In praise of scary movies

For Schmid, who has published widely on various aspects of violence and popular culture, there are identifiable and understandable reasons why scary movies have outlasted trends and criticism. That first quality became clear during the collective birthday viewing of “It.”

“The thing that really struck me about ‘It’ was that when we are talking about the appeal of scary movies, we often begin from a false premise,” he says. “That false premise is, we consume them by ourselves, by isolation. And I think it’s in the nature of cinema arguably, and even if you are watching it on the computer or the TV, you watch it with other people. It’s a group community experience.”

Not only does going through the horror-movie experience together make it less frightening, Schmid says, it also makes it more “participatory.”

“I would argue, in a way you establish a kind of temporary virtual community of people all going through the same thing and sharing this experience with you,” he says. “And in a world where we are increasing disconnected to each other in various ways, I think this serves a valuable function.”

So not only do you share the experience of watching scary movies with those close to you, but you can talk about them later with your friends and family.

Schmid follows the we’re-in-this-together scary-movie explanation with what he calls the “venerable catharsis argument. ”

“By watching a scary movie, we find a way to work through and manage our fears in a safe, non-threatening environment,” he says. “Despite the fact it’s a venerable argument, I still think it’s relevant.”

Schmid says credible studies show the rates of violent crime have been declining steadily for years, and hopefully will continue to do so.

“But there is still a kind of disconnect between the reality of violent crime and people’s perceptions of how likely it is they are going to become a victim,” he says. “Those numbers (of people being concerned about their safety) have remained remarkably steadfast in the face of evidence to the contrary.

“And that leads to an atmosphere of what I call ambient fear a lot of us experience,” he says, “which is like a low-level of anxiety with us all the time, so much so that we’re completely used to it. We don’t even notice it any more. But it’s one of the things that defines our everyday existence.”

So, Schmid explains, arguably, watching these scary movies gives us a way to manage these ambient fears.

“Or at the very least to sort of focus it, to say, ‘OK, this is what I am scared of.’ Going through the experience of actually feeling that fear, enjoying yourself at the same time and leaving the movie theater afterward — that’s an important therapeutic process.  So I thing that is part of it as well.”

Schmid is just getting started. The diversity and richness of the horror movie genre also earns his respect and admiration.

He says most horror films know exactly when to pull back and don’t make the audience feel too uncomfortable. There are psychological “escape hatches,” he says, techniques that don’t surprise the audience too much or make them feel uncomfortable.

“For example, we may complain that every time a basement appears in a scary movie, we know someone is going down into it within five minutes, and you know they’re going to get killed, shortly afterward.” The movie “It” is a great example, Schmid says. “You can see it coming a mile away.”

Compare that, he says, with the extraordinary films that actually attempt to unsettle the audience, known as “slow burn” horror movies. They often are not very violent or gory.

The “psychological suspense” they create comes about through “development of characters or their gradual elaboration of plot that you intuit is working up into some kind of big reveal,” he says. “But you can’t be sure what that reveal is and what’s going to happen. So when you do actually get the violence, it has much greater effect than the blood-soaked gorefest that, you know, has body parts from start to finish.”

Well-known examples of this: “Psycho,” “The Exorcist” and “The Shining,” as well as ”Funny Games,” which Schmid describes as the most frightening film he has ever seen.

So the horror film market is now diverse enough to support both kinds of movies: the straightforward and the slow burns. And that leads to another strength of the horror film category, he says.

“As the genre has gone on, not only has it become more popular, it’s developed more and more niche markets, partially because audiences have become more sophisticated as the genre has developed,” he says. “Very few of which will appeal to the same audience, but they each have a particular kind of audience and they are still able to make money.”

With all of horror films’ strengths, virtues and contributions to society — establishing a communal, shared experience; creating a rich and diverse art form; the catharsis that allows us to work through our fears; crafting a sophisticated and discerning audience —what’s not to love?

Schmid doesn’t shy away from the obvious question, especially given the pattern of American mass shootings, and especially given the horrific killings in Las Vegas. Do horror films — show burn or otherwise — incite acts of violence?