RHYS BOWEN: I see they’ve made a new version of The Exorcist. Who saw the old version? NOT ME!!! I hate being scared by a movie. I don’t mind the ridiculous type of scared when giant ants and aliens take over the planet, but anything really creepy like satanic possession is something I can’t handle.
I feel the same about scary books. I remember times in my early years when I would go on reading a book because I simply couldn’t stop, knowing it was going to keep me awake or give me nightmares. Now I don’t even start if I think it will disturb me. I remember reading Edgar Allan Poe when I was really young. Oh my. And The Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
The only time I did not react with terror to a scary subject was right before my daughter’s wedding. I was so stressed that my mother gave me one of her relaxation pills. It did more than relax me. It turned me into a zombie. BUT… we had to go to the Arizona Theater Company that night, front row, for a production of Dracula, because the best man was the sound guy. I sat in the front row, saw a hand coming around a curtain and… fell asleep before I saw who it was or who it was going to grab.
Having been on stage myself I know you can see the front row audience really clearly. Did they really think they had bored me to sleep or that I had fainted with fright? In any case, I had John take me home during the intermission.
This is the month for being scared, isn’t it? I go into the drug store and something gives an unearthly scream and a hand comes out of a coffin as I walk past. We didn’t have Halloween when I was growing up, which is a good thing, because I’d not have liked haunted houses, although I do like getting into costume.
So, dear Reds: who enjoys being scared? Who will see the new Exorcist? And what books /movies really scared you when you were young?
Really great suspense, I love. As mentioned, of course, above, The Sixth Sense, and Silence of the Lambs (movie and novel), as well as the Dutch version of The Vanishing, which is by far the scariest thing I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Ever ever ever, and I wish I could unwatch it.
I was traumatized, maybe in a good way, as a child, when my parents took me to see The Incredible Shrinking Man at the Vogue Theater. I can still picture that, so clearly, the ISM all tiny, stabbing a now-massive cat with a needle or something, and I still think about it all the time. It was kind of great, and kind of awful, but definitely formative. And yes, of course, The Invasion of the Body Snatchers, classic, scary movie, and the old one is so much better than any new one. Again, my opinion. And, of course, the Day the Earth stood still. Another classic.
But wow, talk about scary? The real Cape Fear. Argh. I can’t even watch that.
And The Stand, as a novel? I called in sick to work reading that book. I thought: I know I have a job responsibility, but nothing's going to stop me from reading this book. Now that is suspense! And yes, it's totally the prescient Covid book.
But scared? Like: BOO! GOT YOU! Nope nope nope. No fun at all.
Just a little sidenote. My stepson’s best friend is an actor, the guy who played the gruesome psycho killer in The Scream. And he was my stepson’s best man at his wedding. The wedding photos are hilarious. .
HALLIE EPHRON: I used to enjoy scary movies. THE EXORCIST. ROSEMARY’S BABY. SILENCE OF THE LAMBS. THE SIXTH SENSE. But what all those have in common is that they’re really good movies.
Yes, October is the month for being scared. And around here Halloween is a very big deal. My neighbors on all sides seem to be putting ginormous plastic zombies and skeletons and witches and ghosts on their front lawns. Coating their front hedges with “spider webs.” Planting tombstones with clawed skeletal bones crawling out of their front lawns.
On the plus side, apples are in! Had my first locally grown macouns!
LUCY BURDETTE: I hate to be scared! I did see the exorcist but I was in college and wanted to go along with my pals. I could not bear to see THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, but I finally read the book. It was horrifying, but at least that way I could titrate the terror.
I do love costumes, and loved when we dressed up for the theme at the New England Crimebake (zombies for Charlaine Harris, the western look for Kent Krueger and Craig Johnson, Miss Marple for Elizabeth George, and so on.) By the way, are we dressing up for guest of honor Deborah Crombie this year??
JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Oh, my God, I remember seeing THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS in theaters with Ross and his dad, who was visiting. When we got home, I stayed in the car with the door locked and made them go in and turn on EVERY LIGHT IN THE HOUSE before I’d come in. I do like movies that are creepy-scary, like THE SIXTH SENSE or THE SHINING. They seem a bit of a lost art, since the current horror trend is all about jump scares and gore - yuch.
Speaking of The Shining, the scariest book experience for me was reading Stephen King’s The Stand, alone in my dorm room, while suffering from a bad rhinovirus. Everytime I blew my nose I thought I was going to die from ‘Captain Trips.’
If you like scary, smart and subtle, I highly suggest my current K-Drama, REVENANT, on Hulu. Here’s the blurb: “A possessed, struggling student and a folklore professor who can see ghosts confront a demon about a series of mysterious deaths and the five sacred objects surrounding it.” (Warning: suicide.) And it’s got cops working on the deaths as well, so there’s something for everyone.
DEBORAH CROMBIE: I can do a little creepy/scary, but a definite NO on the horror/gore scary. No Freddie for me! I'm with Rhys on THE INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS. That movie terrified me when I was a kid. I think the idea of people not being who we think they are, or having something (or THING) living inside them, is much more frightening to me than monsters.
Fun facts: The 1978 adaptation of Body Snatchers starred Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum, and Leonard Nimoy. There was a 1993 version, then in 2007, The Wachowskis made an adaptation called The Invasion starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig! We might have to look that one up…
JENN McKINLAY: Oh, Julia, I am all over that K-Drama. Surprising no one, I’m sure, I LOVE to be terrified, petrified, horrified, stupefied - basically, all the fieds! No idea why. I just remember Halloween being my most favorite holiday ever and the scarier the better! There is no haunted house that can scare me away! I remember driving home from seeing The Quiet Place a few years ago (terrifying!). No one spoke the entire drive home. LOL.
NO, NO, NO, I can't stand watching scary horror movies. I was traumatized as a kid by watching KINGDOM OF THE GIANT SPIDERS, a campy-1970s movie starring William Shatner (yes, Captain Kirk). There were 100s of them in the movie. I still have a phobia of tarantulas.
ReplyDeleteI did watch SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and THE SIXTH SENSE as ab adult but that's my limit.
Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Canadian commenters! It is a gloomy rainy 40F this morning, only going up to 48F in time for turkey (or lamb) dinner.
Spiders?!? Aggggh. That would put me off movies for years. Reminding me of getting freaked out by a (French?) film that had the woman character walking down a narrow hall and arms reaching out for her on either side. Still haunts me.
DeleteHappy Thanksgiving to you, as well. The kids have been gone for 30 mins, the dishwasher is on, the washer is on, and all the cats have come out of hiding. We lost power at 2pm for 12 hrs yesterday (the remnants of Phillipe), so cooked the turkey and apple strudel on the barbeque. The turkey was good, but slow, the strudel was the dark brown that is closer to black on the bottom. Everyone ate it anyway!
DeleteRemember Arachnophobia? With Harley Jane Kozak?
DeleteSpiders? My worst nightmare! Harry Potter in the forbidden forest was bad enough
DeleteHappy Thanksgiving, Grace!
DeleteHappy Thanksgiving, Grace, Margo and Amanda!
DeleteHappy Thanksgiving to our Canadian contributors and guests.
DeleteHANK: Uh, a big NO to watching ARACHNOPHOBIA. Oh, I forgot to mention we watched that Shatner movie at a drive-in theatre (remember those?), so the spiders were HUGE! Traumatized for life, thanks dad.
DeleteYIKES!
DeleteNo, thank you, I have no plans to see the new “Exorcist” film [I didn’t see the original film, either] . . . I like good science fiction, but horror is not my thing. I remember being terrified by the original “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and I just pass on those horror-scary movies and books . . . .
ReplyDeleteJoan, I remember seeing the original invasion of the body snatchers with my mom on one of those late night horror movie shows on TV back in the 1970s. You know, the ones with the campy host, like Elvira?
DeleteUsually the movies were equally campy, 1950s and 60s classics from Hammer films, with Christopher Lee as Dracula. But invasion of the body snatchers was a whole different ballgame. I was terrified. I wanted to sleep with my mom that night!
It was definitely one of the scariest movies I've ever seen . . . .
DeleteI saw the original Exorcist movie twice when it first came out. I won't see the remake. I never see the remakes unless it's something I never heard of the original before. I read the book before I saw the movie which is what I try to do. It was a good movie and I like to be scared every now and then. I read Stephen King's books and have seen him in person. He can be quite the funny guy.
ReplyDeleteLOVe him! And Carrie was amazing.
DeleteI'm in the no gore, no horror camp, and that includes The Exorcist. /shudder/ I might have had more tolerance as a younger adult, because I did see the original, and The Shining, but I spent a lot of time peeking out from between my fingers.
ReplyDeleteI also read Poe and Conan Doyle as a young child already prone to nightmares. What was my mother thinking? I wasn't allowed to watch Twilight Zone for that reason, although I remember seeing one show when something horrible was crawling out of invaded people's ears and mouths. Like Debs, I think that's the scariest.
Happy Thanksgiving to our friends from the north!
I say no to all that stuff life has enough as it is. Give me well written and intelligent and thoughtful scripts that challenge the mind and have actual meaning and purpose along with real science.
ReplyDeleteAmen Anony!
DeleteI'm with Lucy: although I like Halloween for the costumes, I hate being scared. When I was a teenager, I want along with friends at Halloween to see Psycho at a repetory theater. Believe it or not, I knew nothing about the movie except that it was supposed to be scary. Well, it certainly scared and upset ME. I have never knowingly gone to a slasher movie since! It's definitely extreme male violence against women that I can't stand. I loved The Sixth Sense. Don't remember finding it at all scary. This is Kim, btw. On my phone.
ReplyDeleteIt's not the ghosts that are scary in The Sixth Sense. And there's no blood and gore. And it's SMART. I liked it so much I read the script.
DeleteI tend to not like horror or gore, but I do love a good spooky ghost story or gothic tale when I'm in the right mood. 'The Turn of the Screw' comes to mind. Or some of Ray Bradbury's work. I might try and read a 'new to me' ghost story before spooky season is officially over.
ReplyDeleteI can think of a few other horror, creepy things I like but a lot of it is Tim Burton who makes his creepy things always very whimsical and oddball, which I enjoy. Or something like Shaun of the Dead which is scary but also clever and silly in parts.
As for Silence of the Lambs? You will love this! We were visiting my mother's friend who insisted "it wasn't that scary" and wanted to rent it even though my mom tried to tell her I was a scaredy-cat and probably wouldn't like it. We rented it and I spent most of the movie cowering behind my hands partially b/c I was 12. 12! Yes, I can acknowledge it is a well made movie with great actors and writing, but I don't ever need to see it again. Needless to say, my mom's friend didn't have kids or have a very good grasp on what might be appropriate for a timid tweenager. I have some friends that would have loved it even at that age, but not me, not ever! I still don't really enjoy stories that focus on women or children being kidnapped and tortured. I often find it gratuitous and unnecessary.
A few years later, I loved seeing Sixth Sense in the movie theater, although I confess I went with a big group of people and that seemed to help. I sat next to a family friend that I knew but not super well. Every scary part in the movie I would lean closer and closer to her, just to feel the comfort of a human nearby, the whole time praying I wouldn't get jump scared so badly that I would grab onto her and start screaming. That might have been awkward.
I've had to sit through The Exorcist and The Poltergeist at the insistence of friends who liked horror more than I did. Did not enjoy either, but I survived. I drew a line at all the slasher movies. Never watched one and probably never will.
Another exception is Stranger Things on Netflix. My husband and I have devoured every season. I think it has more to do with how well it captured our shared childhood era than the horror. I definitely have to cover my eyes a bit in parts. But to bring my story full circle, my 11 year old really wanted to watch it. I thought he was too young but it was worth a try, especially since we let him watch PG13 movies we have vetted in advance. He's pretty good at knowing his limits. So I'm watching the old seasons with him and he's fine! He probably gets more upset about all the teenage embarrassment parts (having unrequited crushes and awkward moments in front of your friends and the 'cool kids') than the gory monster parts. I do tell him when something scary is about to happen and he usually ducks under the blanket. We also tend to watch early in the morning. No watching it late at night! Rewatching it and knowing when the scariest parts are has helped make it a lot less scary for me this time and sharing it with someone else has turned out to be surprisingly enjoyable.
I don't think either of us will ever be serious horror fans, though! This is about our limit!
Generally speaking, I have no use for horror movies. As a teen I saw a few of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies and a Friday the 13th movie, but as horror movies became more torture porn than just an iconic figure killing a bunch of randy teenagers, I stopped watching.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny because my best friend Ann is a horror movie / Halloween fanatic and another friend of mine is also a huge horror movie buff.
But for me, I pretty much have no use for horror movies of the here and now.
That's how I feel, Jay. I like stuff that feels genuinely scary, as opposed to just trying to gross you out with body horror. A lot of people have mentioned the Sixth Sense; much more recently a Quiet Place has fit that bill. Your frightened because the characters are frightened, not because you're seeing people's eyeballs getting popped out.
DeleteWhat scares you?
ReplyDeleteWhen I was little in the early 1950's, there was a Saturday program that showed mostly scary old movies. Irwin, growing up in Albany, watched the same show. I think that when we met he was still checking under the bed for THE CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON. He had watched the whole thing. I had just peeked at it from behind a wall two rooms away. Scary stuff!
As a teen, I did read Poe and Doyle and quite few books with explicit descriptions of the Holocaust and the tortures and massacres of that war.
My first night in my first apartment as a working adult, I read THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN. I read straight through til morning, terrified.
And, I saw PSYCHO in the movies when it came out. I am still a little nervous to shower in a tub with a shower curtain.
But after a date took me to see Thomas Tryon's THE OTHER, I said, "No more. No more films that turn my dreams into nightmares." Then, 10 years later, there I am, head buried in my new beau's shoulder asking Irwin to tell me when I can look as the Alien popped out of a writhing chest. I do not choose to be terrified.
Amen, Judy. I want to avoid nightmares too!
DeleteOh, I remember reading The Other. I loved it. Loved! I was about ..well, young. But I would not like to see the movie.
DeleteUgh I do not like horror. I do like suspense, but even some action movies are a bit too much for me. I find myself peeking through my fingers or just closing my eyes. I read a few Stephen King novels when I was young, and after IT, I swore off them.
ReplyDeleteThe new Exorcist movie isn't a remake; it's a sequel. From IMDB about the movie: "When two girls disappear into the woods and return three days later with no memory of what happened to them, the father of one girl seeks out Chris MacNeil, who's been forever altered by what happened to her daughter fifty years ago.". I didn't see the original and am not going to watch this one
Gillian, I just checked, and Linda Blair only has a cameo in the new film. Now I'm really wondering about the quality of the sequel, because she has continued to work as an actress, and has specialized in horror films. Why didn't they give her a major role?
DeleteInteresting, Julia. I have no clue!
DeleteNo I do not like horror films. I don't mind action suspense films like Ply Misty for Me starring Clint Eastwood. Highly suspenseful for it's time without being gory, or slasher style.
ReplyDeleteWhen I saw The Exorcist, who couldn't after all the hype, I thought it was really stupid. It was almost laughable - she turned green, threw up, snarled at people. I just didn't think it was believable.
I like Halloween and in our area The Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos). It is represented by flowery skeleton heads - but it isn't supposed to be gory or scary. It is a Mexican holiday when families go to their past loved ones grave sites to have a picnic, listen to their favorite music and remember them.
Play Misty for Me was a ground breaking movie, with the aggressor a woman and the guy being the one who was stalked. Much like Deliverance, which turned victimhood, especially rape, on its head. Much scarier for some than others!
DeleteNope, not a fan. The original 1950s Invasion of the Body Snatchers traumatized me as a kid. For decades I was terrified of dark basements, even though logic would say there was no danger. It was that powerful.
ReplyDeleteWe had a local TV host who on Friday nights hosted a show as the "Cool Ghoul". He dressed in ridiculous makeup, a fright wig and hat, and wore sloppy clothes, and showed old-time horror movies. Which were campy and silly, and barely scary. Like the Incredible Shrinking Man, or the 50-Foot Woman--I was fascinated by these as a kid, and always wondered why their clothes shrunk or grew with them. Logistics, ya know.
Later, one of the scariest movies to me was The Stepford Wives. Now that is a horror movie. Eek. No gore, but the premise is utterly chilling. (We might require women in politics today to watch it, frankly.)
Like Jay said, horror movies have evolved into torture porn, and I don't see an iota of entertainment value there. And the truly horrifying thing is that so many DO enjoy seeing others gorily tortured and killed. I worry about that, a lot. Your mileage may vary.
I meant to add that real life these days is plenty scary already. No need to add to my anxieties.
DeleteI agree that it’s horrifying how casually young people handle death and torture in movies. It starts with violent video games which must desensitize them!
DeleteRhys, I think this is a very important issue. Although not every child is affected by the extreme violence on tv, movies, and video games some are greatly affected and that worries me.
DeleteMany years ago (as I recall and I may be wrong) I remember there was a movie about a hijacking on a plane and then it happened in real life. Does anyone else remember this.
I am no fan of horror, and I largely blame my mother. I can't imagine what she was thinking -- in every other way she was a really great mom -- but I was still really small when she exposed me to THE BIRDS and WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE and HUSH, HUSH, SWEET CHARLOTTE and others of that ilk. It's a miracle I turned out normal at all! I absolutely never choose to see traditional horror films and rarely even the creepy horror type. There have been a few times over the years when some title becomes such a huge cultural phenom (like THE EXORCIST) that I have chosen to read the book, because I can take frequent breaks.
ReplyDeleteTip of the hat to Lucy, by the way, for sending me scurrying to look up the word "titrate." I enjoy learning a good new word!
The same here about those movies and mothers that allowed it. For years after, my own dear mother made fun of me for being scared by the Baby Jane movie. And don't get me started about Birds! I don't have a problem reading books where things like that happen because I can just gloss over entire paragraphs or pages as needed.
DeleteOh I saw The Birds ! Scary but I can handle Hitchcock!
DeleteRhys -- I can handle it now, too. But I was about 6 or 7! It terrified me!!
Delete6 or 7?! Yikes!
DeleteSusan, I was wondering about the word "titrate" too. I wonder if Lucy meant tolerate - maybe it was a spell correct error? I'm curious now too.
ReplyDeleteNope, when I looked it up, it was obvious she had used it absolutely appropriately. It is a term from chemistry and medicine that relates to adjusting the balance as you go by observing the reaction. (My paraphrase of the definition.)
DeleteThanks Susan!
ReplyDeleteNo horror for me, especially not on the screen. Way back in high school I did go to a showing of an old black and white Dracula movie in the school auditorium followed by a haunted house with friends. It was a Student Council fundraiser. Also in high school I read In Cold Blood. And then there was David Brom killing his family with an axe, just a couple miles from my house. Stayed inside with the doors locked until they found him.
ReplyDeleteWhile not of the horror genre, one of the most disturbing movies I have ever seen is Corrie Ten Boom’s The Hiding Place which I saw at the theatre with friends in 7th grade.
I don’t mind people’s spiders, bats, and skeletons at Halloween, but I can do without things jumping out at you from the dark, creepy music, and strobe lights. I just like the costumes and the candy best.
Gore and scary and all those things are not my choice though I did see The Exorcist when it came out – laughed through the pea-soup puking. Oops – not the expected response. Couldn’t tell you anything about the plot. I did watch Sixth Sense for some reason, and figured out the twist about 10 mins in, so that was a bust.
ReplyDeleteI do applaud when the writers get me to jump in a mystery or action-type show on tv. Definitely a got-you!
I am terrified about being alone to sleep at night. I don’t know how single people do it. Even the dog is not enough of a companion. There is no rhyme or reason for that.
Books – even though I read a lot of World War 2’s, they are what wake me up at night.
I cannot EVER imagine myself watching The Exorcist. Not only is it a horror movie, but it has throwing up, another thing that keeps me away. So I definitely won't be going to the new version. I generally stay away from horror movies (definitely the slasher ones), but one that I did like, many years ago, was The Omen. I thought it was very well done, although my boyfriend at the time had to look away from time to time. I can still picture that iron fence post flying up in the air and spearing someone (the priest?). Not too crazy about the little child character, though. Anything involving creepy doll children is not for me.
ReplyDeleteAs for spiders, my husband could kill them around the house, but that was it. He would have nightmares about spiders, and he definitely could not watch Arachnophobia.
I agree with everyone who said that creepy, suspenseful movies are enjoyable when they are really good movies.
So funny about spiders. I catch the ones that make it inside in an old tennis ball can and put them in the garden. There is plenty out there for them to eat. But movies with giant spiders, yikes!
DeleteI did love the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings plots with giant spiders, but they weren't the end game in either story, so, NBD. (no big deal.)
Thank goodness I am fine with getting rid of regular spiders in my apartment, But I do hate it that spiders silently appear on the wall or the floor. And I am fine with other insects and garden snakes. But I could not live in a country/region with giant spiders.
DeleteHub and I are watching The Haunting of Hill House. So good! I don't know if I'll watch the reboot of The Exorcist and definitely not Rosemary's Baby (now called Delicate on American Horror Story with a Kardashian - WTH?). Stop messing with perfection, Hollywood!
ReplyDeleteA reboot of Rosemary? WHY? SO agree, Jenn, the original is perfection in every way.
DeleteJenn, if I tell you that reading The Haunting of Hill House in full daylight with family nearby scared the bejesus out of me, you'll get where this comment is going. No to horror, fright, slasher, gore, too much suspense, etc. My imagination is way to vivid even with the printed page. Add music, lighting, actors, action--no thanks!
ReplyDeleteI say no to horror. I did see the original Exorcist, and remember my brother going to see it. He was living alone at that time, in a remote part of the Adirondacks, and the weather was nasty. He didn't sleep a wink that night. Conversely, my son (who dived under the movie seat at his first showing of the remastered Disney Snow White) loves horror and has a huge collection of B movies on DVD. He can hold forth for hours on the subject. I think that the prospect of a second Trump presidency and the specter of being kidnapped with your family at the music festival is plenty enough horror for me.
ReplyDeleteNope, nope, nope. I lasted 20 minutes into the original "The Exorcist" in college. I can't read Stephen King because it's just too vivid. Although I also read THE STAND and was totally into it.
ReplyDeleteI do love a good suspense. But horror? Hard pass.
I have never been able to stand watching super scary or gory films. For years, I read a lot of gritty mysteries and police procedurals, but I don’t do that a whole lot anymore either I have a select group of authors who don’t use gratuitous violence to further the story. Scared and suspenseful definitely two different things. I am a huge Hitchcock fan and I enjoy suspenseful films that keep me guessing. I don’t even mind a little anxiety as long as it’s not served up with blood, guts and gore.
ReplyDeleteNot a big horror fan. Several years ago, I went with friends who are to a Halloween thing at one of the movie studios. They loved it, and I was vaguely bored. I started thinking about why, I realized that my greatest fears were work-related, not things jumping out at me. When we were trapped in a room with IT, and everyone was cowering and screaming, I raised my arms up and roared. Probably confused the heck out of that poor performer. But felt pretty good to me.
ReplyDeleteSomeone should do a movie about REAL horror, Lisa: Gasp as payroll messes up and you have to wait another week for your check! Shriek at the sight of Ellen, the super-judgy co-worker who will not stop talking! Moan in fear as you survey the empty fridge where you put your lunch that morning!
DeleteNot a horror fan here. I cannot even read mysteries with graphic violence either. Never watched THE EXORCIST, THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS nor other really scary movies. Though I love the aspect of wearing costumes and eating candy corn at Halloween, I never liked the malicious aspects like horror movies. However, I loved BEETLEJUICE because it was more funny than scary to me. I found the ELIZABETH I film with Cate Blatchett to be too scary with the blood and the gore.
ReplyDeleteDiana
Oh, yes, Beetlejuice is wonderful, I agree!
DeleteI don’t like scary/horror books or movies. I still have nightmares from The Wizard of Oz. If I’ve ever seen a scary movie, it was by accident!
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends!
DebRo
No horror, no gruesome or violent descriptions even psychological suspense is problematic (sorry Hank) for me. I want my characters to be smart in solving the case but not physically attacked
ReplyDeleteSeveral series I liked I had to stop reading because of the increased violence, I didn’t appreciate the protagonist constantly being beaten up on one page and in the next scene being miraculously healed
even though it was just hours later.
As someone previously said, sometimes seeing the nightly news provides enough violence and is hard to watch-I don’t even want to listen to some of the reporting that gives too many details..I will read some historical stories even war related, both fiction and nonfiction but skip over the graphic descriptions.
I try to keep my reading lighter, preferably with humor to offset the disturbing headlines that are becoming more prevalent
Obviously, I’ve never been a big Halloween fan.
Why not quit watching the news? It is sensationalized, even in the reliable media. Read the PBS or NPR news summary.
DeleteOMG! Real life is often scarier! I agree and although we do watch the nightly news, read our local news paper, we rely on PBS and NPR as their reporting is reliable and trustworthy.
DeleteNope, don't like horror movies. As a ten year old, I saw Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. It was supposed to be a comedy, but it certainly fueled my nightmares for years afterwards. I didn't see the Exorcist, but I read the autobiography of the author, William Peter Blatty, who told quite a bit about the incident his movie script was based on....and that was more than enough for me. I agree with those who say the real world is scary enough.
ReplyDeleteI’m also not a fan of horror movies. The Saw #1-50? Chucky, et al? No way, no how! I did read and then see Silence of the Lambs when they both were new, but not sure I could handle the movie today. And when Margaret Hamilton (the Wicked Witch from Wizard of Oz) was doing Mr. Coffee commercials many years ago - as herself - she still scared me! For me, Dressed to Kill (a DePalma film) was extremely scary. As many have said, real life these days is scarier than make believe. But bring on the candy… — Pat S
ReplyDeleteI remember years ago, riding a subway, reading a book. I realize that I was holding it at arm's length... because the scene was so frightening. I closed the book. Life can be scary enough... I don't need violence/mayhem/brutality in my reading!
ReplyDeleteNot sure why I came up as Anonymous! It's Victoria Zackheim here.
DeleteYour story reminds me of the Friends episode where Joey puts the book in the freezer because it is getting too scary.
DeleteA public service announcement--Those ubiqutous "spider webs" are dangerous for birds, bees, and insects. Please use something else for drama.
ReplyDeleteHappy Thanksgiving, Canadian friends!
ReplyDeleteYea to scary, boo to gore and horror. I did see the Exorcist, but years later on television. I'm sure it was edited because the book was way scarier. I rank it up there with Rosemary's Baby. Spooky, and is it possible? The scariest thing I've ever read was Shirley Jackson's The Lottery. It may have been my age, or the fact that the draft was put on a lottery status about the time I read the book, but it freaked me out.
ReplyDeleteI don't like horror. I avoid it. I close my eyes or flip the channels when disturbing props (snakes, spiders, spurting blood) are shown on screen. Thank God for remote controls. Nightmares are no fun and bad enough of those just from life without having recreational activity (movies/books) adding to them. I liked the innocence that was Halloween as a child, but not horror.
ReplyDeleteDeana
I have a fascination with horror movies. But I watch them at home during the day most of the time. And there are plenty I won't go see, like The Exorcist. No desire to see that one.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child I absolutely adored monster movies! Such fun. All the giant critters that grew because of atomic bomb testing. All the Hammer Films. Vincent Price. All the wonderful scary movies from the 1930's and 40's. Haunted house movies. I do not like slasher films. I love funny scary movies like Cockneys Versus Zombies or Shaun of the Dead. As for books, one of the scariest I've read was Grady Hendrix's The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. From the title I thought it was going to be light or funny. Big nope. It sucked me in slowly just like the ladies in the club got pulled into the vampire's orbit.
ReplyDeleteI love Shaun of the Dead, Pat. Maybe we'll do a Halloween re-watch.
DeleteMy older brother SAT on me and made me watch the Exorcist when it came out then called me Regan for years. I still freak out every October seeing promos for that movie. I watched about 3 seconds of the new commercial for the new Exorcist movie and changed the channel promptly. I think of all the horror movies, that one is the scariest. I am not a big horror fan at all but I can appreciate some of the movies like Scream, Dracula, etc. Just not possession or Devil stuff. Nope. aprilbluetx at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteDo. Not. Like. Being. Frightened. I ran to the lobby when a date and I went to see "Psycho." Never saw the end! What really, deeply spooks me is those tales of people being boarded up in coffins. Yes, I'm talking to you, Edgar Allen Poe. But a few too many writers and scriptwriters have taken his lead and I am not amused, I am immediately out of air and my imagination goes crazy.
ReplyDeleteRecently we went on Universal Studios tour. We saw the building where the Hitchcock movie "Psycho" was filmed. It looked rather peaceful sitting on a summit. But, as a young person all those years ago seeing the shower scene - I still to this day won't shower if I am home alone! Even though I know it is safe to do so!
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