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Posted on September 25, 2015

Titicut Follies (1967) Review: When Horror is Real

Note: I have opted not to include images in this review because of their potentially exploitative nature. Upon the film’s release, there was considerable debate as to the ethics of filming individuals incapable of giving their consent. It is a question worth considering and, as such, I will only be using the official film poster.

Unrated | 1967 | 84 min | (USA) | Frederick Wiseman

Grade: A

Given my penchant for slasher horror, it isn’t often that I find myself cinematically provoked to squeamishness. But a recent viewing of Frederick Wiseman’s unflinching 1967 documentary Titicut Follies left me feeling downright nauseous. Much of that reaction is owed to the human indignities suffered by those shown in the film. Not for the faint of heart, this documentary examines life inside an American mental institution and lays bare the harsh realities that face mentally ill inhabitants of state funded facilities. With so many horror films being inspired by real life horror, I think an exploration of this documentary is useful in understanding why horror films can be so triggering.

Posted on September 15, 2015

Can a Procedural be Horror-Lite?: Considering Red John

Elizabeth Erwin

There have been some wonderful think pieces recently about the graphic nature of procedural drama and whether the violence and depravity depicted impacts viewers in the long term. Many of the arguments revolve around whether disturbing images trigger thoughts and even actions in viewers. To horror fans, those concerns are familiar ones. And so I was interested in looking at a procedural and how the images presented echoed or contradicted what we see so often in horror.

Selecting the right procedural, however, was complicated. Initially, I thought that the Law and Order franchise, with its graphic depictions of a wide variety of perverse crimes, would most easily fit the bill. However, in viewing numerous episodes, it became clear that the narratives in this franchise were almost exclusively focused on the aftermath of the crimes. The audience is neither asked to participate in the crime as a spectator nor to have an emotional reaction to the crime as it is being perpetuated. The series fails to deliver the emotional arc inherent to the horror film because there is no anticipation of the horrors to come. And so I finally settled on taking a closer look at The Mentalist (CBS, 2008-2015) a procedural that used victimology and gore in a wholly new way.

Posted on September 6, 2015

MTV’s Scream: Did It Work?

Elizabeth Erwin

In the premiere episode of MTV’s Scream, Noah (John Karna), the town’s resident horror film expert and serial killer junkie, lets us know right away why horror on television doesn’t work: “Slasher movies burn bright and fast. TV needs to stretch things out.” Having been green lit for a second season halfway through its first-year run, the show was certainly a success from a financial standpoint. But the question of whether it was a successful representation of horror still remains unanswered.

For ten episodes, the show incorporated many of the qualities that made the initial film such a runaway success. From unexpected reveals to bloody jump scares, the television show, on paper, possessed all of the elements to be a successful undertaking. But did the franchise’s foray into horror work? The answer is an unequivocal…sorta.

Posted on September 4, 2015

7 Horror Films on Netflix Worth Watching

Elizabeth Erwin

With so many horror films now going directly to Video on Demand, the ability to generate buzz and make a cinematic splash has grown progressively more difficult. Consequently, a number of recent, worthwhile films failed to gain traction with horror fans. So I thought the time was right to shout out seven horror titles that are currently available for instant streaming on Netflix. Each film profiled offers a take on the horror genre that falls outside of the expected. From updated tales of possession to wry social commentary couched in blood and guts, these titles are the best bang for your Netflix bucks!

Posted on August 31, 2015

Elizabeth’s Favorite Wes Craven Moments

Elizabeth Erwin

Like many, the news of Wes Craven’s death last night left me stunned. As someone who writes about the cultural impact of horror, it is difficult to overstate Craven’s contribution to the genre. Leaving behind a catalog of work that provokes and challenges, Craven was a visionary who understood that the only way to truly understand what it is that scares us, is to look into the darkness unblinkingly. By continually manipulating horror tropes to keep pace with audience expectation, Wes Craven’s body of work stands alone for both its diversity and its longevity.

Here are my choices for the top three not-to-be missed Wes Craven moments.