Community Pick #2: Horror Origins

Hello and happy Friday everyone! I hope that you all had a safe 4th of July if you celebrated? I don’t celebrate anymore, so I stayed home and watched movies. It’s no surprise that they were horror movies (horror comedies). Bodies Bodies Bodies was one and as silly as it was, it was such a fun watch. The twist is so hilarious, yet tragic, but it pulled the movie together in a way that made me enjoy the entirety of the film. I also re-visited Jennifer’s Body and…. That movie would not fly today, but I still absolutely love everything about it.

This kind of ties into today’s topic. Big thanks and shout out to Kingdarius4lyfe for becoming a member over on my Ko-Fi. He opted for today's post to be about how I got into horror. My interest in the genre absolutely started with films, but branched out to other media as I got older.

I may have watched tame horror films as a child, but my earliest memory of the genre is of when I was in middle school. I think that I was a little traumatized, because I remember the time, the film, who was there, where exactly we were in the house, and what movie we moved onto when I couldn’t sit through the family pick.

Nowadays, I am a Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street fan, but back then, not so much….

It was family movie night. We had all our snacks and our drinks and we were all huddled together in my parents bedroom. This family pick was Freddy vs. Jason. We ended up watching about ten minutes of the it before I couldn’t take it anymore. Long story short, we moved onto Pirates of the Caribbean. Keira Knightly and Orlando Bloom helped silence my fear, but I felt bad about "ruining" family night.

I told myself that I wouldn’t wuss out the next time we opted to watch a horror movie. So…. the next movie night comes around and the pick was Wrong Turn. I find it hilarious that I hid under a blanket during the murderous scenes, and even used my mom as cover to help shield me, and somehow this turned out to be one of my favorite movies. That night, I figured slashers couldn't be so bad. I did also absolutely go back and watch that film in its entirety without hiding. And many, many, many years later, it is still one of my favorites.

Honestly, thanks to my family for getting me into the scary stuff. I can’t remember when I first began playing horror games, but I think that I was also in middle school. They were on PS2, so I’m sure I have the time right. I dove headfirst into a few games in the Resident Evil franchise, beginning with Resident Evil 4…… I stopped when the cop gets set on fire, so didn’t make it very far at all. I revisited it a few years ago (still haven’t beaten it) and wish that I could’ve gotten through it as a kid. Back then, I also played a few chapters of Resident Evil Outbreak and loved it. I want to go through both of those games in their entirety since I’m less afraid of them now. I’m not sure that I stopped playing them because I got scared, and think it was because I might’ve gotten stuck somewhere with no idea on how to escape? I’m not quite sure, but I do miss that game.

Jumping forward into my adulthood, I began reading a lot in my early college days. I mostly read YA in terms of Cassandra Clare, Suzanne Collins, Veronica Roth, and more. But, there were times where I veered away from the adventurous and dystopian genres to read horror. A few of my faves back then were Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics, The Merciless and Survive The Night by Danielle Vega. I love engaging with (fictional) works that deal with demons or the devil and these were both so engaging. I unfortunately haven’t gone back to read them as an aduliter (this should be a real word) adult, so I do hope that they hold up in case any of you want to check them out. Also...the words and graphic are not super noticeable when first walking by The Merciless. I loved the shade of pink that it was when I walked into the Books-A-Million at some mall in Detroit, Michigan. I almost put it back immediately until I saw the name, saw the pentagram, and read the synopsis.

I also enjoy reading horror elements in historical fiction, not really for entertainment purposes, but to get an idea of how life was during certain times in the past. I took a course a few semesters ago that talked about children and how they grew up during times of war, during segregation, and more. It was a traumatizing class, but I appreciated that it was offered so that I could learn a little more about history. Accompanying those fictional works were notes on the authors and what they lived through, notes on the times in general, and non-fictional works including articles, peer-reviewed papers, and more that helped me to understand what I’d be getting into when reading through the fictional works. They're enlightening to read from the view-point of people who are less fortunate than me, who are of a different ethnicity than me, and who are from a completely different culture than me. Most of the events are horrific and I think that everyone should take the time to read through historical works.

I’ve talked about every form of media except Anime.... I’m not really sure if Death Note could be considered horror, but this Anime laid the groundwork for my taste in Anime. I think I watched it in two days back in middle school for the first time and I couldn’t bring myself to part with my laptop throughout that entire weekend. I remember begging my mom to let me use her computer when my laptop wasn’t working (I don’t remember what happened). I ventured to other genres of anime, but couldn’t get into them. Anime such as; Deadman Wonderland, Tokyo Ghoul, Parasyte: The Maxim, and Psycho Pass quickly caught my attention with the first episode. I don’t know if I’ll ever venture onto other genre when it comes to Anime, but one thing that will always catch my attention is when someone suggests one that involves blood, gore, monsters, and a bit of drama.

Anyway, that’s enough about me. What got you into horror? Do you have a core memory of when your love for the genre came to be? Please share because honestly this is such an interesting question and we could all get to know one another a little better. If you have any suggestions or want to go more in detail about fictional or nonfictional works, don’t forget to check out the forum and pour your heart out about it. There are multiple categories;

Film & TV

Anime

Books/Manga/Comics

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Thanks so much if you’ve made it this far. Also thanks so much in advance to anyone who shares their thoughts and suggestions. I’ll catch you guys next week!

🔪Versa