Regarding horror films...

[Rickenbacker]

Have we all noticed in horror films the totally unrealistic reactions characters have to what they're experiencing? I know you've got to suspend your disbelief & that the words 'horror' & 'realism' don't belong in the same sentence, but it happens all the time- people never run away flailing their arms & screaming. If a grotesque face is staring back at you in a mirror, you don't ask what it wants of you- you run. Take Signs. Remember those 2 kids? BS- if those were 'real' kids sitting in a dark basement w/ an alien up in their living room, they'd be crying uncontrollably for their mamas...hell so would the adults. :)

So what's better- for the director to shoot for more realism or keep creating cool, brave characters who ultimately triumph?

[BrandonS]

Realism. What do you think about "Psycho?"

[Brian Damage]

I think the key to a good horror film is to be able to suspend disbelief and just have fun.

[musicradio77]

I'm not into hooror movies though. I saw "Halloween Resurrection" last year and I was scared.

[Shmoo]

No, i don't think they are realistic but i think that if they were they wouldn't be horror movies i mean how often does some maniac with knives for fingers come along in your dreams and kill you and how often does a doll come to life and kill you as for the reactions...I don't think to many people have been in those positions so i don't know how they would react and all people are different so they all react in different ways....ok i might not make much sense but one thing that i do know is that i love horror movies but i think they are more like comedy's rather than scary movies and on the Final Destination movies...they die some wicked ways!

[BrandonS]

I think that a horror movie has a greater impact if it has a certain amount of believability. That's why some "Twilight Zone" episodes were so scary. If there has to be an unbelievable element in the story, like a doll that's alive, everything else in the story should be believable, and people should react to the unbelievable element the way they would if it happened.

[webuster]

First,I won't go too in depth with this but I could probably discuss realism and horror much further, and may if anyone is at all interested (highly unlikely):
If you think about it, most things that happen in most tv shows and very crappy unscary horror movie are things that in real lifemost people would run squealing from. Take Diagnosis Murder for instance-alot of the time a civilian comes accross dead bodies but they never scream, and Diagnosis Murder isn't scary is it?
But I agre there should be some realism- most great fiction,and horror only change one thing. Superman for instance is how the real world would react if sumthing like superman was real- it's about the real world, but it just so happens there's a superhuman guy. Fantasy though-like the Lord of The Rings is a whole new world,so a character in fantasy behaves different than humans-they might worship mobile phones,or shoot at them- that's why fantasy has it's own kind of realism-but it can't be horrific for us because we don't live in a fantasy world of worshipping mobile phones.
BrandonS-you made a good point about th Twilight Zone-they don't change everything in those stories all the time-just one fact. a movie or book like 1984- is kinda like fantasy yet similar to superman-in superman, it's our world now,with the exception of superman, but in 1984 everyone is odd altogether-so it's very realistic,because it shows how we,the 'liberals' or today,would be realistically treated in this part fantasy world.
Minority Report, in that it's the norm to predict murders-so it's kinda realistic, but to understand it well you'd have to put youself in the mind of sum1 who sees predicting murders as sumthing normal-impossible.
Freddy Krueger is realistic-some of them are,if a guy could kill you in your dreams wouldn't you react in the same ways?
Also-I'm sick of people bashing 'The Ring'- I have yet to see the originals, but I liked the film dammit!

[dandelion wine]

Originally posted by webuster
Also-I'm sick of people bashing 'The Ring'- I have yet to see the originals, but I liked the film dammit!

I've seen the original and the American remake, and enjoyed them as well. Good thing my phone didn't ring! ;)

Back on topic: I'd like to see more realism in horror films, and a lot less cliches.. which gets to be real old, real fast. That brings to mind Halloween, which still frightens me to this day when I sit down to watch it.

[Liza]

I don't find slasher movies scary at all. Suspense is scary - "The Ring" terrified me and there's actually very little onscreen violence. ;) That's what I loved about "The Others" too - although it's more dramatic than scary. "Final Destination" seriously freaked me out - but those are the only decent ones that have come out recently.