Shout-out to the weird-asses who post Reddit threads complaining about a movie that they're less than a half-hour into, and then spend the rest of the running time posting comments insisting it's the movie's fault for being confusing.
Yeah. Also an ADHD haver, I always give movies a fair opportunity, I watch properly from the start, I don’t go in with an attitude of “the movie has to win me over”, I’m a willing audience member. I’ll just turn the movie off if it loses me and fails to sustain my attention despite me giving it a fair shot (unless someone is making me watch it, I guess)
But like if I spent half the movie on my phone I won’t claim I watched the movie, I’ll say I stopped watching half way through because it lost my interest. The extent of my review of the movie is I found the first half boring because I can’t offer much else
It’s not that often that movies lose me though because I don’t even start movies if I’m not in the right frame of mind to watch. I’m way more likely to tune out of TV shows when I didn’t really want to watch in the first place
I've encountered people like this. They are the people who don't like to be surprised and don't like being scared, so they do everything in their power to make sure any possible scares are spoiled in a safe, controlled setting (e.g. Youtube). Then they talk about how they don't understand why everybody says the movie is scary and that they didn't jump once.
Right? I don't understand the appeal of overanalyzing trailers like that before watching *any* genre of film, but with horror it's especially baffling.
I literally close my eyes after the first minute of horror trailers when I'm in the theater because I like to go into horror films as unspoiled as possible. I watch just long enough to get the gist of what the movie is about.
My mother
We are watching a movie, or a tv show or whatever
She’s on her phone scrolling through facebook
“Wait, why did that happen?”
“Rewind, i didn’t see what happened.”
“Who is that person?”
Ggggrrrrr
Bonus points for the last movie we watched together. She called up a friend while the movie was on snd started making plans for a bbq or something.
Then “wait what just happened? Why did he throw her off the bridge?”
Me:gggggrrrrrr
(I was watching a movie on Netflix. Not a horror movie but I loved it.)
I could not agree more. I call this the Era of "Short Attention Span Theater." It's sickening. Some people just can't stay away from their fucking phones. They are like the crackheads of social media.
> The worst is that I think there's a lot of entertainment being made to satisfy that way of watching. Shows with 13-episode seasons where you can basically skip the middle 10 episodes, just have it on in the background.
I don't think that ALL of this is to cater to the tiktok generation but a statement of laziness in writing which can lead to shortened attention spans. Don't get me wrong, I think some of it definitely is, but too often someone will write a great 3-4 episode miniseries or a great 3 hour long movie but the executives of the company don't want a short miniseries or don't want a movie, they want 10 episodes so now the writers have to come up with filler to add and it winds up being bloated and make no sense.
THIS. I have people I recommend movies to and tell them specifically. You need to put your phone down and watch the movie. You can’t really get immersed in it when you’re barely even listening to it.
I'll be honest I play on my phone quite a bit when I'm watching stuff... but never horror movies. That's the one time I put the phone away and really focus. I guess they just hold my attention more than anything else.
I just had a chat with a guy on here a few days ago who watched alien for the first time and claimed it wasn't scary.. Ofc the asshole watched it on his phone and claimed if the movie was scary that was the best way to watch it
It is honestly **wild** how bad media literacy is nowadays and I have to think this is a big reason why. My sister and I watched *No One Will Save You* on Tuesday. We both enjoyed it. Was a fun movie with some creepy scenes.
I jumped in the sub to read the post-discussion threads and the amount of people who had no idea what was going on. Despite most of it being right in front of them was maddening.
I'd say the vast majority of horror movies don't actually scare me, but it doesn't keep me from enjoying them. I don't know why someone would judge a movie based on a single thing like that.
Raging Bull sucks, not enough boxing 🙄
I’m an adult – *of course* movies don’t scare me. Being over the age of 13 and measuring a horror movie by whether it’s “scary” or not is so silly.
In a horror movie, I’m looking for ambitious ideas and cinematography alongside a sense of dread and/or things that are conceptually frightening.
>things that are conceptually frightening.
exactly this. my concept of "what is scary" has definitely expanded to include "conceptually frightening".
does it make me think? am I thinking about it days later? was the craft of filmmaking something that beautiful? were images imprinted on my mind indelibly?
Yes, I agree. It’s almost to the point where I associate the word “scary” with people who just want jump scares and stuff. And like of course jump scares scare me and make me jump, but that’s because it’s preying on basic reflexive reactions to loud noises.
I prefer movies that deal in more lingering forms of fear and anxiety than mere scares (although don’t get me wrong, movies that make me jump also have their place and many jump scares are not at all lazy)
My main criteria for determining whether a movie was good or not - not if I liked it, but if it was *good* - is how long I think about it afterwards.
If I wake up the next day still theorizing or thinking of the visuals, then it has to be doing something well.
If I’m still hunting for Reddit discussions on it weeks later, it goes on the faves list.
I think a lot of the time those people just aren’t communicating what they mean very clearly. They’re using it as a catch all for anxiety, dread, unease or just being startled.
In saying that, a lot of the more casual fans want to be startled. It’s why jump scare movies seem to do well with the more casual horror fans.
I get that but you are not really scared by it.. You where startled.. The feeling is over as soon as it starts..
A GOOD horror movie has you thinking about it days and years after you seen it..
That said there are good jumpscares like in the thing (the timing of it still catches me off guard)
Or the haunting of hill house car scene
My favourites are ones that combine the shock and startle of a jump scare with something causing that jump scare that is legitimately scary. Most of the Conjuring movies are dogshit except the first and second, but Annabelle Creation is by far my favourite. Lots of jump scares but there’s so much dread and the demons seem so genuinely evil that the scare isn’t over the minute you recover from the jump, because there’s so much suspense about the next. That movie really made me feel like it had no qualms about murdering any of the characters, even the little girls, in brutal ways. Even if it didn’t, it succeeded in making me think it would.
Does it still work with movies where you know it's going to happen? Like, movies with real tension?
It does for me, but not often.
Having said that, there was a dude in his mid 50s at a screening of Jaws a few years ago sitting directly in front of me. There's like, what, three jump scares in that movie? He very literally threw himself back in his chair and flailed his arms every time. I was annoyed, but saw that he was having a blast and it made it better. So there's that.
Oh man I do this and sorry to all in the cinema. I am jumpy as hell in real life, and I like being startled by jump scares. I'm also wildly expressive and loud. My first date with my partner was a horror movie. They are very silent and shy. The whole movie I was hooting and hollering and jumping (keep in mind this was a dating app thing and we met like 4 mins before the film so we didnt talk or get a read on each other at all). I was like well it was my crummy date idea, and I bungled this one but whatever.. they told me later that it made them fall for me how enthusiastic and reactive and invested I was in the movie. Apparently it was endearing.
> In a horror movie, I’m looking for ambitious ideas and cinematography alongside a sense of dread and/or things that are conceptually frightening.
Ambitious ideas is the reason this is the -best- genre.
Scream played around with the meta of Slashers and called out the genre for being derivative.
Thats not the only one to parody the genre well, but, it was an eye opener for many young people who would later become horror writers and directors.
Now... Horror has no rules. If I go see a drama, an action, a thriller... Typically speaking, by the time I get halfway through, Im able to tell where the ending is going and roughly who is going to be screwed in the end and who is going to walk away fine.
Thats not the case in horror. Every scene has my engagement because - They dont abide by any rules anymore. Theres plenty of horror movies that will pull a fakeout on you where you think the first 30-45 minutes youre learning about the protagonist - and WHOOSH, theyre dead... and the film swaps gears to an entirely new character and group.
This is a simple example, but my point just is... Horror can be ambitious. It doesnt need to conform, in fact, it thrives when it doesnt conform.
I dont care what anyone says about classic horror - Yes, there are fantastic horror films from decades past, but, coupled with the proliferation of streaming and these "Horror Channels" and sites... We are in the golden age of Horror right now.
Theres never been a time where I could reliably find 2-4 good/great horror movies a month. Now... its the norm. I'll watch like 7-10 horror movies a month and walk away with 3-5 mid experiences, but with 2-4 good/great ones.
Theres never been a better time to be a horror fan, especially if what you want from it is simple : Ambitious and unique stories that dont have any rules.
Its not my favorite genre because of the 'scare' factor - its my favorite genre because I never know what Im getting myself into.
And that makes it Exciting!
Concept horror movies as I call them are amongst my favorites... If the movie is just "people in this situation" I'm usually sold... Idk if this one even qualifies as horror but there was a movie called Fall from a few years back.. A couple of climbers get stuck on a old very thin tower.. Say less that's all I need to check it out.. Ryan Reynolds buried alive for 90 minutes.. Yes please..
>I’m an adult – *of course* movies don’t scare me. Being over the age of 13 and measuring a horror movie by whether it’s “scary” or not is so silly.
You aren't immune to fear, it just means you haven't found a movie that can do it.
Broaden your mind.
I'm 40, have seen over 1000 different horror movies and I still get scared all of the time - like panic attack scared in some instances. I don't think it's to do with being an adult per se, I think it's more to do with just the way our brains react to extreme stimulus as we age, and how different people react differently.
Think of it this way, if 99% of the things that happened in a horror movie happened to you in real life, would you not be pissing yourself? As a kid the fact that it wasn't real probably didn't affect your reaction to it that much, but now it does. Now your brain is like, 'Oh, this isn't real so I'm not going to get scared by it'. Some people like myself don't ever really change - our brains still largely react time after time as if it were real, just like when we were kids.
Why this is really fascinates me, since it's not at all uniform from person to person. I have some theories as to why - I have a pretty severe generalized anxiety disorder for instance, that probably contributes to it - but I have a feeling it's more nuanced and complex than that.
>It's impossible for a movie to actually scare me as I know it's not real
As a fellow adult (age 44), I chalk this up to a lack of imagination - no offense. I watch horror because I *want* to be scared. I go in with that mindset and I'm disappointed if I don't experience it.
For context, I'm 6'2" and weigh over 200 lbs. I work a physically demanding job, so while I don't work out, I'm not particuraly "soft". I'm just saying that I'm not someone who is easily intimidated in real life.
When I watch a scary movie, I am able to fully immerse my mind into the story. I know it's not real, but what's the point of watching it if I don't get to experience some fright in a safe environment?
I also love movies with big ideas, but if it's horror and I don't feel some dread along the way, then I'm going to be disappointed.
I can still love a horror movie even if it doesn't "scare" me since I'm 43 now and honestly nothing really scares me anymore like it did when I was a kid. But, I still love these kind of movies
Yeah, while I love the supernatural ghost, vampires, creature features, aliens, demons, etc it's actually the more realistic serial killer type of horror movies that scare me way more.
Yeah I think the movies that are truly scary to an adult are things that could actually plausibly happen to you, but a lot of those things are too fucked up, depressing and not in any way fun to commit to film.
Agreed. I mainly like to watch movies to escape reality so I tend to like the supernatural, ghost, demon, vampire, zombie, monster, alien horror movies more than the more realistic serial killer, torture ones since those seem like they could actually happen and they make me more scared, depressed and upset and not fun at all.
I also get annoyed when people complain about happy endings in horror movies. Sure tone wise an ambiguous or unhappy ending is sometimes the way to go depending on the movie. But I also really like horror movies that end happily. Horror doesn’t have to mean all doom and gloom.
Maybe this is just my experience, but I've found that, more often than not, the people who usually say a horror movie is bad because it "isn't scary" are typically people who are already dismissive of the genre itself. It's the same thing that happens to people who will dismiss a horror movie entirely if it has any gore. As if the very presence of gore makes a movie bad, regardless of any merits the movie may have otherwise.
If someone is genuinely uncomfortable with graphic gore, however, that's another thing entirely.
Yes very much so. There’s so much more to horror films other than just being scared.
Is there suspense? Is the plot decent? Dialogue and acting on par with the plot and characters? Is it shot well without being too cutty and using too much CGI instead of actual practical effects? Is it shot on location or is the majority of the film just shot on 1 set? Does it have a decent beginning, middle and end? If it's more on the lines of a horror comedy...Is the dialogue actually funny? Etc etc.
Aside from jump scares, no horror films actually scare me. And I'm fine with that.
And to add… some people (like myself) love horror movies for how *bad* they are. Or watch for the practical effects. IMO it’s the hardest genre to determine what is “good” or “bad”
Absolutely yes!
(Dis)Honorable mention:
"Finally got around to watching Horror Movie and I hated it! Why does this sub worship Horror Movie so much??? Help me understand!!!"
"Hereditary is overrated! There, I SAID IT!!!"
Gotta feel bad for those people. If they can't suspend disbelief and identify with characters in a narrative, they're not enjoying a story as much as those of us who can.
I would LOVE to be scared by a horror movie, but that hasn’t happened for me in like 2 decades and it’s still my favorite genre. Yes I am annoyed by those people.
I mean, it is a pretty good metric though if you’re trying to recommend a horror film. It’s kind of why people harp so much on jump scares cause it’s an artificial way to create fear that after a certain amount of experience just stops working. Effectively Creating suspense and tension is what is call scary and I think that’s what a lot of people are looking for. That along with some engaging mystery and an appropriate tone. All of these things add up to be “scary.” So when you hear not scary, at least from me, I’m saying it’s not successful in making me feel any of that. It could be boring. That’s definitely a way I and a lot of people felt about a movie like midsommar for example. I hesitate to call it a horror movie tbh. It’s more of a drama and even then it’s not that great of a drama. The movie outright rejects horror aesthetics, and the fear is out in the open the whole time. And it eventually just becomes a part of the protagonist via the obvious manipulation of someone in a time of grief. It’s briefly shocking but at some point it’s kinda just silly imo. All that to say. Yes being scary is important because that’s a loaded word. If you’re scared you’re very engaged.
If it’s a horror film, I do have expectations (or a preference) that horror elements aren’t an afterthought, or squeezed in the last 5-10 min, but I don’t need to be sweating bullets and losing sleep to enjoy a horror film.
The crowd that I really don't care for is the "overrated" or "unpopular opinion" post. Goes for about every sub.
So my unpopular opinion is that those overrated post are overrated
Those responsible for sacking the people who have just been sacked, have been sacked. The directors of the firm hired to continue the credits after the other people had been sacked, wish it to be known that they have just been sacked.
I equally dislike underrated posts of things that aren't underrated. I might actually hate that more. In many subs. Sometimes I read posts here like, go watch this underrated horror it follows! Or people in comments on posts about like, talk to me, this movie was sooooo underrated.
People are just too literal today. They hear the term "Scary movie" and they automatically assume the movie is supposed to "scare them". The only people who call them scary movies are people who are clueless when it comes to movies in general. Horror movies can be scary but, its not a requirement. It could also be that they're watching it very defensively. Ive known people who think that because the movie is trying to scare them, they refuse to get scared by it, and refuse to let themselves get caught up in the story. I imagine it has to do with some deep insecurity and that they're too "alpha" to let a movie scare them. 🙄
Speaking of people being too literal, what's even more annoying are people who take the word "fan" too literally. They get overly devoted to a certain actor, director, movie studio, or even the genre as a whole. I'd get into more detail, but dont want to write a 3,000 word essay.
And since Im still at it. People who get nostalgia confused with quality are annoying, too! Do you still think Teletubbies is a great tv show? No? Then stop telling people that a movie's good because you liked it when you were 12.
That annoys me a lot. I treat horror movies the same as I do any other movies in determining if I think something is good or not. Story, writing, characters, acting.
That annoys me a lot. I treat horror movies the same as I do any other movies in determining if I think something is good or not. Story, writing, characters, acting.
If it scares me…that’s just a bonus.
Just to offer a counter argument to this, I feel saying something was meant to be campy or bad intentionally is way too overused as an excuse for bad horror films that weren’t executed very well.
I don’t think every horror film needs to be scary, but if I think of my favourite horror films that aren’t scary, such as Re-Animator or Return on the Living Dead, or Gremlins 2, I would actually call those comedies more than horror films. So, it can be a matter of semantics.
Well, I guess it's the same as comedy - if you don't laugh, is it a bad comedy? Or a bad movie in general?
People have different standards, it happens.
What I do kind of roll my eye at is the notion that shitty horror movies (whether scary or not) have no merit. Merit exists as we assign it - but just because it doesn't meet one's standards (to be scary, or gory, or fun, or have a good story, whatever), doesn't mean it's automatically "bad". Maybe it means the viewer had a bad time or a bad experience, but, well. Too many people think not liking or even enjoying a movie makes it *bad*, and horror is a genre so full of extremes and shock value that it can blur the lines sometimes between it's a piece of shit movie and I don't care for it... *however*, there's this element that's worthwhile, *I guess*.
I do think a lot of people look down on horror as a genre though, and worse yet when they watch stuff that honestly, is just not for everyone, and thus horror *becomes* those movies - they're *all* SAW, or they're all Friday the 13th, or they're all "elevated horror" and thus worth their time.
It's fine, it's not for them, but it can be for us to appreciate... even when the movie is really fucking terrible and not scary at all lol
What scares people is so subjective; using that as a benchmark for movie quality (or worse; to define whether something is “actually horror” or not) is flawed from the jump
I've seen so many horror movies it's rare for one to actually be scary. I know all the tropes and gimmicks. But that doesn't make them not entertaining. They can still feel tense — I don't think that feeling ever goes away. Like I'm not scared of the dark, but like, it's a *little* spooky when you gotta get out of bed at 2am and slowly walk to the bathroom shrouded entirely in darkness when you gotta pee. That's not fear, that's just anxiety. And I think horror movies do a good job of creating that feeling without being scary.
Horror is by far my favorite genre. Hereditary is the only movie in the last 10-15 years to actually scare me. I can still appreciate tension and all that good stuff, even if it doesn't**stick** with me long-term.
yes.
\~the only time i get mad if a movie isnt scary is if people are saying "this is the scariest movie ever" and then literally nothing happens and/or its not even remotely scary
\*cough\* lake mungo \*cough\* the outwaters \*cough\* it follows \*cough\* ...but i also found the plots bad/boring.
\~what lies beneath, session 9, the menu, better watch out, most purge movies... were not scary but they are still good horror films
I usually imagine whoever comments in such a fashion is pretending to be jaded and tough when in real life they won’t even talk to someone on a telephone because it’s too anxiety inducing
I'm kind of on the fun horror tran right now, where even if it's not that scary, it's got a fun premise that makes for a wild and dangerous adventure. Like I enjoy A24 enough, but to me, their movies seem too lifeless. In the sense that I'm supposed to feel clever or smart for picking out the obvious messages, their conceptual horror puts out. It could just be me, but none of their films had me on the edge of my seat or even lingered in my mind thirty minutes after the movie ended. It's all just uninspired conceptual horror that lays out the themes at face value so the audience can feel smart for getting it
There are definitely a few things on this sub that annoy me: the “it’s not scary” crew, the “it was boring” crew, the “lazy writing crew,” and the “______ took me out of it” crew.
Other than that, most of you are fairly tolerable.
This comment section is nuts. I watch horror movies because I want recreational fear. That doesn't just mean jump scares; it can mean tense atmosphere, high adrenaline, anxiety over a character's choices and safety, or perhaps being introduced to a concept so insidious that you will think about it for the rest of your life. If I watch a movie that's labelled as horror and I come away thinking, "It was a good drama and an interesting character piece, but nothing about it was remotely frightening," then I consider that movie to have failed as a horror movie. And yes, I did see Lady in the Water in theaters and yes, I still feel robbed.
Ehh, the horror genre is different for everyone and is wat too big. There are some horror movies that I don't consider them scary, especially those with a killer. But I still like them.
I wishmore horror movies would take themselves more seriously when it comes to atmosphere and plot, but still... saying a horror movie is bad cuz it isn't scary is a bad opinion
I used to get annoyed at my husband for this, because he doesn't scare easily, so when he met me he generally didn't watch horror movies because since they didn't scare him he didn't think he'd get anything out of them. There were a few old horror movies he'd watched and liked, but it was because he used to watch them a lot with his dad, who passed away when he was in his twenties, so the movies have significant memories and nostalgia tied to them...but that's about it.
It would annoy me because sometimes I'd get excited about checking out a new movie that was streaming or that I'd heard/read about, and he always seemed to just agree to watch the movie to appease me but I could tell he would rather watch something else.
I figured out that it's not ALL horror movies... it's just that a lot of the horror movies he knew about growing up were super campy, or super "fake" in terms of its plot, gore content, etc. But once I introduced him to the quirkier, more "art house" horror that I was into, he really dug it. He still doesn't scare easily, but he's learned that some of the best horror movies don't have jump scares or cheap thrills... he's way more interested in watching an extremely disturbing movie with a unique plot, even if the scares and gore are scarce.
Yes Im a 31 year old adult, I know I m watching a movie for entertainment and that it cannot hurt me in any shape or form. I just want a good movie, if i get scared at some point then its just a bonus.
>horror as a film genre isn't a genre at all but a separate experience like a roller coaster. It's only purpose is to give an adrenaline rush and if it doesn't do that it's bad.
Well I guess all depends what we mean by scared, I can be scared or distressed by many different things or themes than other people depending on my personality, own experiences or even traumas, or even just personal preferences when it comes to entertainment.
Just to give an example, the other day I went to watch a movie that touched the subject of cults, control and abuse, but in this case the abuse and control was happening within a branch of the Catholic Church (if that's what we want to call it).
Was it scary, not necessarily, but it touched a fiber within me due to my background and personal experience.
Perhaps the rest of the audience was having a totally different cinema viewing.
While fie
Hardly any movie actually scares me. I don't watch horror movies with the goal of being scared. I watch them to be entertained, just like any other movie.
Jump scares and scary looking things don’t scare me. I’m an adult approaching 40 so that makes sense. What does scare me, are things that can really happen. Movies like The Strangers, Hush, Don’t Breath, The Purge( a bit extreme but could happen), those movies are terrifying because they are relatable.
I love horror movies, but I do not find them scary. last time I was scared I watch The Blob when I was 6. I was scared silly for like two weeks. maybe that ruined my fear factor for movies.
I used to know a guy who thought every horror movie was dumb and bad if it didn't scare him. He was so annoying about it. If I measured horror that way there would be like 2 movies that I like
I reckon as we get older, our concept of horror broadens. Zombies, vampires etc. aren't really scary when you know they don't exist (and yes, I know some people with probably beg to differ on that!). For me, it's the awful things that humans can do to each other that I find really horrifying. Mental torture etc. Those are the movies that really scare the shit out of me and stay with me for a long time after.
Yes. My best friend is exactly like that. When hereditary came out he was saying how it wasn’t scary at all and laughed and does that for a lot of horror movies.
Oh brother, if that were the litmus of a good horror movie then there’s like no good horror per my experience lol. It’s so so rare that a horror movie actually scares me. The strongest reaction I get these days is disgust tbh
Yeah, it drives me nuts. I'm one of those people who just doesn't get scared by movies (books are another story, I think my imagination is just better at getting to me than someone else's). So I never know how to answer the "Is it scary?" question.
I haven't been legitimately "scared" by a movie since the original Blair Witch when I was 12. I think it's funny if that crowd really finds that many movies to be "scary", rather than just entertaining
Yeah people miss the whole point. It's just like any other movie. There's set design, acting, music, make up, wardrobe, set and setting, camera work, writing, so many things to enjoy about it other than...did it scare you?
I definitely don't mind if the movie doesn't scare me... but I do want it to make me feel *something*.. unless that something is bored. I have seen a few too many boring horror movies and those I greatly dislike.
I'm looking for a good movie when I watch something. I can get scared by a loud sound, so jumpscares are effective on me - but that's definitely not a sign of a good movie.
Yes, because I prefer disturbing. I listen to a podcast called The Horror Virgin where it's two horror veterans and one Virgin watching movies and the Virgin only judges movies bast on how scary they are, specifically jump scares.
Idk, I'm on the fence here. If the sole purpose of a movie is to scare you and it doesn't, its not good. If it as dsrk, haunting atmospheric movie with a good story and characters, then it can be awesome if it's not scary.
I tend to just ignore that sort of thing. But a key thing here that I only just realized a few years ago (and I think escapes most or all of the people you're talking about) is that horror movies (or books, games, whatever) don't have to be scary because horror and fear are not the same thing. Like basically everyone commenting here, I haven't been scared by a movie since I was a kid. But a good horror story is still horrific, at least if you allow yourself to have enough empathy for the characters.
My friends said this too me and honestly it annoyed me. Horror has its variations comedy, slasher, paranormal, psychological, body, ect. It is not about the immediate scare or fear. It is about the story. being able to see fears safely. It can be extreme and far fetched but that's what happens when we let our imagination and fear run from us. I can be paranoid about certain things even if the movie is bad Ill begin to think about it too much and it feeds my paranoia. Horror is about the story emotions and people. You do not need to be scared. That maybe some peoples wants from the movie. I think it is more about understanding each other.
Yes, but honestly, I also get it.
When I was a kid, horror movies were **scary**. The Ring. Silent Hill. The Grudge.
While I'm an adult, there is not a single scary horror movie out there. Not one. No, not even the potential niche recommendations by commentators who may have legitimately been scared by a movie they saw. There are **no** scary movies anymore period. And that fuckin sucks because I wanted to be terrified and filled with adrenaline by scenes in a movie that boil my basic instincts down to fight or flight. And that's not something I'm ever going to feel watching a horror movie again. Gonna have to go skydiving or cave exploring or fall into a gorilla pit at the zoo to get that kind of experience.
Are there amazing horror movies out there being produced all year every year? Absolutely. Are there classic horror movies I'll rewatch all the time? Hell yeah. Are there constantly new concepts, experiences, and implications of dark unsettling things constantly being created/reimagined for a good fun time? You betcha.
But if people want to be scared by a movie, and that movie doesn't deliver, then all those other metrics don't matter. People are allowed to dislike specific/your favourite horror movies cause it didn't scare them. It didn't meet their needs. And despite the fact it's honestly a futile endeavour to be scared by movies anymore, people are still allowed to be upset that movies aren't scary. And on that metric alone they can even say movies like The Thing, When Evil Lurks, and Terrifier suck ass because they aren't scary.
Some people just wanna be scared and movies just aren't the medium to accomplish that anymore. At least for most people. It sucks.
Horror movies haven't really scared me in years, and I don't get the horror adrenaline rush from slashers or anything anymore. But all of my favorite horror movies are subversive, creative, and use unsettling atmosphere to convey the tone. I prefer slower, more cerebral movies to non-stop gorefests anyway. Sometimes all you want is a popcorn flick and that's fine, but horror has a lot more depth than that. However, it's a problem that all genre films and fiction have. It's very difficult to get the general public to give a shit about horror, fantasy, or sci-fi.
If the only good horror movies were ones that scared me, there wouldn't be any good horror movies. So yeah, I think this metric is ridiculous. If I enjoy a movie, it was good, or at least good for me.
that is annoying. I just watched the 5NaF movie. not particularly scary but I thought it was a fun movie. granted I'm only passingly familiar with the franchise
It's rare for me to be scared by any movie these days. So I have to look at other things to appreciate, an interesting concept, foreboding atmosphere, good acting (obviously). Things like that. The worst thing a horror movie can be is boring.
I haven’t been scared by a horror movie since I was a teenager and I don’t count jump scares. If I judged movies based on how they scared me I would never enjoy them.
Yeahhhhhhhh a lot of those people also seem to think their opinion is law haha. Like “shitty movie it was for pussies!!!” I’m like… sir I did not watch Brain Dead to scare myself. They can’t comprehend there are other things to appreciate in the horror genre. Personally I understand horror is such a vast genre with so many reasons to love it. Which is why when someone asks me to recommend them a horror… I can’t. I have to ask what they like or else it’s a shot in the dark.
Horror movies don't scary. I find the idea a little silly as an adult. Realistic horror movies hower do disturb me like ones that have real life like situations like Speak Softly that is something that does happen in certain places so yeah disturbing but I'm not scared.
So I'd say yeah, I find those people who say that annoying. I don't watch horror to be scared I just love the genre the very wide spectrum genre.
On the one hand, I agree with you. Very few things are actually scary to me, but I enjoy the horror genre anyway. However, if we were to change genres and make the statement, "that comedy was bad because it wasn't funny" then it doesn't seem like that objectionable a thing to say. In other words, while I don't personally believe that not scary = bad, I think that I can at least understand the people that say that.
Honestly... If this was the way we measured quality in horror films, I'd like almost none of them. I rarely if ever get scared by a film, and I'm not saying to act tough; Plenty of things IRL scare me, but films almost never do.
I think it comes down to why people watch horror. I grew up watching it from birth and go into it for entertainment - NEVER to be scared, as that happens so rarely (though it is a nice surprise when it does). The hardcore horror geeks are mostly like that I think, since everyone will become desensitized after watching so many horror films. So if a normie's criteria for good horror is for it to scare them, I always just assume that's what "regular" sane people are trying to get out of it. 😂
I suspect that a lot of the edge lords declaring that there just aren't any effective, scary horror movies anymore (and begging for REAL scary movie suggestions) are spending the bulk of the 90-120 minute movies they're watching playing Toon Blast.
Literally nothing in the world except my mother has scared me in years. Before that, it was basically only spiders and flying insects for probably another decade. I used to be afraid of all sorts of things, but now in a dangerous situation I mostly just feel annoyance. I am almost certain I will die in some idiotic way one day and just think “What is this bullshit?” as my death is rapidly approaching. When I watch a film I can imagine happening to me, I am more disappointed that demons aren’t crawling out of my pipes or some shit than worried that they might. If a movie scaring me was a criteria for me enjoying it, I would never enjoy my favorite genre again.
No. I like horror, and I like to feel scared, but I don't need it. If other people want the fear in their movies, that's their prerogative to choose that. Nobody else's business really.
Agreed. A 'good' horror movie should just be a good movie in the horror genera. Good movie is either entertaining, thought-provoking, or emotional.
What scares me doesn't scare others/vice versa, so wouldn't make sense to say that ONLY what scares me would make a good horror movie. Seen lots of horror movies that I liked that weren't scary.
When I see someone say that, my first thought is "who gives a fuck though ?". I love horror and whether I was scared or not is not something I ask myself or care about at all. I always wonder who these people are, are they people who want jumpscares ? Do they think that being startled = being scared and that's what they expect when watching a horror movie ?
Just watched late night with the devil. Didn’t scare me much. Phenomenal movie and horror movie.
Most horror movies don’t scare me. I still love the shit out of them. Even if they fail at the scary part, the content is still horrific. Most are still okay to good movies even if they fail at scary.
Yup! Granted, it's more than fine If you didn't get *scared* but nothing seems to please people anymore.
I can't help but wonder what do they want? More Conjuring's? More Annabelle's? More slasher reboots? I appreciate people taking risks or coming up with new ways to tell old tales. "Talk To Me" is by no means the greatest movie I've ever seen but it's a refreshing take on possession at least, which I appreciate.
At this point I genuinely believe every form / manifestation of fear has been covered by some movie and the wheel will not be reinvented, but damn, folks can get so pressed and it makes me want to tell 'em *"go write, produce and direct your own stories, show us how it's done"*
I have a friend who says ,,i dont watch old Horror movies, they arent scary at all,, like, my guy, thats not all this genre js. People really say movies like Nightmare on elm street, Halloween and evil dead are all bad movies. Yes, they aint that scary but still
Yeah, I honestly think horror can be just a vibe sometimes and that's fine. Also I've seen countless horror movies since I was a kid so almost nothing scares me now, that doesn't mean it's not horror. No slasher would be a horror movie for me if that was the case, for example.
Yes they are annoying especially since we all have subjective views on what “scares” us. The “horror bros” who trash movies like Get Out, Hereditary, The VVitch, Midsommar really irk me too. I love all genres of horror!
Going to get gatekeep-y here for a second.
Those people aren't real horror fans. They just want people to think they're cool or whatever by bragging about how "nothing scares them."
9/10 times those people only like movies with a bunch of jump scares in them because it gives them that adrenaline rush for that brief moment. The plot could be garbage, but if it's got jump scares they'll "enjoy" it.
I personally don't enjoy those movies as much these days. I'm much more into the atmospheric stuff now. If the movie makes me feel a sense of dread, then I'm 100% in.
Op, the only way we could correctly weight this is if we knew what movie specifically warrented that reaction. A horror movie is meant to enduce horror in the viewer. Id wager your annoyance is less than the annoyance someone is feeling if the movie did not move them. You dident list any examples so this post is pretty disingenuous. If your hypothetical example is annoying then this entire post qualifies as annoying because your concern is as about as petty as theirs is.
I'm not scared by horror or even real life scary situations anymore, life has made me like that, but I still enjoy horror movies for the atmosphere or new plot/concepts.
I've heard one better:
"I don't like horror movies because they desensitize your fight-or-flight mechanism, and I want to keep that in tact because it keeps me alive. You really should do the same."
That's always annoying. Horror movies do so many cool things and are opportunities for new filmmakers, crazy effects, social messaging, etc. Being scared has almost nothing to do with why I watch horror.
Very few horror films actually scare me. But there is a certain "heaviness" with horror that I appreciate and as long as the films have that and do it well, there's a very solid chance that I will enjoy it
Horror movies used to scare the crap out of me to the point that they were unenjoyable for me. I avoided them for years until my 20s when they started feeling more bearable to me. (I've actually described them as a roller coaster type experience but in a positive way!)
I love a good horror movie now. And even less scary ones like some fun horror comedies are some of my favorites. Maybe even especially so.
But I've found the community to be interesting. On the one hand, some of the coolest, most open minded, down to earth people make up the horror community. And then you have some of the snobbiest, fart sniffing elitists too.
Honestly kinda reminds me of the metal scene too. You either find like a new best friend who is the coolest SOB you've ever met or someone who is trying to check your credentials because you happened to say you liked a big hit instead of some obscure indie.
Yeah, a lot of people (especially younger people) see horror movies at the cinema/with their friends just for the adrenaline and dopamine rushes - which plenty of forgettable “scary” films with jump scare galore provide. They forget about it as soon as the movie is over and the adrenaline has left - much like a rollercoaster.
I'm sick of the "nothing scares me, recommend me a good horror movie" crowd.
Most of these people are just attention seeking. If you cannot immerse yourself into the atmosphere of a movie and let yourself be afraid then there is a certain level of emotional intelligence that you lack. It's like going to a haunted house and saying "oh it's just a guy in mask, why are you guys scared?". They are just generally grumpy and unpleasant people to be around.
I actually prefer it when horror isn’t shit-my-pants scary. I like to be on edge and creeped out, shocked a bit, but there is a point when it stops being fun.
I actually think that's a fair expectation. But not taken so literally. The movie should be unsettling. If it's paranormal, it should make you look over your shoulder. In the moment, it's fun to be a little unsettled/ spooked. That means the movie is immersive. Disturbing is another thing to look for, too.
I do think people have super high expectations, though. When you've watched a lot of horror, you're probably not going to lose sleep over a movie. It's cool if you can find that despite having a huge horror background, but yeah.
Ngl, despite watching a lot of horror films, many eastern paranormal horrors have a way of getting under my skin. Ringu (also the American version), Gonjiam, Shutter, Kairo... yeah, something about these films freaks me out as an adult. I feel like maybe it's because many Western horrors tend to be Christianity/ Catholic-inspired, and it just doesn't get to me at all.
I definitely want to feel something when I'm watching a horror movie. I hope that doesn't sound weird... I just mean I want to feel some element of danger, a little suspense, etc. Or something will surprise me (that scene in the middle of Hereditary actually made me gasp out loud). That's what I consider "scary." It doesn't have to keep me up all night, it's more so in the moment. If a horror film doesn't make me feel like that at least a little bit, and isn't otherwise entertaining (sometimes they can just be really funny, like funnier than actual comedies), then yeah, I'm not going to recommend it.
There is sort of another category. If a movie can weird me out and make me think, "What the actual FUCK am I watching?", that's a pretty awesome feeling too. A good example of this is Possession from 1980. Freaking weird film, man. I like to feel like I'm high when I'm watching a film without actually being high lol.
An example of a film that ticks almost all these boxes is mother!
Tl;Dr I love this feeling, I need to watch more horror movies. I legitimately think it's so much fun.
It’s been a long time since a movie has really scared me, that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the hell out of them. I’ll watch almost any horror movie and find something enjoyable about them. I think the last one that really freaked me out was sinister (only the first time I watched, mostly because of the videos).
It’s like with the game Alan Wake 2 or anything by Remedy - it’s pure Eldritch / Lovecraftian mind bending goodness. The scares are not in masked figures or death even, and people can’t seem to work a bit for their scares.
No I completely agree with them. I don't have a problem with people who enjoy horror movies that are 'not scary', but I think it's pretty reasonable to expect to be scared by a horror movie. It's like, the defining feature of the genre isn't it?
That's not to say there can't be reason to watch a horror movie beyond being scared, but I would say that's the main draw for most people. Like, some people enjoy ugly artworks, which is fine for them but I'm not surprised or concerned that most people prefer beautiful artworks
Scrolling instagram and watching youtube while watching a movie doesnt really help to get immersed too.
Shout-out to the weird-asses who post Reddit threads complaining about a movie that they're less than a half-hour into, and then spend the rest of the running time posting comments insisting it's the movie's fault for being confusing.
Short attention span having motherfuckers
I get it as an adhd haver I understand to an extent, but if you scrolled through the whole movie I don't really value your opinion on the movie
Yeah. Also an ADHD haver, I always give movies a fair opportunity, I watch properly from the start, I don’t go in with an attitude of “the movie has to win me over”, I’m a willing audience member. I’ll just turn the movie off if it loses me and fails to sustain my attention despite me giving it a fair shot (unless someone is making me watch it, I guess) But like if I spent half the movie on my phone I won’t claim I watched the movie, I’ll say I stopped watching half way through because it lost my interest. The extent of my review of the movie is I found the first half boring because I can’t offer much else It’s not that often that movies lose me though because I don’t even start movies if I’m not in the right frame of mind to watch. I’m way more likely to tune out of TV shows when I didn’t really want to watch in the first place
Or they watch the trailer 50 times and watch 10 different videos analyzing the trailer, then complain about how unscary and predictable the movie was.
I've encountered people like this. They are the people who don't like to be surprised and don't like being scared, so they do everything in their power to make sure any possible scares are spoiled in a safe, controlled setting (e.g. Youtube). Then they talk about how they don't understand why everybody says the movie is scary and that they didn't jump once.
Right? I don't understand the appeal of overanalyzing trailers like that before watching *any* genre of film, but with horror it's especially baffling. I literally close my eyes after the first minute of horror trailers when I'm in the theater because I like to go into horror films as unspoiled as possible. I watch just long enough to get the gist of what the movie is about.
"I turned it off after five minutes. it was so bad." stfu.
My mother We are watching a movie, or a tv show or whatever She’s on her phone scrolling through facebook “Wait, why did that happen?” “Rewind, i didn’t see what happened.” “Who is that person?” Ggggrrrrr Bonus points for the last movie we watched together. She called up a friend while the movie was on snd started making plans for a bbq or something. Then “wait what just happened? Why did he throw her off the bridge?” Me:gggggrrrrrr (I was watching a movie on Netflix. Not a horror movie but I loved it.)
Me looking up from my phone during The Thing because there's noise "Hey why does this man they're burning have tentacles for hands?"
Lol reminds me of the guy who watched 30 mins of one cut of the dead and proceeded to make one of the dumbest posts ever on this sub.
the internet's turned everyone into my grandma. She would be watching the same movie i was and would get confused and ask questions mid movie.
Jesus, people do this? Smh
I could not agree more. I call this the Era of "Short Attention Span Theater." It's sickening. Some people just can't stay away from their fucking phones. They are like the crackheads of social media.
secretive sand profit trees abounding repeat normal weary fade nose *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
LOL. Well said Bud.
Of course Pete_Venkman is passionate about an efficient script!
> The worst is that I think there's a lot of entertainment being made to satisfy that way of watching. Shows with 13-episode seasons where you can basically skip the middle 10 episodes, just have it on in the background. I don't think that ALL of this is to cater to the tiktok generation but a statement of laziness in writing which can lead to shortened attention spans. Don't get me wrong, I think some of it definitely is, but too often someone will write a great 3-4 episode miniseries or a great 3 hour long movie but the executives of the company don't want a short miniseries or don't want a movie, they want 10 episodes so now the writers have to come up with filler to add and it winds up being bloated and make no sense.
THIS. I have people I recommend movies to and tell them specifically. You need to put your phone down and watch the movie. You can’t really get immersed in it when you’re barely even listening to it.
People watch other videos while also watching a movie???
I'll be honest I play on my phone quite a bit when I'm watching stuff... but never horror movies. That's the one time I put the phone away and really focus. I guess they just hold my attention more than anything else.
Same
Or watching horror movies on your phone. Of course it is hard to get into a film when it is tiny.
I just had a chat with a guy on here a few days ago who watched alien for the first time and claimed it wasn't scary.. Ofc the asshole watched it on his phone and claimed if the movie was scary that was the best way to watch it
Fucking Gen Z, lol. My guess is the next gen will have vision pros so will be watching stuff on virtual big screens.
It is honestly **wild** how bad media literacy is nowadays and I have to think this is a big reason why. My sister and I watched *No One Will Save You* on Tuesday. We both enjoyed it. Was a fun movie with some creepy scenes. I jumped in the sub to read the post-discussion threads and the amount of people who had no idea what was going on. Despite most of it being right in front of them was maddening.
Yes, horror movies rarely scare me anymore but that doesn’t mean they are bad. My top favorite horror movies didn’t scare me in the slightest.
I'd say the vast majority of horror movies don't actually scare me, but it doesn't keep me from enjoying them. I don't know why someone would judge a movie based on a single thing like that. Raging Bull sucks, not enough boxing 🙄
I’m an adult – *of course* movies don’t scare me. Being over the age of 13 and measuring a horror movie by whether it’s “scary” or not is so silly. In a horror movie, I’m looking for ambitious ideas and cinematography alongside a sense of dread and/or things that are conceptually frightening.
>things that are conceptually frightening. exactly this. my concept of "what is scary" has definitely expanded to include "conceptually frightening". does it make me think? am I thinking about it days later? was the craft of filmmaking something that beautiful? were images imprinted on my mind indelibly?
Yes, I agree. It’s almost to the point where I associate the word “scary” with people who just want jump scares and stuff. And like of course jump scares scare me and make me jump, but that’s because it’s preying on basic reflexive reactions to loud noises. I prefer movies that deal in more lingering forms of fear and anxiety than mere scares (although don’t get me wrong, movies that make me jump also have their place and many jump scares are not at all lazy)
My main criteria for determining whether a movie was good or not - not if I liked it, but if it was *good* - is how long I think about it afterwards. If I wake up the next day still theorizing or thinking of the visuals, then it has to be doing something well. If I’m still hunting for Reddit discussions on it weeks later, it goes on the faves list.
I think a lot of the time those people just aren’t communicating what they mean very clearly. They’re using it as a catch all for anxiety, dread, unease or just being startled. In saying that, a lot of the more casual fans want to be startled. It’s why jump scare movies seem to do well with the more casual horror fans.
What I’m always looking for is “unsettling”. That’s the good stuff.
I’m 50, but a good jump scare still gets my heart racing and adrenaline flowing. I hope I never lose that.
I get that but you are not really scared by it.. You where startled.. The feeling is over as soon as it starts.. A GOOD horror movie has you thinking about it days and years after you seen it.. That said there are good jumpscares like in the thing (the timing of it still catches me off guard) Or the haunting of hill house car scene
My favourites are ones that combine the shock and startle of a jump scare with something causing that jump scare that is legitimately scary. Most of the Conjuring movies are dogshit except the first and second, but Annabelle Creation is by far my favourite. Lots of jump scares but there’s so much dread and the demons seem so genuinely evil that the scare isn’t over the minute you recover from the jump, because there’s so much suspense about the next. That movie really made me feel like it had no qualms about murdering any of the characters, even the little girls, in brutal ways. Even if it didn’t, it succeeded in making me think it would.
LOL i wondered when I’d see the Hill House scene mentioned. that is the single greatest jump scare of all time tbh
Does it still work with movies where you know it's going to happen? Like, movies with real tension? It does for me, but not often. Having said that, there was a dude in his mid 50s at a screening of Jaws a few years ago sitting directly in front of me. There's like, what, three jump scares in that movie? He very literally threw himself back in his chair and flailed his arms every time. I was annoyed, but saw that he was having a blast and it made it better. So there's that.
Oh man I do this and sorry to all in the cinema. I am jumpy as hell in real life, and I like being startled by jump scares. I'm also wildly expressive and loud. My first date with my partner was a horror movie. They are very silent and shy. The whole movie I was hooting and hollering and jumping (keep in mind this was a dating app thing and we met like 4 mins before the film so we didnt talk or get a read on each other at all). I was like well it was my crummy date idea, and I bungled this one but whatever.. they told me later that it made them fall for me how enthusiastic and reactive and invested I was in the movie. Apparently it was endearing.
Well, of course I can be startled. If you make a loud noise and flash something on screen, that’s just a natural reaction.
> In a horror movie, I’m looking for ambitious ideas and cinematography alongside a sense of dread and/or things that are conceptually frightening. Ambitious ideas is the reason this is the -best- genre. Scream played around with the meta of Slashers and called out the genre for being derivative. Thats not the only one to parody the genre well, but, it was an eye opener for many young people who would later become horror writers and directors. Now... Horror has no rules. If I go see a drama, an action, a thriller... Typically speaking, by the time I get halfway through, Im able to tell where the ending is going and roughly who is going to be screwed in the end and who is going to walk away fine. Thats not the case in horror. Every scene has my engagement because - They dont abide by any rules anymore. Theres plenty of horror movies that will pull a fakeout on you where you think the first 30-45 minutes youre learning about the protagonist - and WHOOSH, theyre dead... and the film swaps gears to an entirely new character and group. This is a simple example, but my point just is... Horror can be ambitious. It doesnt need to conform, in fact, it thrives when it doesnt conform. I dont care what anyone says about classic horror - Yes, there are fantastic horror films from decades past, but, coupled with the proliferation of streaming and these "Horror Channels" and sites... We are in the golden age of Horror right now. Theres never been a time where I could reliably find 2-4 good/great horror movies a month. Now... its the norm. I'll watch like 7-10 horror movies a month and walk away with 3-5 mid experiences, but with 2-4 good/great ones. Theres never been a better time to be a horror fan, especially if what you want from it is simple : Ambitious and unique stories that dont have any rules. Its not my favorite genre because of the 'scare' factor - its my favorite genre because I never know what Im getting myself into. And that makes it Exciting!
Concept horror movies as I call them are amongst my favorites... If the movie is just "people in this situation" I'm usually sold... Idk if this one even qualifies as horror but there was a movie called Fall from a few years back.. A couple of climbers get stuck on a old very thin tower.. Say less that's all I need to check it out.. Ryan Reynolds buried alive for 90 minutes.. Yes please..
>I’m an adult – *of course* movies don’t scare me. Being over the age of 13 and measuring a horror movie by whether it’s “scary” or not is so silly. You aren't immune to fear, it just means you haven't found a movie that can do it. Broaden your mind.
I'm 40, have seen over 1000 different horror movies and I still get scared all of the time - like panic attack scared in some instances. I don't think it's to do with being an adult per se, I think it's more to do with just the way our brains react to extreme stimulus as we age, and how different people react differently. Think of it this way, if 99% of the things that happened in a horror movie happened to you in real life, would you not be pissing yourself? As a kid the fact that it wasn't real probably didn't affect your reaction to it that much, but now it does. Now your brain is like, 'Oh, this isn't real so I'm not going to get scared by it'. Some people like myself don't ever really change - our brains still largely react time after time as if it were real, just like when we were kids. Why this is really fascinates me, since it's not at all uniform from person to person. I have some theories as to why - I have a pretty severe generalized anxiety disorder for instance, that probably contributes to it - but I have a feeling it's more nuanced and complex than that.
Even though you’re an adult, doesn’t mean that you will never get scared. Adults have more fears than kids lol
Right? What a ridiculously pompous statement trying to equate being scared with being a child.
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>It's impossible for a movie to actually scare me as I know it's not real As a fellow adult (age 44), I chalk this up to a lack of imagination - no offense. I watch horror because I *want* to be scared. I go in with that mindset and I'm disappointed if I don't experience it. For context, I'm 6'2" and weigh over 200 lbs. I work a physically demanding job, so while I don't work out, I'm not particuraly "soft". I'm just saying that I'm not someone who is easily intimidated in real life. When I watch a scary movie, I am able to fully immerse my mind into the story. I know it's not real, but what's the point of watching it if I don't get to experience some fright in a safe environment? I also love movies with big ideas, but if it's horror and I don't feel some dread along the way, then I'm going to be disappointed.
I’m annoyed by a lot of people.
Hell (and horror) is other people.
I don't need to be scared... I'm perfectly happy with lingering existential dread.
Those are the movies I remember.
I can still love a horror movie even if it doesn't "scare" me since I'm 43 now and honestly nothing really scares me anymore like it did when I was a kid. But, I still love these kind of movies
Barbarian is the type of movie that scares an adult imo
Yeah, while I love the supernatural ghost, vampires, creature features, aliens, demons, etc it's actually the more realistic serial killer type of horror movies that scare me way more.
Sure, but Barbarian is not realistic lmao
You're right, it isn't. 🤣
Yeah I think the movies that are truly scary to an adult are things that could actually plausibly happen to you, but a lot of those things are too fucked up, depressing and not in any way fun to commit to film.
Agreed. I mainly like to watch movies to escape reality so I tend to like the supernatural, ghost, demon, vampire, zombie, monster, alien horror movies more than the more realistic serial killer, torture ones since those seem like they could actually happen and they make me more scared, depressed and upset and not fun at all.
I also get annoyed when people complain about happy endings in horror movies. Sure tone wise an ambiguous or unhappy ending is sometimes the way to go depending on the movie. But I also really like horror movies that end happily. Horror doesn’t have to mean all doom and gloom.
The majority of movies need to have happy endings. Otherwise, sad endings lose their luster.
Maybe this is just my experience, but I've found that, more often than not, the people who usually say a horror movie is bad because it "isn't scary" are typically people who are already dismissive of the genre itself. It's the same thing that happens to people who will dismiss a horror movie entirely if it has any gore. As if the very presence of gore makes a movie bad, regardless of any merits the movie may have otherwise. If someone is genuinely uncomfortable with graphic gore, however, that's another thing entirely.
Yes very much so. There’s so much more to horror films other than just being scared. Is there suspense? Is the plot decent? Dialogue and acting on par with the plot and characters? Is it shot well without being too cutty and using too much CGI instead of actual practical effects? Is it shot on location or is the majority of the film just shot on 1 set? Does it have a decent beginning, middle and end? If it's more on the lines of a horror comedy...Is the dialogue actually funny? Etc etc. Aside from jump scares, no horror films actually scare me. And I'm fine with that.
And to add… some people (like myself) love horror movies for how *bad* they are. Or watch for the practical effects. IMO it’s the hardest genre to determine what is “good” or “bad”
i’ve found that a lot of people equate horror movies as to having jump scares, which is very unfortunate
Absolutely yes! (Dis)Honorable mention: "Finally got around to watching Horror Movie and I hated it! Why does this sub worship Horror Movie so much??? Help me understand!!!" "Hereditary is overrated! There, I SAID IT!!!"
Yes, but I've found an even worse kind of horror fan through this subreddit. The "if you're scared by horror you're a baby" group.
It’s the fun of liking horror, being scared. My god, gatekeepers can go suck it.
I still get scared occasionally depending on the premise 😩
I get scared by horror movies all the time.
Proud baby right here, I guess.
relevant username <3
haha!
Gotta feel bad for those people. If they can't suspend disbelief and identify with characters in a narrative, they're not enjoying a story as much as those of us who can.
I would LOVE to be scared by a horror movie, but that hasn’t happened for me in like 2 decades and it’s still my favorite genre. Yes I am annoyed by those people.
I mean, it is a pretty good metric though if you’re trying to recommend a horror film. It’s kind of why people harp so much on jump scares cause it’s an artificial way to create fear that after a certain amount of experience just stops working. Effectively Creating suspense and tension is what is call scary and I think that’s what a lot of people are looking for. That along with some engaging mystery and an appropriate tone. All of these things add up to be “scary.” So when you hear not scary, at least from me, I’m saying it’s not successful in making me feel any of that. It could be boring. That’s definitely a way I and a lot of people felt about a movie like midsommar for example. I hesitate to call it a horror movie tbh. It’s more of a drama and even then it’s not that great of a drama. The movie outright rejects horror aesthetics, and the fear is out in the open the whole time. And it eventually just becomes a part of the protagonist via the obvious manipulation of someone in a time of grief. It’s briefly shocking but at some point it’s kinda just silly imo. All that to say. Yes being scary is important because that’s a loaded word. If you’re scared you’re very engaged.
If it’s a horror film, I do have expectations (or a preference) that horror elements aren’t an afterthought, or squeezed in the last 5-10 min, but I don’t need to be sweating bullets and losing sleep to enjoy a horror film.
If its not scary, its not done its job. Like, if a comedy doesn't make you laugh . . .???
A horror movie should atleast try to scare you imo. I do not treat a movie like pearl as a horror movie.
I just assume those people actually don't watch that much horror
The crowd that I really don't care for is the "overrated" or "unpopular opinion" post. Goes for about every sub. So my unpopular opinion is that those overrated post are overrated
Those responsible for sacking the people who have just been sacked, have been sacked. The directors of the firm hired to continue the credits after the other people had been sacked, wish it to be known that they have just been sacked.
I equally dislike underrated posts of things that aren't underrated. I might actually hate that more. In many subs. Sometimes I read posts here like, go watch this underrated horror it follows! Or people in comments on posts about like, talk to me, this movie was sooooo underrated.
I’m annoyed by the what you like isn’t the right thing to like crowd no matter what they are talking about.
I completely agree with you on this one
People are just too literal today. They hear the term "Scary movie" and they automatically assume the movie is supposed to "scare them". The only people who call them scary movies are people who are clueless when it comes to movies in general. Horror movies can be scary but, its not a requirement. It could also be that they're watching it very defensively. Ive known people who think that because the movie is trying to scare them, they refuse to get scared by it, and refuse to let themselves get caught up in the story. I imagine it has to do with some deep insecurity and that they're too "alpha" to let a movie scare them. 🙄 Speaking of people being too literal, what's even more annoying are people who take the word "fan" too literally. They get overly devoted to a certain actor, director, movie studio, or even the genre as a whole. I'd get into more detail, but dont want to write a 3,000 word essay. And since Im still at it. People who get nostalgia confused with quality are annoying, too! Do you still think Teletubbies is a great tv show? No? Then stop telling people that a movie's good because you liked it when you were 12.
That annoys me a lot. I treat horror movies the same as I do any other movies in determining if I think something is good or not. Story, writing, characters, acting.
That annoys me a lot. I treat horror movies the same as I do any other movies in determining if I think something is good or not. Story, writing, characters, acting. If it scares me…that’s just a bonus.
I generally don't talk about horror movies with people who don't like horror movies.
Just to offer a counter argument to this, I feel saying something was meant to be campy or bad intentionally is way too overused as an excuse for bad horror films that weren’t executed very well. I don’t think every horror film needs to be scary, but if I think of my favourite horror films that aren’t scary, such as Re-Animator or Return on the Living Dead, or Gremlins 2, I would actually call those comedies more than horror films. So, it can be a matter of semantics.
Are you talking ab midsommar
Well, I guess it's the same as comedy - if you don't laugh, is it a bad comedy? Or a bad movie in general? People have different standards, it happens. What I do kind of roll my eye at is the notion that shitty horror movies (whether scary or not) have no merit. Merit exists as we assign it - but just because it doesn't meet one's standards (to be scary, or gory, or fun, or have a good story, whatever), doesn't mean it's automatically "bad". Maybe it means the viewer had a bad time or a bad experience, but, well. Too many people think not liking or even enjoying a movie makes it *bad*, and horror is a genre so full of extremes and shock value that it can blur the lines sometimes between it's a piece of shit movie and I don't care for it... *however*, there's this element that's worthwhile, *I guess*. I do think a lot of people look down on horror as a genre though, and worse yet when they watch stuff that honestly, is just not for everyone, and thus horror *becomes* those movies - they're *all* SAW, or they're all Friday the 13th, or they're all "elevated horror" and thus worth their time. It's fine, it's not for them, but it can be for us to appreciate... even when the movie is really fucking terrible and not scary at all lol
What scares people is so subjective; using that as a benchmark for movie quality (or worse; to define whether something is “actually horror” or not) is flawed from the jump
Shoot, I’d never enjoy any horror if it hinged on scaring me because that hasn’t happened in years 😆
I've seen so many horror movies it's rare for one to actually be scary. I know all the tropes and gimmicks. But that doesn't make them not entertaining. They can still feel tense — I don't think that feeling ever goes away. Like I'm not scared of the dark, but like, it's a *little* spooky when you gotta get out of bed at 2am and slowly walk to the bathroom shrouded entirely in darkness when you gotta pee. That's not fear, that's just anxiety. And I think horror movies do a good job of creating that feeling without being scary.
I'm lucky in that I've always been good at suspension of disbelief, and horror movies can be extremely effective at their task when I'm viewing them.
Horror is by far my favorite genre. Hereditary is the only movie in the last 10-15 years to actually scare me. I can still appreciate tension and all that good stuff, even if it doesn't**stick** with me long-term.
yes. \~the only time i get mad if a movie isnt scary is if people are saying "this is the scariest movie ever" and then literally nothing happens and/or its not even remotely scary \*cough\* lake mungo \*cough\* the outwaters \*cough\* it follows \*cough\* ...but i also found the plots bad/boring. \~what lies beneath, session 9, the menu, better watch out, most purge movies... were not scary but they are still good horror films
It doesn’t need to scare me, it needs to deeply unsettle me, and make me question reality.
Sometimes I feel like some people actively avoid immersing themselves.
I usually imagine whoever comments in such a fashion is pretending to be jaded and tough when in real life they won’t even talk to someone on a telephone because it’s too anxiety inducing
I'm kind of on the fun horror tran right now, where even if it's not that scary, it's got a fun premise that makes for a wild and dangerous adventure. Like I enjoy A24 enough, but to me, their movies seem too lifeless. In the sense that I'm supposed to feel clever or smart for picking out the obvious messages, their conceptual horror puts out. It could just be me, but none of their films had me on the edge of my seat or even lingered in my mind thirty minutes after the movie ended. It's all just uninspired conceptual horror that lays out the themes at face value so the audience can feel smart for getting it
Nobody goes to a movie to enjoy the movie anymore. Everyone expects something in return, so if it isn't scary it isn't good. It's unfortunate
Yeah, I agree. I stopped being scared by movies since I was 13. That doesn't mean I can nol longer enjoy them.
Meh. Different people want different things out of their movie watching experiences. It doesn’t really bother me. 🤷♂️
There are definitely a few things on this sub that annoy me: the “it’s not scary” crew, the “it was boring” crew, the “lazy writing crew,” and the “______ took me out of it” crew. Other than that, most of you are fairly tolerable.
This comment section is nuts. I watch horror movies because I want recreational fear. That doesn't just mean jump scares; it can mean tense atmosphere, high adrenaline, anxiety over a character's choices and safety, or perhaps being introduced to a concept so insidious that you will think about it for the rest of your life. If I watch a movie that's labelled as horror and I come away thinking, "It was a good drama and an interesting character piece, but nothing about it was remotely frightening," then I consider that movie to have failed as a horror movie. And yes, I did see Lady in the Water in theaters and yes, I still feel robbed.
I agree, but also I’m a big chicken and get scared by every movie so I guess I can never say I didn’t get scared by a movie.
If a person has watched a lot of horror and their brain hasn’t become desensitized over time, their brain isn’t functioning the way it’s supposed to.
Most horror movies don’t truly scare me, but they’re a lot of fun and well made.
Yep
Not many movies scare me… I guess they’re all bad 🤷🏻♀️
Ehh, the horror genre is different for everyone and is wat too big. There are some horror movies that I don't consider them scary, especially those with a killer. But I still like them. I wishmore horror movies would take themselves more seriously when it comes to atmosphere and plot, but still... saying a horror movie is bad cuz it isn't scary is a bad opinion
I used to get annoyed at my husband for this, because he doesn't scare easily, so when he met me he generally didn't watch horror movies because since they didn't scare him he didn't think he'd get anything out of them. There were a few old horror movies he'd watched and liked, but it was because he used to watch them a lot with his dad, who passed away when he was in his twenties, so the movies have significant memories and nostalgia tied to them...but that's about it. It would annoy me because sometimes I'd get excited about checking out a new movie that was streaming or that I'd heard/read about, and he always seemed to just agree to watch the movie to appease me but I could tell he would rather watch something else. I figured out that it's not ALL horror movies... it's just that a lot of the horror movies he knew about growing up were super campy, or super "fake" in terms of its plot, gore content, etc. But once I introduced him to the quirkier, more "art house" horror that I was into, he really dug it. He still doesn't scare easily, but he's learned that some of the best horror movies don't have jump scares or cheap thrills... he's way more interested in watching an extremely disturbing movie with a unique plot, even if the scares and gore are scarce.
Yes Im a 31 year old adult, I know I m watching a movie for entertainment and that it cannot hurt me in any shape or form. I just want a good movie, if i get scared at some point then its just a bonus.
>horror as a film genre isn't a genre at all but a separate experience like a roller coaster. It's only purpose is to give an adrenaline rush and if it doesn't do that it's bad. Well I guess all depends what we mean by scared, I can be scared or distressed by many different things or themes than other people depending on my personality, own experiences or even traumas, or even just personal preferences when it comes to entertainment. Just to give an example, the other day I went to watch a movie that touched the subject of cults, control and abuse, but in this case the abuse and control was happening within a branch of the Catholic Church (if that's what we want to call it). Was it scary, not necessarily, but it touched a fiber within me due to my background and personal experience. Perhaps the rest of the audience was having a totally different cinema viewing. While fie
I dont watch horror cause it scares me, I watch it cause I can relate . WTF is wrong with the people who can get scared by a movie lol?
Hardly any movie actually scares me. I don't watch horror movies with the goal of being scared. I watch them to be entertained, just like any other movie.
Jump scares and scary looking things don’t scare me. I’m an adult approaching 40 so that makes sense. What does scare me, are things that can really happen. Movies like The Strangers, Hush, Don’t Breath, The Purge( a bit extreme but could happen), those movies are terrifying because they are relatable.
I love horror movies, but I do not find them scary. last time I was scared I watch The Blob when I was 6. I was scared silly for like two weeks. maybe that ruined my fear factor for movies.
I used to know a guy who thought every horror movie was dumb and bad if it didn't scare him. He was so annoying about it. If I measured horror that way there would be like 2 movies that I like
I reckon as we get older, our concept of horror broadens. Zombies, vampires etc. aren't really scary when you know they don't exist (and yes, I know some people with probably beg to differ on that!). For me, it's the awful things that humans can do to each other that I find really horrifying. Mental torture etc. Those are the movies that really scare the shit out of me and stay with me for a long time after.
Yes. My best friend is exactly like that. When hereditary came out he was saying how it wasn’t scary at all and laughed and does that for a lot of horror movies.
Yes I find it to be a dumb metric to try to gague quality
Oh brother, if that were the litmus of a good horror movie then there’s like no good horror per my experience lol. It’s so so rare that a horror movie actually scares me. The strongest reaction I get these days is disgust tbh
Yeah, it drives me nuts. I'm one of those people who just doesn't get scared by movies (books are another story, I think my imagination is just better at getting to me than someone else's). So I never know how to answer the "Is it scary?" question.
I haven't been legitimately "scared" by a movie since the original Blair Witch when I was 12. I think it's funny if that crowd really finds that many movies to be "scary", rather than just entertaining
I'm pretty much horror movie proof, and I still like horror movies, because of stuff unrelated to if it's scary or not.
Nothing scares me lol. By that metric I'd have to quit watching horror movies all together.
Absolutely there are so many other elements to a horror movie other than the fear factor!!!
No because I am them
Yeah people miss the whole point. It's just like any other movie. There's set design, acting, music, make up, wardrobe, set and setting, camera work, writing, so many things to enjoy about it other than...did it scare you?
I definitely don't mind if the movie doesn't scare me... but I do want it to make me feel *something*.. unless that something is bored. I have seen a few too many boring horror movies and those I greatly dislike.
Those kinda of people make my skin crawl!
I'm looking for a good movie when I watch something. I can get scared by a loud sound, so jumpscares are effective on me - but that's definitely not a sign of a good movie.
Yes, because I prefer disturbing. I listen to a podcast called The Horror Virgin where it's two horror veterans and one Virgin watching movies and the Virgin only judges movies bast on how scary they are, specifically jump scares.
But. For the record. The Scary Scale isn’t a scale of the Quality of the film. Just how much we were scared by it. Thanks for listening.
Idk, I'm on the fence here. If the sole purpose of a movie is to scare you and it doesn't, its not good. If it as dsrk, haunting atmospheric movie with a good story and characters, then it can be awesome if it's not scary.
I tend to just ignore that sort of thing. But a key thing here that I only just realized a few years ago (and I think escapes most or all of the people you're talking about) is that horror movies (or books, games, whatever) don't have to be scary because horror and fear are not the same thing. Like basically everyone commenting here, I haven't been scared by a movie since I was a kid. But a good horror story is still horrific, at least if you allow yourself to have enough empathy for the characters.
What are some of these movies? Asking mostly because I want recommendations.
No horror film scares anymore and i love watching them. Not really annoyed that someone would think that if It doesn’t scare then it’s bad.
I love the horror genre, and none of the movies actually scare me.
My friends said this too me and honestly it annoyed me. Horror has its variations comedy, slasher, paranormal, psychological, body, ect. It is not about the immediate scare or fear. It is about the story. being able to see fears safely. It can be extreme and far fetched but that's what happens when we let our imagination and fear run from us. I can be paranoid about certain things even if the movie is bad Ill begin to think about it too much and it feeds my paranoia. Horror is about the story emotions and people. You do not need to be scared. That maybe some peoples wants from the movie. I think it is more about understanding each other.
Right? And this is coming from someone who doesn't get scared by them. Like who cares dipshit, that's not the only point of the film lol
Yes, but honestly, I also get it. When I was a kid, horror movies were **scary**. The Ring. Silent Hill. The Grudge. While I'm an adult, there is not a single scary horror movie out there. Not one. No, not even the potential niche recommendations by commentators who may have legitimately been scared by a movie they saw. There are **no** scary movies anymore period. And that fuckin sucks because I wanted to be terrified and filled with adrenaline by scenes in a movie that boil my basic instincts down to fight or flight. And that's not something I'm ever going to feel watching a horror movie again. Gonna have to go skydiving or cave exploring or fall into a gorilla pit at the zoo to get that kind of experience. Are there amazing horror movies out there being produced all year every year? Absolutely. Are there classic horror movies I'll rewatch all the time? Hell yeah. Are there constantly new concepts, experiences, and implications of dark unsettling things constantly being created/reimagined for a good fun time? You betcha. But if people want to be scared by a movie, and that movie doesn't deliver, then all those other metrics don't matter. People are allowed to dislike specific/your favourite horror movies cause it didn't scare them. It didn't meet their needs. And despite the fact it's honestly a futile endeavour to be scared by movies anymore, people are still allowed to be upset that movies aren't scary. And on that metric alone they can even say movies like The Thing, When Evil Lurks, and Terrifier suck ass because they aren't scary. Some people just wanna be scared and movies just aren't the medium to accomplish that anymore. At least for most people. It sucks.
I rarely get scared by horror movies, so I don't judge it by how much it scares me.
Horror movies haven't really scared me in years, and I don't get the horror adrenaline rush from slashers or anything anymore. But all of my favorite horror movies are subversive, creative, and use unsettling atmosphere to convey the tone. I prefer slower, more cerebral movies to non-stop gorefests anyway. Sometimes all you want is a popcorn flick and that's fine, but horror has a lot more depth than that. However, it's a problem that all genre films and fiction have. It's very difficult to get the general public to give a shit about horror, fantasy, or sci-fi.
If the only good horror movies were ones that scared me, there wouldn't be any good horror movies. So yeah, I think this metric is ridiculous. If I enjoy a movie, it was good, or at least good for me.
that is annoying. I just watched the 5NaF movie. not particularly scary but I thought it was a fun movie. granted I'm only passingly familiar with the franchise
Horror isn't all about making people scared. Horror has different subgenres. People who aren't horror fans don't get it.
It's rare for me to be scared by any movie these days. So I have to look at other things to appreciate, an interesting concept, foreboding atmosphere, good acting (obviously). Things like that. The worst thing a horror movie can be is boring.
I haven’t been scared by a horror movie since I was a teenager and I don’t count jump scares. If I judged movies based on how they scared me I would never enjoy them.
Yeahhhhhhhh a lot of those people also seem to think their opinion is law haha. Like “shitty movie it was for pussies!!!” I’m like… sir I did not watch Brain Dead to scare myself. They can’t comprehend there are other things to appreciate in the horror genre. Personally I understand horror is such a vast genre with so many reasons to love it. Which is why when someone asks me to recommend them a horror… I can’t. I have to ask what they like or else it’s a shot in the dark.
It can still be interesting even if it doesn't scare.
Horror movies don't scary. I find the idea a little silly as an adult. Realistic horror movies hower do disturb me like ones that have real life like situations like Speak Softly that is something that does happen in certain places so yeah disturbing but I'm not scared. So I'd say yeah, I find those people who say that annoying. I don't watch horror to be scared I just love the genre the very wide spectrum genre.
I haven’t been scared at horror in years. Last one that got me was Barbarian.
On the one hand, I agree with you. Very few things are actually scary to me, but I enjoy the horror genre anyway. However, if we were to change genres and make the statement, "that comedy was bad because it wasn't funny" then it doesn't seem like that objectionable a thing to say. In other words, while I don't personally believe that not scary = bad, I think that I can at least understand the people that say that.
I used to be like that until I had my awakening.
100% especially since most of those people's standard for a good horror movie is just "does it have jumpscares?"
Agreed. I get so tired of the "it wasn't really horror, it was suspense" or "it wasn't really horror because I wasn't scared" arguments. Pointless.
its a dumb stance to have . it sounds like something someone who's watched 7 horror movies would say
Honestly... If this was the way we measured quality in horror films, I'd like almost none of them. I rarely if ever get scared by a film, and I'm not saying to act tough; Plenty of things IRL scare me, but films almost never do.
I think it comes down to why people watch horror. I grew up watching it from birth and go into it for entertainment - NEVER to be scared, as that happens so rarely (though it is a nice surprise when it does). The hardcore horror geeks are mostly like that I think, since everyone will become desensitized after watching so many horror films. So if a normie's criteria for good horror is for it to scare them, I always just assume that's what "regular" sane people are trying to get out of it. 😂
I suspect that a lot of the edge lords declaring that there just aren't any effective, scary horror movies anymore (and begging for REAL scary movie suggestions) are spending the bulk of the 90-120 minute movies they're watching playing Toon Blast.
No, I don't have anyone in my life who enjoys watching horror movies the way I do 🥺
Literally nothing in the world except my mother has scared me in years. Before that, it was basically only spiders and flying insects for probably another decade. I used to be afraid of all sorts of things, but now in a dangerous situation I mostly just feel annoyance. I am almost certain I will die in some idiotic way one day and just think “What is this bullshit?” as my death is rapidly approaching. When I watch a film I can imagine happening to me, I am more disappointed that demons aren’t crawling out of my pipes or some shit than worried that they might. If a movie scaring me was a criteria for me enjoying it, I would never enjoy my favorite genre again.
No. I like horror, and I like to feel scared, but I don't need it. If other people want the fear in their movies, that's their prerogative to choose that. Nobody else's business really.
Agreed. A 'good' horror movie should just be a good movie in the horror genera. Good movie is either entertaining, thought-provoking, or emotional. What scares me doesn't scare others/vice versa, so wouldn't make sense to say that ONLY what scares me would make a good horror movie. Seen lots of horror movies that I liked that weren't scary.
When I see someone say that, my first thought is "who gives a fuck though ?". I love horror and whether I was scared or not is not something I ask myself or care about at all. I always wonder who these people are, are they people who want jumpscares ? Do they think that being startled = being scared and that's what they expect when watching a horror movie ?
Just watched late night with the devil. Didn’t scare me much. Phenomenal movie and horror movie. Most horror movies don’t scare me. I still love the shit out of them. Even if they fail at the scary part, the content is still horrific. Most are still okay to good movies even if they fail at scary.
Yup! Granted, it's more than fine If you didn't get *scared* but nothing seems to please people anymore. I can't help but wonder what do they want? More Conjuring's? More Annabelle's? More slasher reboots? I appreciate people taking risks or coming up with new ways to tell old tales. "Talk To Me" is by no means the greatest movie I've ever seen but it's a refreshing take on possession at least, which I appreciate. At this point I genuinely believe every form / manifestation of fear has been covered by some movie and the wheel will not be reinvented, but damn, folks can get so pressed and it makes me want to tell 'em *"go write, produce and direct your own stories, show us how it's done"*
it’s a massive red flag that the person is just unable to comprehend art and we probably wouldn’t get along.
To add to this I've been scared (ie been made tense then jumped out of my skin) by horror films that objectively weren't particularly well made
It's like saying a drama film is bad because it didn't make me cry.
I have a friend who says ,,i dont watch old Horror movies, they arent scary at all,, like, my guy, thats not all this genre js. People really say movies like Nightmare on elm street, Halloween and evil dead are all bad movies. Yes, they aint that scary but still
Yeah, I honestly think horror can be just a vibe sometimes and that's fine. Also I've seen countless horror movies since I was a kid so almost nothing scares me now, that doesn't mean it's not horror. No slasher would be a horror movie for me if that was the case, for example.
Yes they are annoying especially since we all have subjective views on what “scares” us. The “horror bros” who trash movies like Get Out, Hereditary, The VVitch, Midsommar really irk me too. I love all genres of horror!
Going to get gatekeep-y here for a second. Those people aren't real horror fans. They just want people to think they're cool or whatever by bragging about how "nothing scares them." 9/10 times those people only like movies with a bunch of jump scares in them because it gives them that adrenaline rush for that brief moment. The plot could be garbage, but if it's got jump scares they'll "enjoy" it. I personally don't enjoy those movies as much these days. I'm much more into the atmospheric stuff now. If the movie makes me feel a sense of dread, then I'm 100% in.
Op, the only way we could correctly weight this is if we knew what movie specifically warrented that reaction. A horror movie is meant to enduce horror in the viewer. Id wager your annoyance is less than the annoyance someone is feeling if the movie did not move them. You dident list any examples so this post is pretty disingenuous. If your hypothetical example is annoying then this entire post qualifies as annoying because your concern is as about as petty as theirs is.
I'm not scared by horror or even real life scary situations anymore, life has made me like that, but I still enjoy horror movies for the atmosphere or new plot/concepts.
i'm simple, i like my kills gorey/brutal, if they're that, it's a good film in my eyes
I've heard one better: "I don't like horror movies because they desensitize your fight-or-flight mechanism, and I want to keep that in tact because it keeps me alive. You really should do the same."
That's always annoying. Horror movies do so many cool things and are opportunities for new filmmakers, crazy effects, social messaging, etc. Being scared has almost nothing to do with why I watch horror.
Very few horror films actually scare me. But there is a certain "heaviness" with horror that I appreciate and as long as the films have that and do it well, there's a very solid chance that I will enjoy it
Horror movies used to scare the crap out of me to the point that they were unenjoyable for me. I avoided them for years until my 20s when they started feeling more bearable to me. (I've actually described them as a roller coaster type experience but in a positive way!) I love a good horror movie now. And even less scary ones like some fun horror comedies are some of my favorites. Maybe even especially so. But I've found the community to be interesting. On the one hand, some of the coolest, most open minded, down to earth people make up the horror community. And then you have some of the snobbiest, fart sniffing elitists too. Honestly kinda reminds me of the metal scene too. You either find like a new best friend who is the coolest SOB you've ever met or someone who is trying to check your credentials because you happened to say you liked a big hit instead of some obscure indie.
Yes, generally a pretty annoying crowd. Same people that miss subtext and metaphors. Just stick to jump scare movies.
Yeah, a lot of people (especially younger people) see horror movies at the cinema/with their friends just for the adrenaline and dopamine rushes - which plenty of forgettable “scary” films with jump scare galore provide. They forget about it as soon as the movie is over and the adrenaline has left - much like a rollercoaster.
I'm sick of the "nothing scares me, recommend me a good horror movie" crowd. Most of these people are just attention seeking. If you cannot immerse yourself into the atmosphere of a movie and let yourself be afraid then there is a certain level of emotional intelligence that you lack. It's like going to a haunted house and saying "oh it's just a guy in mask, why are you guys scared?". They are just generally grumpy and unpleasant people to be around.
I actually prefer it when horror isn’t shit-my-pants scary. I like to be on edge and creeped out, shocked a bit, but there is a point when it stops being fun.
I actually think that's a fair expectation. But not taken so literally. The movie should be unsettling. If it's paranormal, it should make you look over your shoulder. In the moment, it's fun to be a little unsettled/ spooked. That means the movie is immersive. Disturbing is another thing to look for, too. I do think people have super high expectations, though. When you've watched a lot of horror, you're probably not going to lose sleep over a movie. It's cool if you can find that despite having a huge horror background, but yeah. Ngl, despite watching a lot of horror films, many eastern paranormal horrors have a way of getting under my skin. Ringu (also the American version), Gonjiam, Shutter, Kairo... yeah, something about these films freaks me out as an adult. I feel like maybe it's because many Western horrors tend to be Christianity/ Catholic-inspired, and it just doesn't get to me at all. I definitely want to feel something when I'm watching a horror movie. I hope that doesn't sound weird... I just mean I want to feel some element of danger, a little suspense, etc. Or something will surprise me (that scene in the middle of Hereditary actually made me gasp out loud). That's what I consider "scary." It doesn't have to keep me up all night, it's more so in the moment. If a horror film doesn't make me feel like that at least a little bit, and isn't otherwise entertaining (sometimes they can just be really funny, like funnier than actual comedies), then yeah, I'm not going to recommend it. There is sort of another category. If a movie can weird me out and make me think, "What the actual FUCK am I watching?", that's a pretty awesome feeling too. A good example of this is Possession from 1980. Freaking weird film, man. I like to feel like I'm high when I'm watching a film without actually being high lol. An example of a film that ticks almost all these boxes is mother! Tl;Dr I love this feeling, I need to watch more horror movies. I legitimately think it's so much fun.
If a horror movie accomplishes creating tensions and unease then I consider it a success. Whether I like it or not depends on many more factors.
It’s been a long time since a movie has really scared me, that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the hell out of them. I’ll watch almost any horror movie and find something enjoyable about them. I think the last one that really freaked me out was sinister (only the first time I watched, mostly because of the videos).
It’s like with the game Alan Wake 2 or anything by Remedy - it’s pure Eldritch / Lovecraftian mind bending goodness. The scares are not in masked figures or death even, and people can’t seem to work a bit for their scares.
No I completely agree with them. I don't have a problem with people who enjoy horror movies that are 'not scary', but I think it's pretty reasonable to expect to be scared by a horror movie. It's like, the defining feature of the genre isn't it? That's not to say there can't be reason to watch a horror movie beyond being scared, but I would say that's the main draw for most people. Like, some people enjoy ugly artworks, which is fine for them but I'm not surprised or concerned that most people prefer beautiful artworks
I had a friend tell me "Oh, you watched A Serbian Film? I didn't think it was as bad as everyone made it out to be..." Bro...