Richard Matheson

Gaining understanding of a villain, the “why” behind their crazy, is a relatively new concept in cinema. Starting around the 1980’s, horror films began to delve into the backstory of monsters. Audiences are allowed into their minds, their pasts, and to understand why it is they do what they do, how they became this monster. Society has embraced this new normal of villain backstories because it gives them a feeling of control, closeness to the character(s), and makes them feel better about…

“In my restless dreams, I see that town…Silent Hill.” As one of the first monologues in Silent Hill 2 from the deceased character Mary Sunderland, the quote is important in foreshadowing its horrific and complex narrative. As one the most popular and critically-acclaimed games in the Silent Hill series, Silent Hill 2, is widely considered to be the best horror video game of all time, and among the best video games ever created (GamesRadar, 21). From historic horrific imagery to its use in…

If viewers thought that “Cache” and “There Will Be Blood” were slow movies, Daft Punk’s Electroma will surprise audiences. It will leave some fans in awe, while having others bored out of their minds. Daft Punk’s Electroma is a slow pace movie, but it is anything from boring. Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter, the two founders of the electronic band Daft Punk, wrote and directed the spectacular Electroma. Daft Punk has been known to get out of their comfort zone to try and make…

Mercy, directed by Peter Cornwell and written by Stephen King, is like an open book. It has potential and great music that intensifies the thrill as the scenes pass in the life of George B and his mystical grandmother. This is not like the average horror movie, blood and guts, but a horror movie that is categorized by its thrill. It has an everlasting thrill that will have one grasping to a pillow from the beginning to the end; however, the movie flies by so fast due to the amount of information…

The rush… the thrill… the excitement… the relief, many people go through those types of things when going and watching a horror movie. The adrenaline rush you get starts pumping through every part of your body. That has an effect on our emotions in the human condition we have this positive feeling after watching it. In the Stephen King’s essay, he claims that we to watch horror movies for the pursuit of our emotions. Not to mention, we also go to watch horror movies for the fun of it. King…

While listening to Serial, I enjoy the fact that it lets you observe an event from both sides, without being biased. I like how it flips back and forth between guilty and innocent, keeping you on your toes. Just like everything, there are no black or white, just shades of gray. Sarah Koenig constantly gives you points that support each side with each new episode and it keeps me wanting to listen to the next episode. Hearing this mystery has awakened my desire to read mysteries such as the…

The human brain is certainly the most magnificent organ; it gives us the capacity to imagine things that haven’t happened and make us be conscious of things that might happen in the near future while watching a movie or series. Simply by making a switch in how the shot is taken or the sounds that can be heard in the background. This is what makes scary films so successful, the usage of certain techniques that stimulates our brain to interpret sounds for actions we can’t see and makes us feel…

M. Night Shyamalan’s suspense thriller The Sixth Sense (1999) scrutinizes the unusual and unseen relations between the living and the deceased whilst exploring the unknown world of the afterlife. Cole Sear (9 years old) struggles with understanding that he is a medium and finds closure and help within Malcom Crowe- a child psychologist who is unaware of his own death. The Sixth Sense was the first of many thriller films that Shayamalan wrote and directed. M. Nigh Shayamalan uses a variety of…

Have you seen the original 1999 movie? It is always a good thing to watch the original movie first before watching the sequel. Because viewers need to prepare for the fact that Blair Witch is better and scarier than the first one. To recap, the first movie is a psychological horror and thriller film that revolves around three student film makers. The three aims to make a movie about the legendary Blair Witch. But the three disappeared and the only thing left as evidence of their existence is a…

Have you ever wondered why your heart beats fast when you hear the scary music of a horror movie? When something pops out from around the corner? Have you had that nice warm fuzzy feeling when you watch a romantic movie? Well that is what this project is about! The two movies chosen included a scary movie called Lake Placid and the romantic movie was the Notebook. Wanting to know why your heart feels like it going to pop out of your chest for a scary movie, and why your heart feels all nice and…