It’s a dark and stormy night. You’ve finished your homework and long to enjoy the gloomy fall weather. What better way to do so than curling up and watching a horror movie? A classic Halloween activity, watching scary films activates the “fight or flight” response in a safe setting, which in turn releases adrenaline and other endorphins that feel exhilarating and keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
Dr. Coltan Scrivner, professor at Arizona State University, studies the psychology of morbid curiosity, or why people are sometimes interested in media that carries information about danger. He said horror films have a few tactics that they use to activate defensive behaviors or emotions that keep the viewer “hooked.”
“Horror movies are excellent at triggering the parts of the brain that moderate defensive behaviors and fear,” Scrivner said. “This is why you get sweaty palms, a racing heart and a feeling of fear when you watch them. Your mind can distinguish reality from fiction, but the mind is composed of several interacting parts, [and] the part that reacts to dangerous situations is active when you’re watching a horror movie.”
Scrivner also said different components of horror movies, such as loud or sudden noises, suspenseful music and dark lighting, play a huge role in the way that we react. He said the content in horror movies tricks the mind into paying close attention.
“For some people, they get a mood boost from the rush of safe-fear they experience,” Scrivner said. “For others, the feeling of overcoming their fear and making it through a horror film can be rewarding. [This] morbid curiosity is simply an interest in or curiosity about content that conveys information about potential dangers. Because horror movies are crafted to convey this through the environment, sound, lighting and villains, they expertly pique our curiosity.”
Dr. Neil Lerner is a professor of music and chair of the Department of Film, Media and Digital Studies at Davidson College. He is a musicologist (music historian) and primarily studies music and screen media. He said music is one of the most crucial parts of horror movies and can create different responses for audiences, changing the entire feel of a scene.
“A horror film might use little to no music as a person starts to feel scared in a space that the viewers know is dangerous, but a composer can use something as simple as just a [sudden, loud] chord or set of notes that will create what’s called a jump scare,” Lerner said. “In those scenes, if you put unsurprising, happy music into them, the scene often changes its tone entirely.”
Lerner said, besides the obvious changes in tone, dissonance is another tactic that horror filmmakers use to spook their audience. Dissonance occurs when two or more notes are played at once and clearly sound like they do not fit well together.
“[Dissonance] in and of itself is not going to make something horrific,” Lerner said. “It’s when the music does not prepare or resolve the dissonance that the effect can be much more troubling for the ear, and that’s something horror composers are great at exploiting.”
All of these tactics, from physiological to psychological triggers, combine to cause an adrenaline rush in the comfort of a safe environment. According to both Scrivner and Lerner, these strategies utilized within horror movies allow viewers to experience thrills and anxieties that are ultimately enjoyable.
Lucie Koeneker, junior, is a self-proclaimed horror film enthusiast. She said she started watching horror films around eighth grade, and prefers slashers over other scary movies. Slashers, such as the film “Scream,” are a type of movie that are characterized by their incorporation of stalking, serial killing and creative, gory scenes. She also said that one of the best parts of watching horror movies is getting to enjoy them with other people.
“I think it’s fun to be scared and go out of your comfort zone,” Koeneker said. “I also have found many connections and friendships [through] watching horror movies with people, [so] it’s like a bonding experience.”
