Horror Movie Month (My Name is Bruce)

[The Germanator]

Originally Posted by manasecret

I had a coworker come in the other day with the exact same reaction. He said it was terrible. What causes such polarity on a movie like this? The same thing happened with Blair Witch.

I think the polarity is caused by expectations. Sometimes you go into a movie expecting something, usually seeded into your brain by the trailer. But when you actually see the movie, not only does it not give you what you expected, you get the exact opposite and so your reaction is that the movie is terrible because it didn't give you what you were wanting. This phenomenon coincides with the fact that you often choose the movie you're watching based on what you want to watch. If you choose an action movie, but then to your total surprise, you get a love drama, you're likely to hate the movie even if it's the best love drama ever. It's just expectations. This has happened to me before.

In this case, I guess you expected a more typical horror movie, and when you didn't get that it polarized you to the I hate this movie side. Despite the general consensus that this is one of the creepiest films ever, and at the very least if not a great film then certainly not a total "piece of shit".

Or you just didn't like it

I completely disagree. I judge a horror movie based on how creepy, frightening, disturbing it is -- the best of which leave me mentally disturbed for days after watching -- not on how much "happened". And, on that criteria, this is the best horror movie I have seen in a long time. To me, the most frightening moments on film are what they don't show you and what they don't explain. Your own imagination creates the most frightening images to fill in the blanks. This movie knows that.

It still creeps me out sometimes when I'm walking around my house at night in the dark.

That isn't to say I don't like some other movies that follow the more typical formula of story arc and spooky/gory things popping out or happening. But the good ones like that are like 1 in a 100, for me.

I agree with you a lot about expectations. I had similar feelings about Blair Witch Project when it first came out, but after watching Paranormal Activity, Blair Witch Project looks like a masterpiece to me again. The thing is, I did know what I was expecting. I knew I was getting a film made for $11,000 by amateurs, and I was curious how they'd go about it. Color me not impressed.

I'm not sure I agree with you in terms of what I was expecting though. I was expecting to be scared, creeped out, terrified, etc. Those are the things I expect from a horror film. Instead I got poor acting and dull 20 minutes conversations in between doors closing and bed sheets moving. If the things that did happen in the film weren't that troubling, than how am I supposed to be disturbed by the things that I "can't see" or "don't happen?"

I agree with you that this is a different style of horror movie and I think this style of horror movie can work, it just didn't this time. Drag Me To Hell was a far better horror movie, I don't care what style. It was genuinely scarier and more fun to watch. Also, I just watched "Coraline" a couple nights ago and parts of that were much scarier than anything in Paranormal Activity.

I think the horror genre is the most difficult to make a good film out of. I feel like there may be less than 30 or 20 great horror films ever made, and I appreciate the direction that the Paranormal Activity people went, but just because it's somewhat original doesn't mean it's any good.

[BreakABone]

I understand what Mana is saying, but I still think it was a terrible horror movie, but I do understand how it worked with some people.

Or at least I think I do, much like the Blair Witch, I think people create a scenario in their head in which this could happen to them. I mean I never expect Freddy or Jason to pop up, but for weird unexplainable things to happen in your home... I'm sure that happens to us all.

I'm sure there are people who started hearing voices and footprints after this movie because it can work on that level, but watching it... I just felt they talked too much.

[manasecret]

Originally Posted by The Germanator

I agree with you a lot about expectations. I had similar feelings about Blair Witch Project when it first came out, but after watching Paranormal Activity, Blair Witch Project looks like a masterpiece to me again. The thing is, I did know what I was expecting. I knew I was getting a film made for $11,000 by amateurs, and I was curious how they'd go about it. Color me not impressed.

Wait, does that mean you did or didn't like Blair Witch? I liked it. And I'm going to out myself here -- while I had my doubts, I bought into the hype before I saw it and after seeing it, I believed it to be a true story. I remember thinking that the utter fear in that girl's later moments in the film to be beyond acting. How gullible I was...

I'm not sure I agree with you in terms of what I was expecting though. I was expecting to be scared, creeped out, terrified, etc. Those are the things I expect from a horror film. Instead I got poor acting and dull 20 minutes conversations in between doors closing and bed sheets moving. If the things that did happen in the film weren't that troubling, than how am I supposed to be disturbed by the things that I "can't see" or "don't happen?"

Sorry if I put words into your mouth, I was just trying to figure out what scenario might have polarized you (or someone else) on the film. And I see what you're saying. If you don't buy into the story, there is very little else in the movie to like. However, if you do buy into the story, then the fear instilled in your imagination is, in my opinion, some of the best.

As an aside, after I wrote that commonly held belief "the scariest things are what you don't see", I thought about taking that to the extreme. Imagine a film of just an empty room and nothing else. No characters, no explanation, nothing. Not scary at all. Of course, someone might randomly imagine something spooky going on in the room, but far many more would imagine nothing spooky if anything at all. I guess the "nothing is more" only works if the film makers are able to point your imagination in the right direction, through the plot and sight and sound. And if they are unable to do that with the viewer, then you're left in the empty room scenario. Your imagination doesn't fill in the blinks with anything spooky, and the film falls flat. It's like Todo came in and you're left with "pay no attention to that man behind the curtain."

I agree with you that this is a different style of horror movie and I think this style of horror movie can work, it just didn't this time. Drag Me To Hell was a far better horror movie, I don't care what style. It was genuinely scarier and more fun to watch. Also, I just watched "Coraline" a couple nights ago and parts of that were much scarier than anything in Paranormal Activity.

I just saw Drag Me To Hell, and I liked it a lot. But I found very little of it scary, probably the scariest part with the Gypsy old lady first lunging at the banker. But I think that comes down to me finding any of Sam Raimi's horror scenes in any movie more campy and funny than scary, because I love Army of Darkness so much. He uses the same style so I end up just laughing through the scary scenes.

Remember the Doctor Octopus tentacle scene in Spider Man 2? It was a genuinely creepy scene, but I remember laughing out loud in the theater all throughout because it's the exact same style he uses in his Evil Dead series, with the camera controlled by the tentacle in Spider Man and controlled by the trees/etc. in Evil Dead.

I also agree Coraline had some very creepy scenes.

Originally Posted by BreakABone

Or at least I think I do, much like the Blair Witch, I think people create a scenario in their head in which this could happen to them. I mean I never expect Freddy or Jason to pop up, but for weird unexplainable things to happen in your home... I'm sure that happens to us all.

I think you make a good point here. Both Paranormal and Blair Witch take place in areas most people are in often if not daily, just normal regular places. So you can easily imagine the events as if they were happening to you. And the mockumentary, barebones style adds to that illusion, that this could be you.

But I never imagined footprints or weird noises. Coming from Paranormal Activity, the scariest thing for me to think about is what happens or could happen when you are asleep and no one is there to notice. What if you woke up one night to find your girlfriend/boyfriend standing over you silently? If you set up a camera watching you sleep, what strange things might you catch?

[BlueFire]

Drag Me to Hell was amazing. Fun movie to watch, haha

[Professor S]

Originally Posted by takegiantsteps

Drag Me to Hell was amazing. Fun movie to watch, haha

Sam Raimi's mouth fetish creeped me the hell out. There was always something probing mouths or vomiting out of mouths. Blech.

[KillerGremlin]

Paranormal Activity plays on a pretty normal psychological fear: what happens when you are asleep. I happen to sleepwalk, so I can semi-relate to the film. My girlfriend also suffers night terrors. And finally, my mom is Psychotic, so she will go on zombie-walks at 4am doing all sorts of weird shit (when she's unmedicated). Have you ever seen what a psychotic patient looks like after _LITERALLY_ not sleeping for about 2 or 3 weeks straight? They look exactly like a demon-possessed person in need of an Exorcism.

There's a shitload of psychological research that has emerged in the past 100 years that supports a more grounded or logical explanation for early Exorcism/demon mythology. The fact that Paranormal Activity played off some of these very real psychological cues creeped me out.

I also spend many nights sleeping with the GF, and I thought Paranormal Activity exploited that very real and normal psychological aspect of life as well.

Love it or hate it, I thought it was a well-made movie that surpasses a lot of the shit that has come out in theaters dubbed "horror" in the past few years.

I eagerly await the day you all live with people who sleepwalk or go bump in the night.

[KillerGremlin]

I find the dichotomy you guys are creating between Paranormal Activity and Drag Me To Hell to be highly entertaining.

Talk about two completely different styles of horror, proving that the horror genre is perhaps the most eclectic.

[The Germanator]

Originally Posted by KillerGremlin

Paranormal Activity plays on a pretty normal psychological fear: what happens when you are asleep. I happen to sleepwalk, so I can semi-relate to the film. My girlfriend also suffers night terrors. And finally, my mom is Psychotic, so she will go on zombie-walks at 4am doing all sorts of weird shit (when she's unmedicated). Have you ever seen what a psychotic patient looks like after _LITERALLY_ not sleeping for about 2 or 3 weeks straight? They look exactly like a demon-possessed person in need of an Exorcism.

There's a shitload of psychological research that has emerged in the past 100 years that supports a more grounded or logical explanation for early Exorcism/demon mythology. The fact that Paranormal Activity played off some of these very real psychological cues creeped me out.

I also spend many nights sleeping with the GF, and I thought Paranormal Activity exploited that very real and normal psychological aspect of life as well.

Love it or hate it, I thought it was a well-made movie that surpasses a lot of the shit that has come out in theaters dubbed "horror" in the past few years.

I eagerly await the day you all live with people who sleepwalk or go bump in the night.

See, this is the most compelling thing about Paranormal Activity I've read yet.
But look how many personal steps it took you to be scared of the movie. It's like it was made for your life, and made it more personal, and hence more scary.

I love psychology and if/when I go back to school that's probably what I'll study and what you bring up about possession is super interesting. I was talking to a friend last night and he was saying one of his friends back in Pakistan had a 1-year old child who started speaking perfect English to them (which he was never taught). He was terrified about the idea of possession and that's why he thought the movie was scary as well.

My problem with PA is that I guess I couldn't quite relate as much. Maybe it's because I saw it when I was 12, but I give the Exorcist credit for really scaring me. I think the element of a defenseless/innocent young girl gives it that extra edge.

Anyway, I still am not a fan, but I at least see where you guys are coming from.

I'm still not sure if anything will ever get it as right as The Shining did. That's my favorite horror film for sure.

[Angrist]

Originally Posted by The Germanator

I was talking to a friend last night and he was saying one of his friends back in Pakistan had a 1-year old child who started speaking perfect English to them (which he was never taught).

I once talked to a drunk friend who knew a guy who had dated a girl whose aunt could fly.

Or maybe I was the drunk guy, I don't remember.

I do believe that people can be possessed, but I just wouldn't go on second or third hand stories like these.

[The Germanator]

Originally Posted by Angrist

I once talked to a drunk friend who knew a guy who had dated a girl whose aunt could fly.

Or maybe I was the drunk guy, I don't remember.

I do believe that people can be possessed, but I just wouldn't go on second or third hand stories like these.

I never said I believed him, but he believed it.

[manasecret]

Originally Posted by The Germanator

See, this is the most compelling thing about Paranormal Activity I've read yet.
But look how many personal steps it took you to be scared of the movie. It's like it was made for your life, and made it more personal, and hence more scary.

I love psychology and if/when I go back to school that's probably what I'll study and what you bring up about possession is super interesting. I was talking to a friend last night and he was saying one of his friends back in Pakistan had a 1-year old child who started speaking perfect English to them (which he was never taught). He was terrified about the idea of possession and that's why he thought the movie was scary as well.

My problem with PA is that I guess I couldn't quite relate as much. Maybe it's because I saw it when I was 12, but I give the Exorcist credit for really scaring me. I think the element of a defenseless/innocent young girl gives it that extra edge.

Anyway, I still am not a fan, but I at least see where you guys are coming from.

I'm still not sure if anything will ever get it as right as The Shining did. That's my favorite horror film for sure.

I just stayed at the Stanley Hotel, where as I'm sure you guys know Mr. King got his inspiration. The story is, he arrived there on the last day when everyone was going home for the winter season, and the staff partied hard with him that last night. Then they gave him the keys, said make yourself at home, stay as long as you like, eat and drink as much as you want since they'll have to replace everything in the spring anyway, just lock up when you leave. Then, in his stupor, he experienced some very strange things...

I stayed in a "haunted" room, room 417, while I was there. All I can say is, if any paranormal activity occurred, we slept right through it.

So did you or did you not like Blair Witch? I'm assuming no because of your opinion on PA.