Watching Horror Movies Essay

Introduction

With the passage of time, the horror movies have become one of the more important spectacles of the popular culture. If one talk about the way horror culture has affected the mainstream cinema, one just needs to have a look at some of the more popular characters of the mainstream movies. Characters like Jason Voorhees and Leather face have become the part of the mainstream language. And even though super hero movies have become much safer bets at the box office, it the horror movies still have performed reasonably well and people still prefer them. It begs the question that why people are still interested in horror movies and what makes them face their worst fears. It is one of the things that are going to be looked at in this paper (King, 1981).

Feeling of Excitement when Watching a Horror Movie

The key thing that is being talked about when people are watching horror movies is the fact that they are not afraid. Instead, it is the feeling of excitement that they get when they are watching other people go through an emotional roller coaster is the one that prompts them to watch horror movies (King, 1981). This idea is supported by the fact when survey was carried out among moviegoers what is the most intense feeling that they have when they are watching the horror movie. Most of the respondents were of the point of view that the feeling of excitement is the one that is most intense rather than the fear.  There are some other people who are of the point of view that people like to watch horror movie due to the fact that they are happy to be unhappy (King, 1981).

Feeding the Sadistic Beast inside Us

There are some other researches that have pointed out towards the fact that at times, the reason that people tend to enjoy the horror movie is due to the fact that they have sadistic feelings inside them. It is one of the main reasons that the horror movies such as “The Hostel” series and Saw series are considered one of the major successes of the horror genre. They allow people to face the sadistic side that they have inside them and how at times when the decisions are made with reference to the particular people, they enjoy inflicting pain and misery on other people. It is also called as the torture porn and there are some people who are huge fans of the genre (King, 1981). At times, these movies are not able to generate the same level of box office figures as they are Rated R, but still there is enough following for them. As mentioned in the journal “The fun comes from other people being killed or menaced (King, 1981).

Conclusion

There are varieties of reasons due to which people watch horror movies. Despite the fact that they are not one of the higher grossing movies, the considerable number of horror franchises and their relative success shows that there are enough takers for the horror movies these days (King, 1981). The novel approach towards the human emotion points out towards the fact that people are bound to feel both the positive and the negative emotions at the same time.  As a matter of fact, people might enjoy being scared, which is a negative emotion. But at the same time, they in equal measure, they enjoy the victory of the final protagonist or the one who overcomes all the odds.  It is one of the primary reasons that people might enjoy the horror movies that it tends to bring the emotions out of them in the right manner (King, 1981).

Works Cited

King, Stephen. “Why we crave horror movies.” Short Essays for Composition (1981): 524.