By Kevin Kaumans, Entertainment Editor
Since Halloween is coming up, I figured it would only be right to talk about our favorite part of October.
No, I’m not talking about the candy or the cheap decorations people keep outside their house.
I’m talking about the horror movies that come out around this month.
You know the type; monsters, slashers, demonic possessions, movies where it turns out there was no monster and the protagonist was just insane all along, those types of movies.
Here’s the thing, though: Back in the early days of movies, violence was like a heavily regulated drug in the sense that it was used as rarely as possible.
Even movies like the 1960 “Psycho”, which was considered extremely gory for the time, barely had that much “blood” in it.
Despite this, it is a common theory that – when this movie was first shown in theaters – people were passing out from shock at how gruesome it was.
But in this modern day, it seems like every new horror movie coming out is trying to one-up its predecessors on how much blood and guts it can showcase. Take the “Terrifier” movies, for example.
The plots in the trilogy are overshadowed by the ridiculous level of torture and severed body parts caused by the star attraction: Art the Clown.
To this day, I never understood the appeal of horror movies whose marketing is in how far they can push that sweet “R” rating.
I mean, I get that Art is a scary character, with his clown makeup making him look like some otherworldly creature.
But I wouldn’t by any stretch of the imagination call him the scariest villain in fiction, not even close.
See, in my opinion, what makes someone scary isn’t how aggressive they are or how much bloodshed they cause.
Instead, it is how they portray themselves.
If they are easy to anger, I will find them less intimidating and more like a child.
However, take Hannibal Lector, for instance. Sure, he has a lot of violent scenes and sometimes seems unable to control his urge to eat human flesh.
But at the same time, he’s very suave and collected. This contrast in his personality versus his actions gives him an unsettling demeanor.
That calm and soft-spoken Dr. Lector is someone who I found way more terrifying than Art’s tools of torture ever could be.
Now, at the end of the day, if you find Art to be the most frightening character in fiction, fine. Everyone has a right to their opinion.
Still, my point stands: A lot of movies in the modern age feel like they focus more on the fear factor of their movies than creating an interesting antagonist.
I suppose I shouldn’t be all that surprised. After all, horror movies are rarely held to the same standard as drama or crime movies.
But is it wrong that I do? After all, films are considered a form of art, are they not?
Why is society fine with certain forms being a lower quality than others? Shouldn’t we expect the same, equal amount of art from all movies, no matter what genre they’re in?