About fear(no, not about the game)
Posted 11-01-2009 at 01:51 PM by December Man
Updated 01-21-2010 at 09:56 AM by December Man (Added a note on the kick :p)
Updated 01-21-2010 at 09:56 AM by December Man (Added a note on the kick :p)
Let's cut to the chase.
The most used means of scaring in today's horror movies are jumpscares and gore.
Jumpscares is what I don't call fear. It is not fear at all. It's like a surprise kick in the balls. It's surprising, it's painful, but it isn't scary. Awaiting a seemingly inevitable kick in the balls which never comes is fear - fear through tension and suspense. The anticipation of a powerful kick in the nuts can wreck havoc in one's psyche significantly more than the kick itself.
:edit:
Good rare swift and rare kicks in the nuts are nice for relieving tension. However they must be... yes, rare.
As for the gore. 99% of all horror movies which were, are and will be, are either gore or slashers.
Gore(or torture porn as some like to call it) is repulsive. Repulsion is a different feeling than fear. Seeing someone's eyeballs gouged out may make you feel sick, but not scared.
Slasher movies don't do even that. All of them have annoying arrogant repulsive(oh, the irony) teens who get slaughtered by a (sometimes of supernatural origins) killer. You actually cheer for the antagonist, because he brutally ends the miserable existence of those pissworthy brats. It's the complete opposite of what a horror movie should arise - instead of caring for the protagonists, you want them to die a horrible death.
In my opinion horror video games are(and have been for a while now) superior to horror movies in what they are supposed to arise - fear.
The most used means of scaring in today's horror movies are jumpscares and gore.
Jumpscares is what I don't call fear. It is not fear at all. It's like a surprise kick in the balls. It's surprising, it's painful, but it isn't scary. Awaiting a seemingly inevitable kick in the balls which never comes is fear - fear through tension and suspense. The anticipation of a powerful kick in the nuts can wreck havoc in one's psyche significantly more than the kick itself.
:edit:
Good rare swift and rare kicks in the nuts are nice for relieving tension. However they must be... yes, rare.
As for the gore. 99% of all horror movies which were, are and will be, are either gore or slashers.
Gore(or torture porn as some like to call it) is repulsive. Repulsion is a different feeling than fear. Seeing someone's eyeballs gouged out may make you feel sick, but not scared.
Slasher movies don't do even that. All of them have annoying arrogant repulsive(oh, the irony) teens who get slaughtered by a (sometimes of supernatural origins) killer. You actually cheer for the antagonist, because he brutally ends the miserable existence of those pissworthy brats. It's the complete opposite of what a horror movie should arise - instead of caring for the protagonists, you want them to die a horrible death.
In my opinion horror video games are(and have been for a while now) superior to horror movies in what they are supposed to arise - fear.
Total Comments 2
Comments
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This short entry gives an accurate description of what horror should be, but it doesn't prove that that video games are better at horror than movies.Posted 01-15-2010 at 11:06 AM by Sang 
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Indeed, I worded the conclusion wrong.Posted 01-21-2010 at 09:55 AM by December Man
