Cinema can raise the level of people. By giving them a taste of poetry. Of photography. Of music. Of Aspiration. Cinema can empower people. - Roy from Jubilee
Watching horror films has always been a bit of a toil for me. I have to put a considerable, conscious effort to overlook the dumbness of the to-be victims. How that one character opens that cursed book that no one in their right mind would open, enters doors that no one in their right mind would enter, moves towards instead of away from a weird, creepy noise emanating from some dark room. None of it made sense! Just WHY would you intentionally move closer to it? Walk AWAY, you idiot! Don’t you have any sense of self-preservation?
While I hated the illogic, I loved what followed. The horror, the thrill, the feeling of wanting to close your eyes but then resisting it, clenching your muscles, sinking lower into your seat, the beautifully disturbing gory visuals that satisfy your thirst for sadistic pleasure - horror films make for a unique movie-watching experience. That is until another scene of illogic appears that makes the audience collectively go:
Is there no solution to this? Can we not have horror films where the protagonist doesn’t do stupid shit? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that we…can’t. That is when it hit me. Horror films are thought experiments. One must not expect horror films to “make sense”. The whole point of a thought experiment is to explore something that, in the real world, does not make sense.
Besides, wanting to watch a horror film where everyone acts rationally is inherently contradictory. The horrifying elements are reserved only for the daringly irrational. If everyone acted based on logic, the horrifying events won't unfold and there will be nothing to enjoy.
So the next time you are watching a scene where the protagonist enters a haunted basement, don’t roll your eyes. But remember: do not try this in real life.