By: Megan Clark Campus Life Editor
When I saw the first trailer for “The Witch” over summer, I was hyped. A Puritan themed horror movie full of black magic and dancing goats was right up my alley. I saw it opening night, knowing it probably wasn’t going to be amazing, but a fun watch nonetheless.
Much to my surprise, I was wholly disappointed, but not because of the movie. No, the movie was good and full of the gloomy, mystical vibes I had so desired.
I was disappointed because of the audience, who complained and joked throughout the entire film.
Now, “The Witch” isn’t necessarily bad. It has an 89 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and that’s a better grade than what I’m getting in some of my classes this term.
While I understand it’s not everybody’s cup of tea, I have a hunch that the audience wasn’t adequately prepared for what they were going to see. I mean, sure, there were like three different trailers for it that they could’ve watched, but maybe there’s more to it than that.
When horror is mentioned, people expect scary.
They expect horror films to follow a certain formula that they have grown accustomed to, usually involving horror movie tropes and tricks like jump scares or twist endings that don’t seem much like scares or twists anymore because people come to expect them more often than not.
Horror, however, encapsulates a large array of films, the genre being defined only by its ability to make the viewers uncomfortable through feeding on their primal fears.
The first horror movies of the silent film era, like “Nosferatu” (1922) or “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” (1925), aren’t exactly terrifying, especially by today’s standards. They are, however, still super creepy due to their chilling visual effects and their ability to prey on fears innate in humanity, like the fear of supernatural creatures or of inevitable death.
In my opinion, the golden age of horror started in the late ‘60s and ‘70s, with classics like “Night of the Living Dead” (1968), “Rosemary’s Baby” (1968), and “The Exorcist” (1973), that focused on supernatural, ghostly, or satanic happenings.
Again, not super scary, perhaps even a bit comical. The group of elderly folk chanting “Hail Satan!” in “Rosemary’s Baby” isn’t particularly terrifying, but the film is still widely considered one of the best horror movies to date.
These paranormal themed movies have stayed strong, alongside the thrills and chills provided by the slasher crowd pleasers of the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s, like “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984) and “Scream” (1996).
The focus in popular horror has shifted from the inventive plotlines and visually arresting atmospheres of the early and mid 20th century to simply imitating other movies that have found a foothold in popular culture.
The early 2000s welcomed in a slew of found footage films, starting with “The Blair Witch Project” (1999) that has continued with the ever popular “Paranormal Activity” series.
Found footage films are pretty uncomplicated movies to make, considering the film’s grain and shaky footage excuses poor special effects or lack in production value. They follow a similar recipe for plot, using healthy doses of invisible, overpowered evils and helpless protagonists to evoke excitement from viewers.
A lot of movies have come out as being genuinely unique and exciting, such as “Insidious” (2010) or “The Conjuring” (2013), but the quality of these movies is diminished because the market is flooded with sequels, prequels, and offshoots that mirror the style and plot of previous films.
There are still really great horror movies that don’t rely on imitating other plots, like “It Follows” (2014) or “The Babadook” (2014), which also have social commentary alongside their wonderfully eerie storylines and visuals.
While plenty of good horror movies are still being made, the majority of horror movies currently out are heavily referential and uncreative. This may make horror movie audiences ill-prepared for movies that break the mold, like “The Witch” (which isn’t really scary, but pretty good if you like that sort of thing).
Contact the author at meclark13@wou.edu or on Twitter @WOU_campuslife
