Horror also ages better than other genres, I think. In comedies, jokes can become dated, and certain Oscar-baity dramas can lose their relevance over time. But you can't put a time stamp on fear.
@@connorbrennan4233 Dude, if I see Godzilla today, I'll laugh at the monster, I'm not gonna be scared. I'm not saying it's a bad movie, I'm saying that is not the same as it was at its time.
When I was a kid I used to get dreams of being chased, stalked, feeling an unknown evil presence. One day I saw Nightmare on Elm's Street, I think it was "the dream master". In that film, they face and "beat" Freddy by some kind of dream logic I don't recall at the moment. I used that "method" on my dreams, and after that my dreams became exhilarating adventures about me defeating whatever was lurking in the shadows. Freddy became my favorite "monster".
Especially fitting as Wes Craven was a major proponent of the philosophy that horror helps us to face our fears in a harmless setting so as to conquer them when met in reality. New Nightmare is basically explicitly about this, as the demon is "captured" by telling tales of horror.
@@davidbjacobs3598 What ever happened to the days of great Horror movies, in my opinion films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream nearly killed the Genre. Just saying🎃
this is so real. I would always be being chased by some monster, being tortured, or something like that and the only way to get out was to kill myself so I did that a lot in my dreams. One dream the monster was chasing me and I just gave up, but not in the usual way. Instead of dying I just stood there and faced the creature that was chasing me. It kept getting closer and closer but it was never able to really reach me. That is all I can remember from that dream but that helped me with nightmares a lot because I would get them constantly from trauma and when I faced the fear I slowly stopped screaming in the middle of the night and waking up as well. It just shows me my journey of self improvement and how I can't run away from my problems forever, I have to face them head on :)
The Gummy Chair Horror/comedies are super tricky for men. I prefer my horror straight up. A notable exception is the first Scream. That’s a neat perfect horror/comedy, and it works beautifully on both levels.
John Smith There is nothing wrong with fearing the unknown, fear is a mechanism that animals developed to survive. What we should not do is allow that fear to control us.
@@JohnSmith-hm7rb Very true. Sadly, way too many people fear what they are not familiar with or what they don't understand or what they have never been exposed to regularly. And that fear/ignorance is passed down to children by their foolish and scared parents ... generation after generation. It's why we have rampant racism and hate crimes, why we have a chunk of the population that hates science and vaccinations because they believe these things threaten their family's freedom. This is all both extremely sad and also dangerous.
Loved the "slime" as metaphor. And again, there's something about the way you present your own arguments that is so inspiring. You present the idea in a fluid way, yet always conscious of and sensible to reazonable counterarguments, that makes me feel HEARD while listening to you! thanks. > Edit: Lispector quotes! thanks from Brazil.
Pretty much exactly what I commented before reading to see if anyone else felt the same way. This video is basically for college students studying horror Cinema not for the average viewers
I've always had a predilection for horror despite being a huge coward- as a child I dragged my parents out of watching The Incredibles in theaters because the scene where they shoot the black balls at it was Very Scary to me, and my reaction to horror, especially horror in motion, really hasn't changed very much. But I devour as much horror as I can bear to- I read Wikipedia and TVTropes pages for horror movies, I look up playthroughs of horror games, and I indulge in written horror but ESPECIALLY in short stories. This video helped me kiiind of pinpoint why, even if I still can't put it very well into words. I think what I like most about horror- the specific type of horror I love- is that it takes the invisible, the horror that already exists to us in out lives, and makes it tangible... well, kind of tangible. Psychological horror, except there is no distinction between what exists in the mind and what exists outside of it. I love the SCP wiki because it gets at this the best, even though it isn't all horror, and even though it's most well-known for the horror of the format rather than the individual pieces, but I view it as an ever-growing anthology of short stories. It's that way of vocalizing, in an object or event to be studied, a specific feeling or concept that has acted upon the tangible world with the same certainty it acted upon the intangible one.
Great video! Horror is my favorite genre, and it's refreshing to hear someone describe so plainly. It's frustrating how often people say a movie isn't horror just because it didn't scare them.
Your reading list must look completely insane. I'm grateful if lets you bring us videos like no one else though, even though on this one I'm not with you as I've never been a horror fan. Liars, LIARS EVERYWHERE
Horror movies saved my life. I was a lonely, shy girl who was bullied in the 4th grade. I watched horror to get away from real life. They were exciting and fun. The final girls were smart and strong. I fell in love with horror way back when I was maybe 6 or 7 when I would watch Tales from the Darkside with my grandpa. He loved horror too. But what really pulled me in is when I saw Nightmare on Elm Street 4. I saw the final scene where Alice is kicking Freddy's butt and I was in love with this film. Freddy was cool, Alice was tough and smart. I had to find more of these films. I rented all the Nightmare on Elm Street movies first. Then went on to so many others. I love all kinds of horror too. The only kind I don't personally like is rape revenge with the exception of Last House on the Left which is brilliant and Ms. 45. Without horror, I think I would have been lost. I still collect horror today. I love my hobby and have a blast revisiting movies I've forgotten about and discovering movies I'd never heard of. I must also say that when I was growing up, women didn't get to be superheros or action stars. Horror movies were the only movies I ever saw where the female characters were intelligent, fun, and tough as nails. It was amazing. Still is
Exactly 💯. I watch horror just to remind me that life isn't always about rainbows and butterflies, so be careful as we live everyday! It's not as bad as we think bcuz horror teach us how to survive in any kind of situation in our daily life although I don't watch to much of that kind on genre but I admittedly watch horror movies sometimes when I feel I needed too.
Over the last few years, horror has become my most watched genre. I find myself rewatching horror movies way more than any other genre. It’s way more thought provoking
The older (and hopefully wiser) I have become, the more my interest in the following genres has grown: Biography, Documentary, Horror, Interpersonal Drama, and Science/Social Fiction; for I have gained the impression that they offer - on average - the most thought-provoking material.
What ever happened to the days of great Horror movies, in my opinion films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream nearly killed the Genre. Just saying🎃
Also, I love the observation about pain. As someone with chronic migraines, an every day occurrence, I know it's hard for others to see it in me, unless it's a particularly bad episode and my demeanor changes. But, if I'm totally honest, when friends and family have migraines, I'm dubious of their suffering. Like, are they using that because they know I suffer from them? Are they testing me? All I can do is take care of them and hope I'm helping, but that doubt is still there. So interesting to see it in an essay from over three decades ago, perfectly distilling that.
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat Yeah, they've increased over the last 4 years to be a daily thing. At different levels of pain, but regardless I'm on morphine every day just to exist. Got a ray of hope at a clinic on the other side of the country, but working on raising money for it.
This was an exceptional essay, and I really want to thank you for those film recommendations. I love to research film, especially the horror genre, and you recommended a few I didn't know about.
so good, and with the horror feeling to the video. Well done. I think the part about horror being formless is, the elements that put me most into my own body when i watch it. That unknown feeling that grows further and further as time goes by.
The need to have friends that love horror is strong. What's funny is that I think back to wich film made me ove this genre. And I saw it with my sister and she absolutely detest horror movies. Even if we had the same experience at the same time, maybe because she was younger than me. Maybe because we're different ppl. Who knows. It just fascinates me.
grace, what I love about this video (and all of your videos actually) is the sense and feeling of having thoughts that I struggle to articulate given such a wonderful and edifying shape. Also RE: the necessity of the incomplete in understanding the Other, I think you’d really enjoy some of Emmanuel Levinas’ work (if you’re not already familiar which I’m sure you are) he and Deleuze are two of my philosophical heroes and i feel like in this world of shifting, illusory sameness where pleasure is increasingly algorithmic they have a lot to offer us as we attempt to move into a future of recognizing each other and reckoning with the fragility of what it is to be “human”.
I'm coming back to this video again and again, your arguments are so insightful and interesting and I want to know them by heart and use them for my own research / when I'm talking about the horror genre
I think that this may be your best video (though, all of your videos are amazing). Not only that, but it is the best video I have seen that explores the horror genre as a whole.
I love horror because I found it when I needed it. When I was a child, I was constantly being bullied, and seeing movie villains being treated as icons made me feel good because in some ways I felt like I was being treated like a villain as a child.
I've been agonizing the last few weeks about what is horror, and this video made me realize that I was definitely overthinking it. I was thinking about it as something that needs to meet storybeats & plotpoints, but being scared isn't ever something with a clear structure, it can be dream-like and blurry. It can be whatever you want it to be. It really is just a very subjective experience tailored to break open whatever fear the story is exploring. I feel i've been enlightened with the storytelling potential there lmao
Byung-Chul Han is a genius, if you liked that quote “in the swarm” is an incredible book of his that deals with more of that exploration of human identity in a post internet era
Idk why but I had a hard time understanding fully most of what you were saying on the first watch. Maybe I'm just sleep deprived or I am just being stupid haha. However I feel like this was a very well put together video essay visually and script wise, especially when explaining the complex connection of pain with horror and the use of doubt. Good stuff :)
your videos are always so well put together, thoughtful, and interesting. I'd happily listen to you talk about anything. thank you for taking the time to make and write these essays!
I like horror simply because of the various imaginative potential content it could puke out, most being not so good but when it does it is quite rewarding to see or experience in the end when it comes to entertainment.
I’m always blown away by the compacted value of these videos. You manage to fit so much into each one, they all feel like I’ve taken an entire semester-long course. It’s so well done.
I absolutely love your video essay on why horror as a genre gets some love, and how it's best paired with objectivity! Along with a few other videos such as Ryan Hollinger's vids, your video essay is a breath of fresh air for horror! I've observed that the Internet, by it's nature, revels in absolutes that trend well, and captures public attention more because it's easier to process than objectivity. Because of this, I've noticed that it's more common and readily available to see people say "modern horror sucks", even when there's some modern horror movies, books, and videogames that could be arguably good and/or have a visceral reaction for consumers of horror, even if the general consensus from the public on a movie is poor. But, then again, objectivity doesn't always sell well... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I was just trying to figure out what films to play at a horror fest I'm hosting in my house, which lead to me watching your sightseers essay again (Which is brilliant). I clicked onto my subscriptions to find I was already subscribed to you and you'd just posted this a few minutes ago! Who's scared now?
This was as wonderful and as well-structured as I could have hoped for, if not more so. Wishing you a happy halloween in advance! Fingers crossed you have the best time.
This was really interesting, because I've always both loved and hated horror. I hate it because I'm a wimp (and a lot of the horror I used to consume wasn't very well done), but I love it because when it's done well, it really hits HARD. Some of my favourite themes dealt with in horror (and in freaky moments of otherwise not-horror) are the degredation of the body/self and the inconsistency of the definition of humanity, and some of my absolute FAVOURITE horror is body horror. My two favourite pieces of horror are Akira and Frankenstein; Akira takes the idea of degradation of the self and cranks it up to eleven (what with the literal physical degredation and the rotting of society) and expresses it with the physical, resulting in Tetsuo's, ah...condition. I love Frankenstein because it plays with the definition of humanity REALLY well (and of course, the creature and Victor are perfect foils, and the tragic irony is just...*chef's kiss*).
an utterly incredible video. im scouting around for what to write my english lit dissertation on in september, and this video has convinced me that i NEED to write about horror.
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat welp its been a over a year since i commented this, my dissertation is done and ive graduated! i ended up specialising in posthumanism and its manifestations in body horror within science fiction texts, but this video was the starting point for all of that! i cant thank you enough for what you've done for me, ive found my niche and an area of academia that i love! i hope youre doing well
Wow! This is pretty much how i feel aboot horror. And got some amazing insight as well. Ive always said i love horror because it is the most expansive genre, it has such a broad range of movies.
I think this might be my favorite video of yours! Horror is definitely the best, and now I have a lot more to think about next time I walk out of a horror movie.
I've been in a low place in my life and have found in books and films a way to escape my own head and overwhelming feelings. Never EVER liked horror. I'm very easily scared and get very anxious with horror films but since it's October I thought I'd give it a chance. Although I'm watching mostly psychological horror and still shy away from body horror, gore and haunted stories, I'm finding a strange comfort in the horror genre. It's really helping me cope. The movies don't even look so scary as they did before (maybe because paying attention to my own anxiety is way scarier right now but who cares).
I really wish you put the name of the scenes you have on the bottom corner(similar to "In Search of Darkness" documentary). There's lots of film footage(besides the popular ones) I don't know of and would love to check it out.
i like horror cuz you rarely dont enjoy it, when a scare works it scares but when a scare doesnt work its normally funny so you normally either get a decent scary movie or a decent comedy that was supposed to be scary
I had no idea when starting this video that 75% of it was nothing more than paraphrasing content written on the screen. You could have just as easily provided links in the description to the source material and saved everyone 17-minutes and 15 seconds of their time.
The classics like Alien or night of the living dead come to mind as personal favorites of mine. Theres a lot of bad horror out there, but every now and then youll come across an absolute masterpiece. Horror games in particular. There’s nothing really physically scary about Soma, for example. But what the character is makes you question everything you know about you yourself and the world you live in.
I feel like one of the greatest things that human beings have been able to achieve is to be able to create insane ridiculous things that make no sense but also scare the shit out of people to the point that they are willing to pay money to experience these things.
Interesting take on horror. It's a genre that i enjoy, but a lot of subgenres that i dislike. You hit a lot of the key things that i enjoy about horror.
Could anybody tell me the name of the outro song? Along with the rest of the essay, it managed to captivate me and produce this intangible feeling of assuredness which I really liked
Horror and laughter are two most basic emotions that we keep returning to, willingly. I appreciate the genre more and more since I realized that it was what I was leaning into all along.... Both as a reader and a writer... For me it works, because the horror is a thin layer, but underneath that are characters that ultimately deal with their lives despite what's going on at the surface... Horror has an unfair pulpy reputation, but in my mind that's mostly because there's a lot of bad horror out there... The good ones? IT (the novel), House of Leaves, and hopefully The Entity will leave a lasting impression as well....
@@Milonification I think I know where you're coming from: you're talking about gore -- the graphic stuff that's only meant to shock... In my opinion the better, and more powerful horror leans more on suspense and it deals with things that we can't quite comprehend.. In other words, it leans towards thrillers and us being thrilled... If you look at tv series or movies that are centered around serial killers and all that -- that's horror right there, and we like it, and look for it, because we both have this imagination -- what if it happened to us? but at the same time it's like a puzzle; it's something that we ultimately can't quite comprehend.. In my writing I lean more towards this type of horror-- if you know what I'm getting at, you should check my channel, or you should check my writing at jelmerdehaan.blogspot.com...
I love horror movies, I always tell my friends that imo, there is no such thing as a bad horror movie. It may have certain elements that are arguably weaker, and may detract from the experience as a whole, but there will always be something of note. A horror movie might have a weak script, or dodgy effects, or be overly reliant on jump scares, but even if it fails to meet certain expectations of what makes a "good" movie, it will almost certainly be entertaining in some way. Take, for instance, 2011's "The Creepy Doll", it had poor production value, the acting was sub par to say the least, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It just had so much heart, and it was kind interesting to see a pre-Annabelle "Annabelle" type figure. 2017's "I am the Pretty Thing that Lives in the House" is so ridiculously subtle in it's unnerving brand of horror, but I was utterly captivated, despite the fact that pretty much nothing at all happens. It was only several hours later that its full effect crept up on me. In contrast, a bad action movie can become incoherent to the point of being unwatchable when it becomes overly reliant on rapid cuts to cover up the shoddiness of the "action" taking place, often paired with a weak script. A bad romance or comedy movie is at best boring, and at worst, deeply uncomfortable, but not in the same, almost thrilling way as with horror, but in a way where you feel faintly nauseated. At their worst, these genres devolve into simply portraying the worst of human psychology, and trying to pass them off as "normal" or healthy" depictions of interpersonal relationships (be they romantic or otherwise).
What ever happened to the days of great Horror movies, in my opinion films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream nearly killed the Genre. Just saying🎃
I like the ability to explore unpleasant emotions like grief (Babadook , Pet Semetary or Hereditary) childhood trauma (It or The Shining?) Etc. In an indirect way that let's me process my own speed. Or sometimes things like Evil Dead are just a fun time.
PURITY AND DANGER changed how I look at the world...it's an amazing book. A horror fan who references Mary Douglas is obviously an amazing person and deserves my subscription.
grace dont tell the other video essaists i said this but you make by far. And the most entertaining and interesting videos. Soo insightful i appreciate your work and you a lot
I like horror because I feel invincible like, the horror can't touch me and in this sense I feel empowered and therefore. I don't know, feels good man.
I feel the same way but only within the setting, if it takes place in a house or another place that I'm familiar with the horror becomes that more scary, while when it takes place in space or the arctic I can't quite imagine it happening to me, leading to either loss of intrest or just enjoy ment of the movie as a thriller more than horror
One of the reasons I like to watch supernatural horror is because of an interest in demonology. But sometimes, I like to watch horror jist to predict and feel happy when its correct.
This video is great. How was your process on selecting the images? So many scenes from so many different, and most (or all) of them illustrating the text. How?
Thank you! Generally, as I was editing each line I just tried to remember a movie scene that illustrated what I was talking about. There are a few instances where I had a scene in mind already when writing, but mostly it's just down to what I can remember at the time of editing, haha.
Damn this shit was great. I think I got 90% of the clips shown but Im impressed I saw a few clips I couldnt even make out. To anyone who was curious about some other great horror films, based on the ones shown in this video. Id recommend: Overlord (2018) Suspiria(2018) The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017) Under the Skin (2013) The Blackcoats Daughter(2015) Under the Shadow (2016) I got way more but man this film got me in the mood to check some more out.
Thank you! If you want to identify the 10% you couldn't make out, there's a subtitle option for "Film Titles" in settings! :D I had a clip from Under the Shadow I really wanted to use but in the end there wasn't room. *sigh*
I adore your work and video essays. This has to be one of the best videos you’ve made! I always enjoy seeing you in my recommended feed and notifications. Keep up the incredible work!!
The proper word is liminal, not interstitial. A commercial during a programming break is interstitial; it's a complete departure from the program it interrupts, so there's nothing inherently horrific about it; it remains within and creates established boundaries. An undead being or other type of monster is liminal. Interstitial means something existing in a gap that is distinct. It's not a transitional phase of something occupying two normally separate spaces or states. Liminality refers to transitional or hybrid states between two natural phenomena (i.e undead beings, monsters, ghosts) that are often reacted to as unnatural, uncanny, supernatural, etc. Horrify literally means to draw back in fear, shock and disgust, or make someone draw back in fear, shock and disgust. Horror is a natural reaction to the liminal, because it defies natural or normal categorization. It's something outside of the neat little boxes in which our minds compartmentalize experiences, and is therefore perceived as threatening because it undermines our sense of self. Slime, as you described it, is liminal. It's that thing you can possess but it possesses you by continuing to grasp at you because of its liminal nature: it's in a state between solid and liquid, possessing traits of both but neither, which creates a sense of the paradoxical and threatening. Slime is associated with decay and disease, so therefore we react to it as a potential threat, even if there is no real threat. That's why undead creatures are so horrifying: they're neither dead nor fully alive, but in a state of reanimation between life and death, bearing characteristics of both the living and the dead but being neither. Even the friendly vampire is horrifying, because it imparts that paradox: that invasive thought that possesses us and can't be rationally reconciled because it violates too many natural boundaries. Like slime, monsters threaten to cling to us, to invade and disrupt the mental ordering of perception. Anything that violates the boundaries we perceive or create are horrifying, because they don't just invade physical space; they invade our minds, the very core of our being, which we react to as the most intimate and ultimate threat. We draw back as an instinctual effort to prevent penetration of the mind. That's horror. Horror is the best genre because it forces us into a state of heightened self-awareness and heightened empathy, and it forces us to question our ordered perception of the world. It's mind-expanding in a way that forces personal evolution. By forcing us to consider things outside of the neat boxes of our experience (or perhaps relive some traumas), it frees us from our own boxes and restores the sense of balance that allows us to banish ennui and restore the joy of living. By showing us the darkness, we acknowledge the light that we have become accustomed to and its value is renewed. And we also get the giddy thrill of nervous stimulation that comes from drawing back from the thought of pain, destruction, captivity, etc. So even if we don't evolve in some way, we still get that cheap thrill of shudders and giddiness. So it's kinda like sex. That's because the threat of death stimulates the libido; as animals, we feel the urge to procreate when we sense that our own lives have been shortened. So horror, like S&M and gothic fashion, is ultimately a fetish. Sex and death give us our sense of value. Through horror and other memento mori, we internalize them, increasing our sense of value.
I think something like a zombie is a distinct thing existing outside of living or dead (while having the connotation of being in-between) so I stand by my use of interstitial - but, if i'm honest, I just didn't want to use the word liminal for the 10 billionth time in my life, haha. I've said it too much and now it's dead to me!
A zombie... - has the procreation possibility of life minus the identity of a living thing. - spreads like a fungus minus its spatial coherence. - has the nourishment/stimulus processing/seeking and self-sustaining capabilites/tendencies of a plant minus its growth factor. - has the gathering/hunting instincts of an animal minus its existential fears. - has the appearance, mimics, movement, posture, tool-using capability and voice of a human being minus its empathy. - is a dead thing in all but behaviour. - is uncanny like nothing else.
If you want to see the titles of the films as each clip is shown, use the subtitle option "English (United Kingdom) - Film Titles" in settings! :D
That's awesome! I didn't know you can do that!
Thank you sooooo much for this subtitle!
@@xxx1x47x41x3 ㅕㅑㅓ
That is so smart and awesome! Thank you! I'm gonna watch them all, hahaha
I agree I love horror and I'm a horrorfanactic my first horror movie was the house of wax with Vincent price and dracula with bela Lugosi
I feel like horror is the best genre but the hardest to get right.
Amen
Yeah
Nah, a good comedy is harder to nail.
Horror also ages better than other genres, I think. In comedies, jokes can become dated, and certain Oscar-baity dramas can lose their relevance over time. But you can't put a time stamp on fear.
@@connorbrennan4233 Dude, if I see Godzilla today, I'll laugh at the monster, I'm not gonna be scared. I'm not saying it's a bad movie, I'm saying that is not the same as it was at its time.
When I was a kid I used to get dreams of being chased, stalked, feeling an unknown evil presence. One day I saw Nightmare on Elm's Street, I think it was "the dream master". In that film, they face and "beat" Freddy by some kind of dream logic I don't recall at the moment. I used that "method" on my dreams, and after that my dreams became exhilarating adventures about me defeating whatever was lurking in the shadows. Freddy became my favorite "monster".
Wait so you encountered...Freddy Krueger?
Especially fitting as Wes Craven was a major proponent of the philosophy that horror helps us to face our fears in a harmless setting so as to conquer them when met in reality. New Nightmare is basically explicitly about this, as the demon is "captured" by telling tales of horror.
@@davidbjacobs3598 What ever happened to the days of great Horror movies, in my opinion films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream nearly killed the Genre. Just saying🎃
thats honestly a beautiful story i have to imagine wes craven would have appreciated it
this is so real. I would always be being chased by some monster, being tortured, or something like that and the only way to get out was to kill myself so I did that a lot in my dreams. One dream the monster was chasing me and I just gave up, but not in the usual way. Instead of dying I just stood there and faced the creature that was chasing me. It kept getting closer and closer but it was never able to really reach me. That is all I can remember from that dream but that helped me with nightmares a lot because I would get them constantly from trauma and when I faced the fear I slowly stopped screaming in the middle of the night and waking up as well. It just shows me my journey of self improvement and how I can't run away from my problems forever, I have to face them head on :)
Horror when it’s mixed with other genres get the best too, horror is in us all
Horror comedy is my favorite combo, really brings people together 😅
@@thegummychair1613 Horror/drama/comedy is also amazing.
Action/Horror.
Sci fi horror
The Gummy Chair Horror/comedies are super tricky for men. I prefer my horror straight up. A notable exception is the first Scream. That’s a neat perfect horror/comedy, and it works beautifully on both levels.
this video isn't even TRYING to be objective. liars! LIARS EVERYWHERE!
_"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown."_
*~ H.P. Lovecraft*
Sir Friendship Grandpa Howard is a genius. :(
If we feared what we didn't know we would never learn anything. We shouldn't fear what we don't know, we should fear lacking knowledge.
I see you everywhere
John Smith There is nothing wrong with fearing the unknown, fear is a mechanism that animals developed to survive.
What we should not do is allow that fear to control us.
@@JohnSmith-hm7rb Very true. Sadly, way too many people fear what they are not familiar with or what they don't understand or what they have never been exposed to regularly. And that fear/ignorance is passed down to children by their foolish and scared parents ... generation after generation. It's why we have rampant racism and hate crimes, why we have a chunk of the population that hates science and vaccinations because they believe these things threaten their family's freedom.
This is all both extremely sad and also dangerous.
Loved the "slime" as metaphor. And again, there's something about the way you present your own arguments that is so inspiring. You present the idea in a fluid way, yet always conscious of and sensible to reazonable counterarguments, that makes me feel HEARD while listening to you! thanks. > Edit: Lispector quotes! thanks from Brazil.
Thank you! I sometimes worry I'm being too fluid, haha, so I'm glad you think it's working. :D
Gabriel Maia agreed!
+
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat
Very informative and insightful.
👍👍 😎
I totally agree with this
I think I’m a bit too dumb for this, but I like it
same here
My feeling watching this video.
Me too
Yeah I didn't understand anything but I agree with the opinion 👍
Pretty much exactly what I commented before reading to see if anyone else felt the same way. This video is basically for college students studying horror Cinema not for the average viewers
I've always had a predilection for horror despite being a huge coward- as a child I dragged my parents out of watching The Incredibles in theaters because the scene where they shoot the black balls at it was Very Scary to me, and my reaction to horror, especially horror in motion, really hasn't changed very much. But I devour as much horror as I can bear to- I read Wikipedia and TVTropes pages for horror movies, I look up playthroughs of horror games, and I indulge in written horror but ESPECIALLY in short stories. This video helped me kiiind of pinpoint why, even if I still can't put it very well into words.
I think what I like most about horror- the specific type of horror I love- is that it takes the invisible, the horror that already exists to us in out lives, and makes it tangible... well, kind of tangible. Psychological horror, except there is no distinction between what exists in the mind and what exists outside of it.
I love the SCP wiki because it gets at this the best, even though it isn't all horror, and even though it's most well-known for the horror of the format rather than the individual pieces, but I view it as an ever-growing anthology of short stories. It's that way of vocalizing, in an object or event to be studied, a specific feeling or concept that has acted upon the tangible world with the same certainty it acted upon the intangible one.
Great video! Horror is my favorite genre, and it's refreshing to hear someone describe so plainly. It's frustrating how often people say a movie isn't horror just because it didn't scare them.
I started enjoying my nightmares and then stopped getting them as much.
Your reading list must look completely insane. I'm grateful if lets you bring us videos like no one else though, even though on this one I'm not with you as I've never been a horror fan. Liars, LIARS EVERYWHERE
I just hoover up books all over the place. 😅
"Like no one else?" Video essays are a dime a dozen on TH-cam.
@@SirBlackReeds how does his response indicate that there are not many video essays?
@@SirBlackReeds I think 'like no one else' in this context means of this quality or depth.
Horror movies saved my life. I was a lonely, shy girl who was bullied in the 4th grade. I watched horror to get away from real life. They were exciting and fun. The final girls were smart and strong. I fell in love with horror way back when I was maybe 6 or 7 when I would watch Tales from the Darkside with my grandpa. He loved horror too. But what really pulled me in is when I saw Nightmare on Elm Street 4. I saw the final scene where Alice is kicking Freddy's butt and I was in love with this film. Freddy was cool, Alice was tough and smart. I had to find more of these films. I rented all the Nightmare on Elm Street movies first. Then went on to so many others. I love all kinds of horror too. The only kind I don't personally like is rape revenge with the exception of Last House on the Left which is brilliant and Ms. 45.
Without horror, I think I would have been lost. I still collect horror today. I love my hobby and have a blast revisiting movies I've forgotten about and discovering movies I'd never heard of.
I must also say that when I was growing up, women didn't get to be superheros or action stars. Horror movies were the only movies I ever saw where the female characters were intelligent, fun, and tough as nails. It was amazing. Still is
Exactly 💯. I watch horror just to remind me that life isn't always about rainbows and butterflies, so be careful as we live everyday! It's not as bad as we think bcuz horror teach us how to survive in any kind of situation in our daily life although I don't watch to much of that kind on genre but I admittedly watch horror movies sometimes when I feel I needed too.
What an absolute find your channel is! A lot of effort with a well-articulated yet constantly engaging video essay.
Thank you! :D
Over the last few years, horror has become my most watched genre. I find myself rewatching horror movies way more than any other genre. It’s way more thought provoking
The older (and hopefully wiser) I have become, the more my interest in the following genres has grown: Biography, Documentary, Horror, Interpersonal Drama, and Science/Social Fiction; for I have gained the impression that they offer - on average - the most thought-provoking material.
What ever happened to the days of great Horror movies, in my opinion films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream nearly killed the Genre. Just saying🎃
@@javiercales5019 there was certainly a rough match after those movies.
@@javiercales5019 We are literally in one of the best eras for horror movies ever right now
Also, I love the observation about pain. As someone with chronic migraines, an every day occurrence, I know it's hard for others to see it in me, unless it's a particularly bad episode and my demeanor changes.
But, if I'm totally honest, when friends and family have migraines, I'm dubious of their suffering. Like, are they using that because they know I suffer from them? Are they testing me? All I can do is take care of them and hope I'm helping, but that doubt is still there. So interesting to see it in an essay from over three decades ago, perfectly distilling that.
Yeah, something like chronic migraines is a perfect example. Didn't know you got them so often, that sucks! :(
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat Yeah, they've increased over the last 4 years to be a daily thing. At different levels of pain, but regardless I'm on morphine every day just to exist. Got a ray of hope at a clinic on the other side of the country, but working on raising money for it.
As a Brazilian, it made me so happy when I saw the Clarice Lispector quote. Terrific work! Keep it going!
Thank you! :D
This was an exceptional essay, and I really want to thank you for those film recommendations. I love to research film, especially the horror genre, and you recommended a few I didn't know about.
Thank you so much!
Beautifully written and outstandingly well edited. Fantastic, I loved it. Thank you for making this.
Thank you! :D
so good, and with the horror feeling to the video. Well done.
I think the part about horror being formless is, the elements that put me most into my own body when i watch it. That unknown feeling that grows further and further as time goes by.
Thank you! :)
The need to have friends that love horror is strong.
What's funny is that I think back to wich film made me ove this genre. And I saw it with my sister and she absolutely detest horror movies. Even if we had the same experience at the same time, maybe because she was younger than me. Maybe because we're different ppl. Who knows. It just fascinates me.
grace, what I love about this video (and all of your videos actually) is the sense and feeling of having thoughts that I struggle to articulate given such a wonderful and edifying shape. Also RE: the necessity of the incomplete in understanding the Other, I think you’d really enjoy some of Emmanuel Levinas’ work (if you’re not already familiar which I’m sure you are) he and Deleuze are two of my philosophical heroes and i feel like in this world of shifting, illusory sameness where pleasure is increasingly algorithmic they have a lot to offer us as we attempt to move into a future of recognizing each other and reckoning with the fragility of what it is to be “human”.
Thank you, I'm glad you feel that way! :D
I'm familiar with Emmanuel Levinas but I've never really looked into his work. Thanks for the rec!
I'm coming back to this video again and again, your arguments are so insightful and interesting and I want to know them by heart and use them for my own research / when I'm talking about the horror genre
Thank you so much!
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat No thank yooouuu :)
I think that this may be your best video (though, all of your videos are amazing).
Not only that, but it is the best video I have seen that explores the horror genre as a whole.
Thank you very much!
You guys are amazing for the 'Film title subtitles'. That's got to be one of the coolest and most thoughtful things I've ever seen.
Thank you very much! I stole the idea from Every Frame a Painting, haha.
I love horror because I found it when I needed it. When I was a child, I was constantly being bullied, and seeing movie villains being treated as icons made me feel good because in some ways I felt like I was being treated like a villain as a child.
I've been agonizing the last few weeks about what is horror, and this video made me realize that I was definitely overthinking it. I was thinking about it as something that needs to meet storybeats & plotpoints, but being scared isn't ever something with a clear structure, it can be dream-like and blurry. It can be whatever you want it to be. It really is just a very subjective experience tailored to break open whatever fear the story is exploring. I feel i've been enlightened with the storytelling potential there lmao
anything can become/look scary when you're already afraid
"erotic experience does not exist. Erotic experience presumes the asymmetry and exteriority of the other." so fascinating
Oh
@@poweroffriendship2.0 watch the vid
Byung-Chul Han is a genius, if you liked that quote “in the swarm” is an incredible book of his that deals with more of that exploration of human identity in a post internet era
@@defme1 awesome, thanks :)
Fascinating bullshit
Okay, I didn't expect this video to be THIS GOOD. Congratulations and thank you!
Thank you :D
I LOVE deep, analytical videos about horror. This was excellent! Thanks for uploading :)
Thank you!
Idk why but I had a hard time understanding fully most of what you were saying on the first watch. Maybe I'm just sleep deprived or I am just being stupid haha.
However I feel like this was a very well put together video essay visually and script wise, especially when explaining the complex connection of pain with horror and the use of doubt. Good stuff :)
Thank you very much! I tend to try and pack a lot in (probably too much) so I'm sure a lack of understandability is partly my fault, haha.
Came here from a recommendation/mention in one of super eyepatch wolf videos can't believe that this is 4 years old awesome
your videos are always so well put together, thoughtful, and interesting. I'd happily listen to you talk about anything. thank you for taking the time to make and write these essays!
Thank you very much! :D
I like horror simply because of the various imaginative potential content it could puke out, most being not so good but when it does it is quite rewarding to see or experience in the end when it comes to entertainment.
I’m always blown away by the compacted value of these videos. You manage to fit so much into each one, they all feel like I’ve taken an entire semester-long course. It’s so well done.
Thank you so much! :D
I absolutely love your video essay on why horror as a genre gets some love, and how it's best paired with objectivity! Along with a few other videos such as Ryan Hollinger's vids, your video essay is a breath of fresh air for horror!
I've observed that the Internet, by it's nature, revels in absolutes that trend well, and captures public attention more because it's easier to process than objectivity. Because of this, I've noticed that it's more common and readily available to see people say "modern horror sucks", even when there's some modern horror movies, books, and videogames that could be arguably good and/or have a visceral reaction for consumers of horror, even if the general consensus from the public on a movie is poor.
But, then again, objectivity doesn't always sell well... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Wouldn't be the spooky season without a video from our favorite Horror youtuber!
:D
I was just trying to figure out what films to play at a horror fest I'm hosting in my house, which lead to me watching your sightseers essay again (Which is brilliant). I clicked onto my subscriptions to find I was already subscribed to you and you'd just posted this a few minutes ago! Who's scared now?
Haha, the universe works in mysterious ways!
You should have just DMed/emailed James A. Janisse of Dead Meat.
that was awesome. clearly took a lot of work and love to do. the body in pain essay is great
This was as wonderful and as well-structured as I could have hoped for, if not more so. Wishing you a happy halloween in advance! Fingers crossed you have the best time.
Thank you, and you too! :D
This was really interesting, because I've always both loved and hated horror. I hate it because I'm a wimp (and a lot of the horror I used to consume wasn't very well done), but I love it because when it's done well, it really hits HARD. Some of my favourite themes dealt with in horror (and in freaky moments of otherwise not-horror) are the degredation of the body/self and the inconsistency of the definition of humanity, and some of my absolute FAVOURITE horror is body horror. My two favourite pieces of horror are Akira and Frankenstein; Akira takes the idea of degradation of the self and cranks it up to eleven (what with the literal physical degredation and the rotting of society) and expresses it with the physical, resulting in Tetsuo's, ah...condition. I love Frankenstein because it plays with the definition of humanity REALLY well (and of course, the creature and Victor are perfect foils, and the tragic irony is just...*chef's kiss*).
Great, (relatively) brief but informative explainer! Excellent job! Are there timestamps for the various citations? Thanks so much!
an utterly incredible video. im scouting around for what to write my english lit dissertation on in september, and this video has convinced me that i NEED to write about horror.
Thank you! :D There can never be too much writing about horror
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat welp its been a over a year since i commented this, my dissertation is done and ive graduated! i ended up specialising in posthumanism and its manifestations in body horror within science fiction texts, but this video was the starting point for all of that! i cant thank you enough for what you've done for me, ive found my niche and an area of academia that i love! i hope youre doing well
@@fiverfrank That's brilliant, so happy for you! :D
Yeah I don't like being scared but I just LOVE all the stories that are told in horror
YOU'RE BACK OMG
i can't watch it immediately, but oh boy oh boy am i excited!!!!!!
I'll always be summoned by halloween! :D
This was a great video! It gave me some great resources for reading on horror analysis. Thanks so much!
I’m a HUGE fan of Horror and even more so I love video essays and video analysis.
Wow! This is pretty much how i feel aboot horror. And got some amazing insight as well. Ive always said i love horror because it is the most expansive genre, it has such a broad range of movies.
Thank you! :D
As always, your edits are brilliant!
Thank you!
Truly amazing work, as always! Thank you for making these videos
Thank you! :D
Dear lord, your editing is so ON FUCKING POINT! How are you doing it?!
Thank you! :D
How?
absolutely incredible as always!!
Thank you! :D
I think this might be my favorite video of yours! Horror is definitely the best, and now I have a lot more to think about next time I walk out of a horror movie.
Thank you!
I've been in a low place in my life and have found in books and films a way to escape my own head and overwhelming feelings. Never EVER liked horror. I'm very easily scared and get very anxious with horror films but since it's October I thought I'd give it a chance. Although I'm watching mostly psychological horror and still shy away from body horror, gore and haunted stories, I'm finding a strange comfort in the horror genre. It's really helping me cope. The movies don't even look so scary as they did before (maybe because paying attention to my own anxiety is way scarier right now but who cares).
I really wish you put the name of the scenes you have on the bottom corner(similar to "In Search of Darkness" documentary). There's lots of film footage(besides the popular ones) I don't know of and would love to check it out.
There's a subtitle option for the film titles! You can find it in settings.
Great video! You definitely deserve more subscribers!
Thank you! :D
Brilliant, love the quotes to support your perspective. It's like a visual essay on horror! Like
Omg! Subbed in less than 10 sec! TH-cam is leading me to some absolutely Fantastic channels lately.
Thank you! :D
i like horror cuz you rarely dont enjoy it, when a scare works it scares but when a scare doesnt work its normally funny so you normally either get a decent scary movie or a decent comedy that was supposed to be scary
I had no idea when starting this video that 75% of it was nothing more than paraphrasing content written on the screen. You could have just as easily provided links in the description to the source material and saved everyone 17-minutes and 15 seconds of their time.
The classics like Alien or night of the living dead come to mind as personal favorites of mine. Theres a lot of bad horror out there, but every now and then youll come across an absolute masterpiece. Horror games in particular. There’s nothing really physically scary about Soma, for example. But what the character is makes you question everything you know about you yourself and the world you live in.
I feel like one of the greatest things that human beings have been able to achieve is to be able to create insane ridiculous things that make no sense but also scare the shit out of people to the point that they are willing to pay money to experience these things.
This video was wonderful!!
Mary Douglas! Fascinating argument! Love this!
Thank you!
Oh my gosh, just discovered your channel through this video. INSTANT SUBSCRIBE!! Love your work so much!
Thank you so much! :D
!!! fantastic halloween gift!
:D
my god, this might be the best youtube video I've ever seen. absolute crime that this hasn't gone viral
Thank you so much! :D
Please report this crime to the TH-cam algorithm, haha.
Psychological horror is what scares me the most cause anything that has to do with messing with your head REALLY scares me
Interesting take on horror. It's a genre that i enjoy, but a lot of subgenres that i dislike. You hit a lot of the key things that i enjoy about horror.
Could anybody tell me the name of the outro song? Along with the rest of the essay, it managed to captivate me and produce this intangible feeling of assuredness which I really liked
It's 'We Can't Stop' from Assassination Nation. (a marching band cover of a Miley Cyrus song)
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat thank you very much! And thank you for your work, it is truly inspiring every single time.
@@whotoldyouthisurl Thank you! :D
Horror and laughter are two most basic emotions that we keep returning to, willingly. I appreciate the genre more and more since I realized that it was what I was leaning into all along.... Both as a reader and a writer... For me it works, because the horror is a thin layer, but underneath that are characters that ultimately deal with their lives despite what's going on at the surface... Horror has an unfair pulpy reputation, but in my mind that's mostly because there's a lot of bad horror out there... The good ones? IT (the novel), House of Leaves, and hopefully The Entity will leave a lasting impression as well....
Ok, but how does that explain that I and multiple people really hate watching horror tho.
@@Milonification I think I know where you're coming from: you're talking about gore -- the graphic stuff that's only meant to shock... In my opinion the better, and more powerful horror leans more on suspense and it deals with things that we can't quite comprehend.. In other words, it leans towards thrillers and us being thrilled... If you look at tv series or movies that are centered around serial killers and all that -- that's horror right there, and we like it, and look for it, because we both have this imagination -- what if it happened to us? but at the same time it's like a puzzle; it's something that we ultimately can't quite comprehend.. In my writing I lean more towards this type of horror-- if you know what I'm getting at, you should check my channel, or you should check my writing at jelmerdehaan.blogspot.com...
I love horror movies, I always tell my friends that imo, there is no such thing as a bad horror movie. It may have certain elements that are arguably weaker, and may detract from the experience as a whole, but there will always be something of note. A horror movie might have a weak script, or dodgy effects, or be overly reliant on jump scares, but even if it fails to meet certain expectations of what makes a "good" movie, it will almost certainly be entertaining in some way. Take, for instance, 2011's "The Creepy Doll", it had poor production value, the acting was sub par to say the least, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It just had so much heart, and it was kind interesting to see a pre-Annabelle "Annabelle" type figure. 2017's "I am the Pretty Thing that Lives in the House" is so ridiculously subtle in it's unnerving brand of horror, but I was utterly captivated, despite the fact that pretty much nothing at all happens. It was only several hours later that its full effect crept up on me.
In contrast, a bad action movie can become incoherent to the point of being unwatchable when it becomes overly reliant on rapid cuts to cover up the shoddiness of the "action" taking place, often paired with a weak script. A bad romance or comedy movie is at best boring, and at worst, deeply uncomfortable, but not in the same, almost thrilling way as with horror, but in a way where you feel faintly nauseated. At their worst, these genres devolve into simply portraying the worst of human psychology, and trying to pass them off as "normal" or healthy" depictions of interpersonal relationships (be they romantic or otherwise).
What ever happened to the days of great Horror movies, in my opinion films like I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream nearly killed the Genre. Just saying🎃
My new favorite TH-cam channel by far.
I like the ability to explore unpleasant emotions like grief (Babadook , Pet Semetary or Hereditary) childhood trauma (It or The Shining?) Etc. In an indirect way that let's me process my own speed.
Or sometimes things like Evil Dead are just a fun time.
PURITY AND DANGER changed how I look at the world...it's an amazing book. A horror fan who references Mary Douglas is obviously an amazing person and deserves my subscription.
Haha, thank you!
0:50 what font is that? The font TH-cam has for me never shows an 8 so horrendously taller that the other numbers
Beyond excellent - thank you! Keep it up!
grace dont tell the other video essaists i said this but you make by far. And the most entertaining and interesting videos. Soo insightful i appreciate your work and you a lot
Haha, thank you so much! :D
if i was asked "why do you like horror" my answer would be "because I'm interested in the human condition of existence" EZ
So many good practical effects!!! ❤
Sometimes it feels good to not feel good.
I like horror because I feel invincible like, the horror can't touch me and in this sense I feel empowered and therefore.
I don't know, feels good man.
I feel the same way but only within the setting, if it takes place in a house or another place that I'm familiar with the horror becomes that more scary, while when it takes place in space or the arctic I can't quite imagine it happening to me, leading to either loss of intrest or just enjoy ment of the movie as a thriller more than horror
@@funkystudent8577 I understand. Interesting perspective, I hadn't really thought about it that way but I think you have a point.
Thanks for sharing.
One of the reasons I like to watch supernatural horror is because of an interest in demonology. But sometimes, I like to watch horror jist to predict and feel happy when its correct.
Interpretation by its definition is subjective. Interpretation - the action of explaining the meaning of something.
You just undermined your own stance, you say the objective means nothing to us daily, and then list examples where it has a profound effect.
Why the fuck did the oldspongebob episodes make me more scared then watching "actual" horror movies?
Consistently amazing. Still in awe of your vids.
my thoughts/feelinings exactly!
❤
This video is great. How was your process on selecting the images? So many scenes from so many different, and most (or all) of them illustrating the text.
How?
Thank you! Generally, as I was editing each line I just tried to remember a movie scene that illustrated what I was talking about. There are a few instances where I had a scene in mind already when writing, but mostly it's just down to what I can remember at the time of editing, haha.
This is delightful.
Thank you! :D
I get pleasure watching people bwing scared and seeing fear in their eyes. Makes me feel good.
I just fucking love this channel
:D
Damn this shit was great. I think I got 90% of the clips shown but Im impressed I saw a few clips I couldnt even make out.
To anyone who was curious about some other great horror films, based on the ones shown in this video.
Id recommend: Overlord (2018)
Suspiria(2018)
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)
Under the Skin (2013)
The Blackcoats Daughter(2015)
Under the Shadow (2016)
I got way more but man this film got me in the mood to check some more out.
Thank you! If you want to identify the 10% you couldn't make out, there's a subtitle option for "Film Titles" in settings! :D
I had a clip from Under the Shadow I really wanted to use but in the end there wasn't room. *sigh*
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat Oh wow thats a useful feature I will most definitely be using on my second watch
I already love horror, but this made me move it more.
So, guys, seriously, don't google degloving.
The only time you can really know not to google something, is when it's too late...
@@WhatsSoGreatAboutThat Exactly. There's something fascinating about that. You may end up googling every messed up thing that comes to your mind.
Worst song choice I've ever heard in my life for those end credits. I had to pull my car over.
Best Halloween video!
:D
Your channel is amazing keep it up!
I love the video and I also agree that horror is the best genre. But I couldn't imagine having a cup of coffee with this girl without a thesaurus.
To me Horror Help us to Face, Realize, and Understand are Own Fears!
fantastic work as ever
Thank you! :D
I adore your work and video essays. This has to be one of the best videos you’ve made! I always enjoy seeing you in my recommended feed and notifications. Keep up the incredible work!!
Thank you so much! :D
The proper word is liminal, not interstitial. A commercial during a programming break is interstitial; it's a complete departure from the program it interrupts, so there's nothing inherently horrific about it; it remains within and creates established boundaries. An undead being or other type of monster is liminal. Interstitial means something existing in a gap that is distinct. It's not a transitional phase of something occupying two normally separate spaces or states. Liminality refers to transitional or hybrid states between two natural phenomena (i.e undead beings, monsters, ghosts) that are often reacted to as unnatural, uncanny, supernatural, etc. Horrify literally means to draw back in fear, shock and disgust, or make someone draw back in fear, shock and disgust. Horror is a natural reaction to the liminal, because it defies natural or normal categorization. It's something outside of the neat little boxes in which our minds compartmentalize experiences, and is therefore perceived as threatening because it undermines our sense of self.
Slime, as you described it, is liminal. It's that thing you can possess but it possesses you by continuing to grasp at you because of its liminal nature: it's in a state between solid and liquid, possessing traits of both but neither, which creates a sense of the paradoxical and threatening. Slime is associated with decay and disease, so therefore we react to it as a potential threat, even if there is no real threat. That's why undead creatures are so horrifying: they're neither dead nor fully alive, but in a state of reanimation between life and death, bearing characteristics of both the living and the dead but being neither. Even the friendly vampire is horrifying, because it imparts that paradox: that invasive thought that possesses us and can't be rationally reconciled because it violates too many natural boundaries. Like slime, monsters threaten to cling to us, to invade and disrupt the mental ordering of perception. Anything that violates the boundaries we perceive or create are horrifying, because they don't just invade physical space; they invade our minds, the very core of our being, which we react to as the most intimate and ultimate threat. We draw back as an instinctual effort to prevent penetration of the mind. That's horror.
Horror is the best genre because it forces us into a state of heightened self-awareness and heightened empathy, and it forces us to question our ordered perception of the world. It's mind-expanding in a way that forces personal evolution. By forcing us to consider things outside of the neat boxes of our experience (or perhaps relive some traumas), it frees us from our own boxes and restores the sense of balance that allows us to banish ennui and restore the joy of living. By showing us the darkness, we acknowledge the light that we have become accustomed to and its value is renewed.
And we also get the giddy thrill of nervous stimulation that comes from drawing back from the thought of pain, destruction, captivity, etc. So even if we don't evolve in some way, we still get that cheap thrill of shudders and giddiness. So it's kinda like sex. That's because the threat of death stimulates the libido; as animals, we feel the urge to procreate when we sense that our own lives have been shortened. So horror, like S&M and gothic fashion, is ultimately a fetish. Sex and death give us our sense of value. Through horror and other memento mori, we internalize them, increasing our sense of value.
I think something like a zombie is a distinct thing existing outside of living or dead (while having the connotation of being in-between) so I stand by my use of interstitial - but, if i'm honest, I just didn't want to use the word liminal for the 10 billionth time in my life, haha. I've said it too much and now it's dead to me!
A zombie...
- has the procreation possibility of life minus the identity of a living thing.
- spreads like a fungus minus its spatial coherence.
- has the nourishment/stimulus processing/seeking and self-sustaining capabilites/tendencies of a plant minus its growth factor.
- has the gathering/hunting instincts of an animal minus its existential fears.
- has the appearance, mimics, movement, posture, tool-using capability and voice of a human being minus its empathy.
- is a dead thing in all but behaviour.
- is uncanny like nothing else.