Halloween
brings out the love of horror in people. People who actually enjoy being thoroughly
scared. People, like my good friends Alicia Dean and Nancy Gideon, for example.
They love books and movies that frightened them half to death. Creepy movie
marathons are for them. Not me.
Do you
know what happened when—against my better judgment—my sister talked me into
taking my kids (ages 8 & 9) to see Gremlins?
We were visiting my sister—sans Hubs who stayed home—and she thought it would
be fun. My idea of fun is not sitting in a theater with one kid on my lap and
the other leaving fingernail imprints on my arm. Every time one of those
creatures jumped out, they shrieked. And so did I. That night, the kids asked
if they could sleep with me. They were that scared. I never told them, but I
was glad to have the company . . . to keep my own nightmares away.
But that
was not my first being-scared-out-of-my-wits movie. In my early twenties, I’d
gone to a friend’s house for Halloween. After the trick-or-treaters had gone,
we watched a movie called The Hand.
Black and white and so old it’s not even in IMDB. It was about a severed hand
seeking revenge. When the hand crept up the back of a car seat and strangled
the driver, I was so freaked out. Silly now, but back then? I was terrified.
The worst part was I had to drive home. I just knew that hand was going to
creep up the back of my car seat and . . .
I think
the scariest move I’ve ever seen was Deliverance.
At the end, when that hand and arm came up out of the water, I lost it. I
really had nightmares after that. What did Hubs who had taken me to see that
movie do? Laughed. Great help he was.
I’m a
wimp, a scaredy cat. I admit it. So while the rest of you get your kicks out of
watching movies that make your hair stand on end, I’ll enjoy my happy romantic
comedies.
What
scary movie is your most memorable?
I’m
participating in the Snarkology Halloween Hop. There are prizes galore. In
addition to the Grand Prizes, the 50+ authors are each offering giveaways. Stop
by http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/2014/10/snarkology-halloween-hop-giveaway.html
for a chance to win a copy of my new PI Mystery.
Alex O’Hara finally
gets a case that will give her bottom line a much needed boost. She might even
be able to change her diet from ramen noodles to prime rib. All she has to do
is track down a man who’s been missing for over ten years. Piece of cake . . . until
an old flame arrives and a mugger roughs her up with orders to back off.
8 comments:
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein when I was seven. Still gives me the creeps. When I was in junior high and high school, we'd do Saturday night sleepovers and a horror movie was a must.
We used to have the occasional Saturday night movie marathon when I was in college. A whole group of us would rent a VCR and 3 movies. (Yes, I'm old!) We'd watch them in the same order: comedy, action, horror. The horror movie would get over about 2 in the morning. I remember loving those, but maybe it was because I was with a big group of friends. Too much blood and guts makes me roll my eyes. I like the more subtle ones. The original Halloween was my favorite, just enough horror to scare you but not enough to be over the top!
I sat through the Bride of Frankenstein with my coat over my head. I was scared silly.
Margo, I'm surprised. Abbott & Costello were usually funny.
Jannine, I can laugh at the really gory, too-much-blood movies. I agree about the subtle ones.
Barbara, you gave me a good laugh.
I think I remember "The Hand," Diane! Too funny. I remember being scared to death at Hitchock's "The Birds" when I was a kid. Just the thought of all those...birds flying around and pecking at Tippi Hedren! I still hunch my shoulders when I think about it!
I only saw The Birds once. That was enough! I'd watch Psycho again before The Birds. LOL
Haha, sorry I didn't see this yesterday, Diane. I was away from the computer (especially since I got an honorable mention ;)) You are correct. I love that rush I get when I'm scared. The Halloween franchise was my favorite of the scary movies, but I loved a lot of them. To be clear, I don't enjoy gore itself. I have a bit of a weak stomach. But blood doesn't bother me at all. I loved The Birds and Psycho and Night of the Living Dead. I love Stephen King movies. Great blog post. Congrats on having your wonderful story out for the world to enjoy!
Sorry I'm late replying, Diane, I was on the road the last two days.
My most memorable scary movie is still my favorite one, Halloween. Hands down, the original had it all for me, suspenseful music, scary, creepy villain and it wasn't too gory. My kids are now all hooked. They've watched the whole series just this week. Unfortunately, I missed them. I did at one time have the theme as my ringtone for October. :-) Yeah, creepy.
Great post! Best of luck with your release!
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