FrightFest

Hi everyone,

When you watch horror do you think about it, 'feel' about it emotionally or or let your gut instinct do the talking (fear, arousal etc)? Do you do a mixture of all three? Does it depend depending on what film you are watching (particularly if it's a film that's new to you).

I've just got back from a screening of the re-edit of Cannibal Holocaust and wondered as I still can't face a bacon sarnie yet...

Approach it with an open mind, even if it's a franchise I still try to see it on it's own merits, that's how I went into Scream 4 then looked back and thought how does that sit with the rest of them after I had finished watching

Not much scares me or sickens me, only ever came close to switching two films off and they were Inside and A Serbian Film

A good horror film should ruin your appetite!
If you find yourself feeling like a full english breakfast straight after an Italian Cannibal film, then it hasn't really achieved it's intended impact, and you're a bit weird.

I'd be similarly surprised (even disturbed) if anybody was lighting candles and breaking out the massage oil after A Serbian Film.

Mr Bill wrote:A good horror film should ruin your appetite!
If you find yourself feeling like a full english breakfast straight after an Italian Cannibal film, then it hasn't really achieved it's intended impact, and you're a bit weird.

I'd be similarly surprised (even disturbed) if anybody was lighting candles and breaking out the massage oil after A Serbian Film.

Dude, you may be the first person to have given me a fit of the giggles on here. Watching Zombie 2 always gets me wanting spaghetti bolognaise.... ;-)

On a more serious note, I think A Serbian Film is an interesting one to discuss as while its storyline is obviously and intentionally abhorrent, it touches on and plays with cultural expectations of desire and stimulation through the use of adult films and so forth. It's a hard film to really get your head around, I find.

I'm not too big to admit that MARTYRS scared the shit out of me, made me fall in love with it's two leads, depressed and elated and stunned. I have such a reaction to that film I have watched it only twice the most emotional reaction I have ever hard to film. I think it's a work of art as well as extreme horror. So beautiful and so horrid and... even talking about it chockes me up in so many ways.

I never recommend it to anyone. If they discover it that is their problem.

daveroughcut wrote: I never recommend it to anyone. If they discover it that is their problem.

I agree about Martyrs I love it.

But I did put on a blu ray showing of it for 2 of my friends that watch *some horror* and enjoy stuff like evil dead 2 but dislike zombie movies for instance - they liked it I was surprised. I thought it might be too much for them but waspleased when they apprecdiated it.

Will we ever see a film that's as amazing and gory at the same time as both Martyrs and Inside again?

Hope this years festival has some gems TBA.

daveroughcut wrote:I'm not too big to admit that MARTYRS scared the shit out of me, made me fall in love with it's two leads, depressed and elated and stunned. I have such a reaction to that film I have watched it only twice the most emotional reaction I have ever hard to film. I think it's a work of art as well as extreme horror. So beautiful and so horrid and... even talking about it chockes me up in so many ways.

I never recommend it to anyone. If they discover it that is their problem.

Beautifully put, yet I'm intrigued by your last sentence. The way you describe the film is my idea of absolute horror Heaven. What was it about the film that affected you so much, if you don't mind me asking?

Remember that disclaimer that went out on the front of the US DVD release something about and "intense feeling of dread"? That nailed it for me. I felt so drawn in and so uptight at the same time and loved the experience in that "wrong" way that fellow horror fiends enjoy so much. It is a rare occurrence and MARTYRS has been the most heightened version of that I have ever felt.

I suppose I do not recommend it because I'm a little protective of this perfect film.

daveroughcut wrote:Remember that disclaimer that went out on the front of the US DVD release something about and "intense feeling of dread"? That nailed it for me. I felt so drawn in and so uptight at the same time and loved the experience in that "wrong" way that fellow horror fiends enjoy so much. It is a rate occurrence and MARTYRS has been the most heightened version of that I have ever felt.

I suppose I do not recommend it because I'm a little protective of this perfect film.

Martyrs is the only film I have had to stop watching and go back to later; it was so intense. (I had just watched Salo so that didn't help).

It is a truly great film. Though I truly love horror films I feel there are not that many that are truly great films. This, however, was one of them.

I had to take two attempts at Martyrs too, but admittedly alcohol was involved the first time.
Second attempt was watching with a girlfriend who had allready seen it and said that "it's best to see it as a dark comedy"!

I can just about see where she's coming from, though I don't entirely agree.

I'm quite intrigued by (but not actually "looking forward to") The Bunny Game, as it has been compared to Martyrs for having extreme violent and sexual content, but arriving at a worthwhile artistic conclusion.

I won't say anymore for fear of being spoilery.

This is an interesting question...i think for me it depends on lots of things:

The type of film I'm watching, the environment I'm watching it in, who I'm watching it with and even how much I'd read about the film or heard about the film before I'd seen it.

I think i enjoy films more the less i know about them to be honest.

Martyrs didn't bother me and part of me left thinking well what was all the fuss about.

Inside troubled me to the point where it was close to reaching for the stop button. A Serbian Film also had the same effect.

Torture = fine. Crossing moral boundries = not fine.
Maybe.

Kris wrote:Martyrs didn't bother me and part of me left thinking well what was all the fuss about.

Inside troubled me to the point where it was close to reaching for the stop button. A Serbian Film also had the same effect.

Torture = fine. Crossing moral boundries = not fine.
Maybe.

Do you not consider torture to be crossing moral boundaries?

No I just feel insensitzed