Horror is a genre of media that has been widely used for almost as long as humans have existed. Even since the days of the Roman Empire, humans have been using horror stories as a way to entertain ourselves. With the creation of horror movies in the 1890’s, horror has never been so omnipresent in the media. However, many people, including myself, believe that horror movies tend to try too hard to scare the viewer.
Horror movies are at their best when they allow the viewer to immerse themselves into the story. If the characters, story, or scenario are too far-fetched, it can become hard to immerse into the story. Basically, if the antagonist or plot is unrealistic to a ridiculous degree, it can be hard to imagine being in the situation. A good horror movie will make it easier to immerse into the story. A bad horror movie will force scary moments using giant monsters and jumpscares, rather than creativity and imagery.
The best example of a movie that tries too hard to scare the audience is the movie A Quiet Place. The movie, while having an interesting plot, isn’t immersive enough to make it scary. The monster’s giant frame and overly demonic features make it extremely unrealistic and far-fetched, ruining the immersion. They look more like something from a Sci-Fi movie rather than something that’s supposed to be in a horror film. The over-complexity of the monster’s design can make it hard to imagine being in the shoes of the protagonist, making the movie less scary in the process.
A movie that pulls it off well is the movie The Poughkeepsie Tapes. The movie is able to achieve its immersion due to its uncanny realism and graphic imagery. Natalie’s death scene displays this perfectly. It’s a very gruesome scene with some amazing audio stingers that, combined with the amazing acting, successfully creates a lot of tension and fear while remaining immersive. There’s no need for big monsters and jumpscares when you can create the most disturbingly realistic murder scene made in a 2000’s movie. The movie’s focus on immersion and imagery allows it to be a very uncomfortable experience, which, as a horror film creator, should be your objective.
Analog horror is the best example of a piece of horror media that completely immerses the viewer. Analog horror is best described by tvtropes.org as “a genre of horror that takes inspiration from found footage films and EAS scenarios.” Analog horror perfectly encapsulates what makes a good horror film. Because of the lack of a protagonist it feels like you, the viewer, were the one who found the footage, which maximizes immersion. The analog short film The Mandela Catalogue is the perfect example of what makes analog horror so good. The disturbing story of alternates, and how they blend in with people, creates a lot of natural tension and paranoia. That, mixed with the extremely disturbing imagery and sound design, is what makes it the perfect example of what analog horror is all about and why it’s one of the greatest pieces of horror on the internet.
Horror movies are, in general, always going to be hard to master. Not everybody is scared of the same thing. Some people would argue that analog horror films aren’t scary, and that A Quiet Place is the greatest horror film ever made. But, from my experience, the best horror films are ones that focus on immersion and imagery. Sadly, that is something that a vast majority of mainstream horror films fail at achieving.