Do you think that horror movies negatively influence society?

1. 92

   KatSangerposted 11 years ago

   Do you think that horror movies negatively influence society?
   
   This is meant to be purposely open and interpreted however you like - do they cause crime? Nightmares? Insomnia? Lack of respect?  What do you think?

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2. 61

   LindaQ79posted 11 years ago

   YES! When we find horror to be entertaining, we may have a negative side to us. It does affect our thoughts, nightmares etc. I stay away from horror movies. I don't need fear in my life. Thanks, but no thanks!

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3. 60

   duffsmomposted 11 years ago

   I think old school horror movies are fine...the kind that are obviously not real, not about gore and graphic dismemberment, pain and torture.
   
   Today's horror movies may well be a negative influence on society.  They glorify gore, and impersonalize death.  They have lost the art and go for the obvious gore which in my mind is not good for anyone.

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   1. 68

      Rod Marsdenposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      The news sometimes glorifies and impersonalizes death. When it does it does it more efficiently than any horror movies I have ever seen.

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4. 68

   Rod Marsdenposted 11 years ago

   We have always found horror entertaining. Many classic children's stories are full of horror. This is definitely true of the tales put together by the Brothers Grimm.
   
   Horror stories have been around for a very long time. There is a debate whether Little Red Riding Hood began in France or Germany. Either way, it is an early European werewolf horror story aimed at teaching children not to trust strangers. There is the wolf, the little girl and granny. A woodsman comes to the rescue. The wolf meets with a violent end.
   
   Even the Everyman play that possibly has its origins in Germany and became popular in Medieval England has its elements of horror. Death calls but who will travel with Everyman on the final journey?
   
   If horror didn 't have something useful going for it then how could it have survived for so long as a genre in our collective and rather universal fiction? Stories of wicked witches can be found in Asian countries such as Japan as well as in the west. Ghost yarns are not limited to any one country or time.
   
   Writers as well as film makers have used the format of horror to question modern technology and where we are going with it. The novel Make Room! Make Room! and the movie which followed, Soylent Green, questioned increases in population caused by people living longer but the birth rate not decreasing. In Soylent Green an apple becomes a precious object and most people, whether they know it or not, are actually eating deceased humans. Both novel and book may be classified as science fiction but science fiction has often been said to be horror set in some future time or with new technology creating problems.
   
   Possibly the first book to challenge science and to question where we are going with it was Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. A man creates a new being then deserts it out of fear and revulsion. Who then is responsible for the deaths that ensue?
   
   Horror is books and in movies has always been society's safety valve. It releases our tensions. You think you have it bad in your life at least you are not being chased down the road by man eating zombies. There is a certain element of unreality to the old monsters such as the walking cadavers, zombies, werewolves and vampires where it is a struggle for the writer or film maker to make them appear real enough for suspension of disbelief. Even so, I do enjoy the occasional horror movie. And the harm in them is having them cut up and/or banned.

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5. 83

   PaoloJpmposted 11 years ago

   I think yes. especially for those who's curiosity is very high. Nightmares and insomnia would also included. I myself experienced it though.

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6. 96

   chef-de-jourposted 11 years ago

   It's impossible to give a yes/no answer to this great question because there are so many different factors to take into account. I don't think there are any truly scientific ways of measuring these things.
   
   Common sense should tell us that the more a young person is de-sensitised to horror the more likely they'll become involved with or immune to acts of horror. I think that's happening all the time but more positive things in life - music, art, sports, culture - help balance it out.
   
   I'd say that certain types of people are influenced in very subtle ways by a particular type of horror movie, as other types of personality might be influenced by cartoons and comic movies. There could well be a connection but it only manifests in society negatively on very rare occasions.
   
   I myself have not seen dozens of people go out and commit acts of horror after watching a horror movie - but there are individual cases I've read of that seem to have been a direct result of a person 'under the influence' of horror. Often there are other things involved - drugs, alcohol, gangs, aggression and such like. In other words, the movie per se isn't the cause but when other factors are added you get acts of horror and crime that probably wouldn't have occurred.

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   1. 68

      Rod Marsdenposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I know of people who love to dress up as blood drinking vampire, flesh eating zombies and even Jack the ripper types for Halloween and for Comicons and Horrorcons. Also dressing up for theatre runs of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. No violence.

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7. 57

   theodoresumrallposted 11 years ago

   Yes but not in every society. It also depend on the subject the horror movie is created on. Because there are some certain subjects that will negatively influence not only individuals but the whole society.
   
   Horror movies are part of entertainment only. People should not compare them with their personal lives which may otherwise be a cause of concern for all.

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   1. 68

      Rod Marsdenposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      There's nothing wrong with escapism. Both SF and Horror provide this for millions of people. A safety valve. There is such a thing as suspension of disbelief. Star Trek fans do it.

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8. 68

   ambercita04posted 11 years ago

   I know that Dr. O just talked about horror movies vs. comedies. It was shown that you burn more calories because of the anxiety that horror movies bring verses the laugher that comedies bring.
   
   Other than that, I don't know if horror movies negatively influence society. I guess people could make a case for it as they have with violent video games desensitizing children in the long run.
   
   I personally love horror movies - well scary movies. Horror movies sometimes can be a little too much for my stomach although I loved the Saw series of movies. In college though (I went to a Christian one) my RD used to tell us that by watching stuff that scared us or was horror based, we were allowing an entry way for the devil to cause us to have fear, which wasn't a Godly trait to have.
   
   For me, I say to each his own. I feel that it is entertainment and if your stomach and other organs can handle the intensity, have fun watching!

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9. 66

   howtobeasuccessposted 11 years ago

   For me there is not direct effect of horror movies to the society. These movies are fictional so it doesn't convey any message to the society that might cause us problems. Pertaining to nightmares, kids are not advised to watch horror movies. If you are a parent be sure that you heed movie advisory when it comes to the age limit of viewers for a horror film or better do not let your kids watch these in the very first place.

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10. 86

    tamarawilhiteposted 7 years ago

    The good ones tap into our fears and then resolve them with the cast eliminating it and moving on with life.
    The bad ones have a gory ending with no good resolution or go for guts over personal development.

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11. 89

    Deborah Minterposted 6 years ago

    The horror movies now....Lack of empathy.....

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12. 69

    BNHookposted 6 years ago

    Most people I feel will just avoid the genre totally. So you're really left with the narrow percentage of people that subject themselves to a type of movie that elicits ill effects, whatever the case. This to me does not translate into holistic effect on society. I wrote a hub about why people love to be scared by horror movies, as I'm one of those weirdos!

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