Monday, June 28, 2010

The Latest Trend in Horror

June 28th, 2010

Boo- did I scare you?


I'm probably one of the biggest horror movie fans you'll find. I've watched everything from the old school Dracula movies, to the extreme gore of Saw. In fact, I used to watch so many horror movies as a teenager my grandmother once told my parents she was worried about me.


Nothing to worry about grandma. Now, if Eli Roth were your grandson, I'd be concerned.


Looking back on my favorite horror movies, many familiar names come to mind: Rosemary's Baby, Hostel, Saw, the originals of both Texas Chainsaw and Freddy, and let's not forget The Shining. That doesn't even start the list- I have a million smaller flicks that could easily out do the mainstream films. Regardless, all of these films impacted me in some way. Hell, Jack Nicholson still scares the shit out of me.


No, seriously- and it's not just because he's a Lakers fan.


Long story short, nearly every single one of my fave horror flicks is rated R. There's no way around it. Wes Craven used pools of blood. Eli Roth sliced and diced innocents in a dungeon. Jigsaw tortured the, well, in his eyes, deserving. All of these films deserved this rating.


So what's with all the PG-13 horror flicks? Is this going to be a lasting trend?


Up until about six months ago, most of the PG-13 horror flicks I saw didn't make the cut. The Grudge was lame. So was 1408. Signs was horrible. And don't even get me started on 28 Days Later.


Then, recently, I noticed that horror movies were taking a different turn. A lot of remakes started coming out. And many of the original films were being dubbed 'HARD PG-13."


As disappointed as I was with the PG-13 films, lately the R films were even worse. Sorority Row. Saw 6 (can you believe they're make a 7th installment this year? Lame). The remake of Nightmare on Elm Street. All Rated-R, all pieces of shit.


The Last Exorcism completely changed my mind. Rated PG-13, it stands out. Well written. Well directed. It taps into both those who believe in the demonic world- and those who don't. And what's the best part? It's scary as shit. It, to me, proved that R isn't what makes a horror movie- it's the people behind it.



Since the film doesn't hit theatres until August, I'm not going to spoil it for those of you who may want to rush out and see it. But the trailer doesn't do it justice.


Who knows what the future holds. Maybe PG-13 is the new Rated-R. Maybe we're phasing out of our need for intense, graphic horror. Maybe, just maybe, we're starting to appreciate art more than we used to. Whatever the case, horror is ever changing- and I'll always be in the mix.


Peace, Love and Heartbreak ♥
A

4 comments:

Unknown said...

To me, it's hard to talk about horror without mentioning "Paranormal Activity". "Paranormal Activity" was possibly the scariest film of the decade without even a quarter of the budget or an eighth of the special effects of your typical horror film, and yet it's forgotten whenever someone mentions the genre. A travesty if you ask me. "Paranormal" only relied on good writing and good acting, and should be talked about more.

Of course, once again, I am only one man, and this is my opinion.

Andi said...

No, no, you're right! Paranormal was scary as shit, there's no denying that! I mean, come on, anyone who can bring out that kind of fear on $11,000 should be put in some kind of hall of fame.

Kudos to Paranormal Activity, which I proudly own on Blu-Ray. :)

Anonymous said...

Holy crap does anyone else think the new exorsist movie poster looks like the pictures from 'Scary Stories to tell in the Dark'?! (The books by Alvin Schwartz). Forget movies, those pictures scare the beegees outta me!!! And yes, paranormal activity kept me awake for a week...

Andi said...

Watch the trailer. It's pretty rockin'.