#I watch the saw movies and the conjuring movies like they're comedies

[houseofoddballs]

You know... I don't think that any piece of literature or any video or game will ever be able to encapsulate the true horror of utter darkness. Being surrounded by nothing but blackness and a little illuminated screen that's the only thing you can see in a room right after the light turns off and you become far too aware of how big and open the space is.

You know what's in there, you were just looking at it.

And there are two types of tricks that your eyes play, in my experience. There are the little sprites that dance at the corners of your vision, little phaux spots of illumination as if through a crack somewhere. But when you look they're gone.

Those are the good ones. Just vestiges of false hope at regaining a sliver of sanity. The other ones are the ones that really scare me.

The shadows. The room is already so dark that you can't see anything at all, but then they take form. Seeping from the darkness in pools of something that can only be described as a void of all light and hope. Despair in a shape hopefully conjured by your own mind. A lot of the time, I see them as corpses, suspended in silhouettes of gruesome scenes, just sitting there. And you would think that just sitting there would make them easy to ignore, but they're not. Because when you look away and look back, they're still the same shape. But if you go back another night, they'll be gone.

But, occasionally, one of these voids could attach itself to you. I first saw mine when I was really young, maybe 7. Before the concept of death even invaded my small mind. My mother tucked me in all nice and snug, she even tucked the covers nice and tight around me because I loved that as a child. And then she turned the lights off.

It was just darkness for a moment as I lay there in my bed, enjoying the compression of the covers tucked around me. Then he came, materialized from the darkness of the very room that I felt safest in. It was a man, hanging by the neck from my ceiling, dangling right above me, so close that I remember pressing myself into the bed so his shoes wouldn't touch me.

I remember staring up at him with wide eyes, hoping that if I opened my eyes wider, then I would be able to see better in the darkness quicker. It didn't help. I remember his head being at such an awkward angle, one that couldn't be normal, now I know that his neck was probably snapped, and he was just swinging gently above me for what felt like forever. And because the covers had been tucked so tight, I couldn't move. If I tried to roll over to free myself, I would have hit his feet and he might have noticed me. That's at least what I told myself.

After that, I kept sleeping with a night light, or at least with the blinds open. I never subjected myself to pitch blackness alone again. And, eventually, I forgot.

I don't know how I know it's the same one when they alwaystake different horrifying shapes. Maybe because he's the one to always get closest to me. Maybe I can just feel it. But I know it's always him. Sometimes, there are others, but he's always there.

I'm all the way in college now, and it felt pretty silly to still be afraid of the dark at my age. Besides, I didn't know how to explain needing a night light to my roommate, especially since I couldn't remember why I really needed it anyway.

I ended up remembering really quick.

It's utterly horrifying, you know? To lay ramrod straight on an all too firm mattress in pitch blackness, trying desperately to see the rest of the room so you can stop seeing the embodiment of insanity peeking it's inky head up from the foot of your bed and slowly crawling over your body, making it's way up to your head. You can't feel anything, so you know it's just your mind playing tricks on you. But that doesn't make it any less terrifying when you're still laying there with your eyes as wide as they will possibly go so you can just TRY to convince yourself that this THING this horrifying giant embodiment of darkness and atrophy perched on your chest isn't really and it's all your imagination!

And yet, it's morning when you come to. Does that sum up how my first night of college went for you? I've done the searching, and they aren't sleep paralysis demons. I have every opportunity to move, I've wiggled my fingers and moved my feet before. They aren't tricks of the light either. It's not just a pile of laundry. Because I've seen them manifest in front of blank walls and other shapes alike. The room is always so dark that those two types of shadows are the only things I can see.

And I know by now you probably think this is a poorly written work of fantasy or fiction, but it's not. I need to know if I'm the only one to see these things that have been driving me mad. I need to know if I'm the only adult who still has to clench my eyes shut when the lights go out just so they don't torment me. This is real for me, even if it isn't for you, and I need to know. Please.

Anyway, I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving!

[meshitsukai]

do you have any horror movie reccs? i’ve been trying to get into the genre but idk where to start besides the like, big name films (like saw and such) and ur my only movie mutual

sorry for the late reply! i was kinda wondering which type of films i would recommend (since you're trying to get into the genre). i have no clue how big some of these are so sorry if they're big name ones... also tried to separate them by subgenre so you get to pick by your fav type (also feel free to ask about specific ones! if it comes to warnings)

supernatural:

- the autopsy of jane doe

- the conjuring franchise (never finished this yet, but i watched the first + third film + some of the spinoffs. it's pretty big name)

- insidious franchise (not sure how big name it is. watched all the entries for it)

- it chapter 1 + chapter 2

- veronica

- daniel isn't real

- don't listen

- host

- hereditary

- relic

psychological/mystery:

- 1922

- les diaboliques

- it comes at night

- 1br

- cure

- us

action/thrillers/monsters of all kinds:

- the purge franchise (first film isn't one of my favorites, but i'd say give the second movie a go and see if you're into it enough to continue)

- crawl

- a quiet place

- #alive

- ready or not

over-the-top bloody/gory + body horror:

- color out of space

- possessor

slashers/killers:

- haunt

- hell fest

- hush

horror-comedies:

- happy death day duology (slasher)

- mayhem (action)

- anna and the apocalypse (zombies)

- benny loves you (killer doll gory flick)

- psycho goreman (gore + alien)

other:

- life (space horror)

- black box (sci-fi horror)

- brightburn (superhero horror)

[bunkernine]

What are your top 10 horror films? And/Or any good recs you might have because I really love the genre but I've yet to watch so, so many of them.

@redhoodpercy or @archivistsasha might have some more, but 🤔

i can't say i have a top 10, but i do like:

hereditary [possession(?) I'm not sure what the word is, but I'll stick to paranormal/cultist]

carrie (i prefer 2002 because the forehead 😭 which is mean, but i dislike the chloe grace moretz one because that was a strange casting choice) [stephen king, telekinesis]

dead silence [puppets]

train to busan [zombies] this is on my top movies list of all time actually

the conjuring series, aka conjuring 1 & 2, anabelle, anabelle comes home, anabelle creation, the curse of la llorona, the nun (😐). my favorites particularly is anabelle creation and conjuring 2! the nun is the worst which pisses me off because she's easily the scariest in the other movies. i recently watched them in chronological order (time line) so that's an idea to do as well. [supernatural, hauntings etc.]

the banana splits movie 😭 i watched it as a joke but it's just a gorefest [the robots come alive or something idk it's just gore 😭]

happy death day isn't particularly scary it's just fun [slasher]

get out [idk mind stuff or something it's good tho 💀]

cabin in the woods [everything. literally everything] if you do like horror but u also like poking fun of it, this is to watch!!!

hush [slasher] protag is deaf but she's definitely not helpless. one of my fav protags in horror movies

the vvitch [occult]

his house [occult (?)] i watched this with friends and we all yelled at the screen at the same time cause of how they present the uh... other beings 💀 but the message is good and like the actual plot is more meaningful because of the roots of it

await further instructions, idk this amused me because it's ridiculous at times but also kinda scary because you know there ARE people who would listen to authority even if it hurts others they know

veronica [spirit]

little evil [comedy but demon]

house at the end of the street [um. kidnapping] this isn't even that great of a movie, it just surprised me jennifer lawrence was in a horror movie 💀

sweetheart [monster?]

anna and the apocalypse [it's a musical 😭 christmas, zombies]

the fourth kind [aliens]

alien [...alien] it's a series but i only really care about the first one

the exorcist [exorcism]

and then of course you have your classics, like halloween, Friday the 13th, scream, poltergeist, etc that are all cool 🤔 I'm sure if u asked me again later i would have a different list 🤔 I'm ngl, some of the best horror movies I've seen are indie or international but i can't recall the names so they're not here. i don't ever have a high expectations for them, and the newer movies tend to try too hard. there's also just so many movies that blend together and feel the same but these above all have distinct parts to them.

if you want to watch more, you should figure out what genre you like too. for example, slasher and exorcism movies have completely different tropes, and found footage is hated by a lot but lived by others. also double check warnings if your squeamish because some of them are less horror and more how much can you take. like i would not recommend the Saw series if you're icky with gore and prefer supernatural stuff! i think if you want to start with slasher, go with a classic halloween/scream/Friday the 13th, if you want to try hauntings and possessions try the conjuring/the exorcist, and then if you want to try aliens try dark skies/alien franchise.

hope it helps!!!

[sapphics]

Do all of them!

what was the last horror movie you watched?

house of 1000 corpses. i watch it way too much.

what is the scariest horror movie you've seen?

oh god, i don't even know. it takes a lot to scare me. i watched a nightmare on elm street when i was a kid and that had me scared to go to sleep. it doesn't scare me anymore, but it did so i'm just going to say that one.

can you handle blood & gore?

yes.

what's your favorite decade of horror?

early 2000's.

list your top five horror films

saw 3

house of 1000 corpses (i'm just gonna throw the whole firefly trilogy in here since they're all so good)

the houses october built

american mary

the conjuring

what is your favorite genre of horror? (paranormal, slasher, etc.)

slasher and paranormal.

do you have a favorite horror movie?

saw 3!!!!

what is your favorite horror franchise?

saw or the firefly trilogy.

do you have any pet peeves for horror?

i hate when movies rely on jump scares. i feel like that means you don't have a strong plot.

are there any horror movies/franchises you find overrated?

i guess the purge movies? they could have done so much more with them. the concept is good, but it was poorly executed.

what is your favorite horror franchise?

this was asked, but saw.

what do you think is the best halloween film?

like the halloween franchise? or just a movie for halloween? i'm gonna just do both since my answer is the same. i'm going to get a lot of shit for this, but i LOVED rob zombie's versions.

do you have a favorite horror director?

rob zombie easily.

do you have a favorite horror actor/actress?

shawnee smith is my favorite, but sheri moon zombie is a close second.

is jaws a horror movie?

sure. there are a lot of people scared of sharks that probably couldn't go in the ocean after seeing that.

do you remember your first horror movie?

i want to say valentine?

do you own any horror merchandise?

i have tons.

what are your thoughts on halloween (the holiday)?

my favorite.

what's the most graphic horror movie you've ever seen?

either a serbian film or martyrs. both were brutal.

are there any 'bad' horror movies that hold a special place in your heart?

the paranormal activity movies. they were fun.

name the top five WORST horror films that you've sat through

movies i just didn't like:

terrifier - i don't understand why it's so high up on everyone's lists. i didn't find it scary and actually thought it was quite boring.

the collector - the plot just wasn't strong enough to carry the movie.

the purge - i explained in another question.

cannibal holocaust - it's not necessarily a horrible movie, but real animals are killed on screen and i hate that.

antichrist - pretentious.

what is your opinion on horror-comedies? (scary movie, a haunted house, etc.)

they're fine. i don't actually watch them, but they don't bother me.

do you have any controversial horror opinions?

YES! my main one being that you do not need to watch a serbian film to prove anything. it's a truly fucked up film and i hate that people feel pressured into watching it. i sat through it because i thought i needed to see it to be a real horror fan and i can see why it's controversial and why i was warned to not watch it. i can handle blood, but the storyline is the messed up part.

what is your opinion on remakes of classic horror films?

most suck, but there are a few gems. not many, though.

do you think gore lessens the quality of a horror film?

not if it's done correctly. don't just put gore in your movie for the sake of gore. like i think hostel did it right, but the collector got it wrong.

thank you, amber! :)