Every once in a while I go through a phase where all I want is to watch horror films, namely slasher films. I crave it. When I sit down for a film and scan the countless number of critically acclaimed titles at my fingertips my mind always creates a doubt in me that reaches for the (mostly) less acclaimed slasher films. For the most part, I sit and I watch the films that are almost always below par and never quite manage to quench my thirst for that unknown sense of fear. Then why do I keep returning?
I find myself asking the question of why more often than I would like, mostly immediately following a disappointing viewing. But time after time I go back, sometimes to those same films. Perhaps it's a balance. Generally speaking I gravitate towards challenging films, films that make me question what it means to exist, what it means to have a conscience, what it means to have lived. Maybe it's my desire to balance these challenging films with the not-so challenging horror films.
But then I find myself asking myself if horror films really are that much less challenging. My answer, generally speaking, is that they unfortunately fall into the state of being overly generic. Are they all like that? No. Must films follow this sort of generic template? Part of me cannot answer that question even though my instinct wants to gravitate towards no. It's more complicated than that.
Consider last year's "The Cabin in the Woods". The movie was praised by critics but seemed to divide audiences. Some people found it ridiculous and complicated, some missed the point of the film by considering how typically the characters were written. The reason I think the film is damn near great is because it challenges the conventions of the horror film while also praising them. While paying loving tribute to the horror films that have come before it, it simultaneously provides killer satire on the conventions the genre seems to be based on. And it also asks the question, "Are we actually looking for these conventions when we watch a horror movie?" Are we filled with certain expectations when we approach the horror genre, perhaps a little more than if we were to approach a different genre, before viewing. Is there something in us that actually craves the expected. In recent years the most obvious answer would be yes considering the top box office grossers of any given year have been sequels, prequels or spin-offs (2012 being a bit of an exception). However, that's a whole other world to tackle.
Of course these conventions do not apply to all horror films, but considering the great amount of horror films being distributed every year, few manage to grab the attention of the majority of movie-going public. As for this writer, I seek out all horrors. Slasher, psychological, twisted horror films, both independent, wide-release and direct-to-video. I'm on the quest for the ultimate horror. This is entirely subjective, but if these conventions are what define the horror film, does that perfect slice of terror exist?
