic horror.

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The tv spots for this movie described it as a "thrill-omedy", but I don't think that became a common term for describing movies that marry laughs and horror.

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It is quite humorous and freaky though.

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I'm thinking the same thing? I think the most definitive genre for this would be "mystery" and the only funny moments in the entire film are the two scenes with John Goodman and the lockerroom scene. Literally all the comedic moments could be compiled together to make maybe five minutes of film, if even. Compared to films like Tremors, Eight Legged Freaks, or Slither, this is deadpan serious.

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It was originally advertised as a horror comedy. Supposedly the producers were surprised to see how much it truly scared their test audiences and decided to switch gears and promote it as horror film.

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I guess the thrillomedy term used in marketing the film never caught on.

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But it has a certain... je ne said quoi about it, no? It's too bad, I like it better than say an "Ad-Rom", although just as I wrote that.... a Hor-Rom should be a thing

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Dramedy also seems to have been lost as well.

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Thank God.

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Delbert McClintock 👍

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Siskel accurately called it a ‘playful horror’, and of course it’s full of funny lines and moments, and everything about the John Goodman character is hilarious - you think a character like that would show up in The Exorcist..?

Also, Julian Sands is always a barrel of laughs because his acting is so ropey.

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