The happy season of fear

Reasons to be scared are not lacking these days. No matter which side you look at – political, economic or ecological – there is something to be afraid of. This is why anxious people, including myself, take refuge in horror films.

Yes yes. The fearful and anxious often become great fans of horror movies because it allows them to fight evil with evil by inflicting incredible scares, which purge those they live in real life.

Autumn, as we approach Halloween, is their favorite season, because it’s a bit like their Cannes Film Festival every day when horror movies and series come rolling. While we debate problematic Halloween costumes according to various sensibilities, they gladly stuff themselves with stuff that repeatedly traumatizes them. The more they experience discomfort, the happier they are.

One of the reasons for my crush on my boyfriend is that we are both horror movie lovers. No remote control quibbles, and Netflix’s algorithm reminds us that we watch it often. He’s my Jason, I’m his Carrie, our first movie date together was to see Halloween H20the seventh film in the franchise – we knew it clicked when we thought the third, which has nothing to do with Michael Myers, was underrated.

What I like most about horror cinema is precisely the fan aspect, which doesn’t really care about the notion of a masterpiece.

Sometimes all it takes is one strong scene in a not-so-good movie to stick in your head for the rest of your life, vindicating your deep love for what other moviegoers might consider a turnip.

Take for example a movie like Blood Quantum, by Jeff Barnaby. I was very saddened to learn of the early death, at the age of 46, of this brilliant Micmac director, on October 13, of a cursed cancer. I went to his shoot in the Listuguj reserve in 2018, I loved the experience and my interview with him. Barnaby knew his horror cinema inside out and wanted to include his community in this popular line. Because if Blood Quantum isn’t perfect, it’s still the first native zombie movie, which I thought was extremely important, like when Robin Aubert made The hungrythe first Quebec zombie film.

In both cases, there were undeniable and unique finds, which is precisely the subject of the documentary series The 101 Scariest Horror Movies Moments of All Time on Shudder, the platform dedicated to genre cinema, to which I subscribe despite a budget threatened by multiple subscriptions. In eight episodes, we establish a list of the most outstanding moments of horror cinema, and I must specify here that the other hobbyist hobbyist is the prize lists. There can be hours of bickering about these lists whose top positions move very slowly. In this chapter, the writer Patrick Senécal, much too difficult because professional horror, is the most tiring on social networks, but everyone likes to fight with him.

Can’t escape The Exorcist, jaws, The Shining Where psychology, which are indelible classics despite the passing decades. I think it’s down to one thing in particular: the computer special effects can’t beat the incredible inventiveness of the craftsmen who handcrafted horrible things, like Rick Baker, Tom Savini or Rob Bottin. What matters most is when the actors really have the female dog in front of these creations (and the camera), rather than pretending to be afraid in front of blue screens.

Fear is a special emotion, less respected than sadness or laughter, which is nevertheless visceral. I think it can wreak havoc in a society that refuses to recognize it.

Still, in the list of 101 Scariest Horror Movies Moments of All Time of Shudder, without selling you the punch of the placement of the 100 others, The Thing, by John Carpenter, comes second. It’s silly, but I was super happy, because it’s my favorite horror film “of all time” and, without being silly, I’ve seen it at least 50 times. A commercial failure when it was released in 1982, the year the AND.by Spielberg, took the planet by storm (and my inner child), I also saw The Thing climb the ladder in the charts, as if I needed this rise to confirm my impressions.

Shudder’s chart has the merit of featuring more recent films and other underrated ones, like The Exorcist III, which still gives me nightmares, directed by William Peter Blatty, the author of the novel that gave William Friedkin’s masterpiece. We try to shake up the usual hierarchy, all commented on by enthusiasts who decipher memorable moments of horror. There are of course omissions, and the positions are very debatable (that’s all the fun), but there are two or three titles in there that I have never seen, which will inspire me for my evening of cinema for Halloween.

To all the amateurs, I wish beautiful chills!