If you recall scenes from a horror film that you enjoyed the most, it would probably be the ones where as an audience you were made aware of the imminent danger that lay ahead, but the actor on the screen still hadn't suspected it.
The anticipatory build-up to that "bang" moment is exactly what you sought while buying the tickets of the film — that moment when you see the shadows emerge from the other side of the curtain even as the woman in the shower is totally unaware of her fate (Psycho), the moment an unsuspecting mother is pushed from the ladder as her innocent-looking son rams his bicycle into it (The Omen), the moment when a terrified woman runs into the last room of refuge, only to have a crazy killer break open a part of the wooden door and say, "boo, here's Johnny" (The Shining), are all memorable scenes from classic horror films that were preceded by a good few minutes of tension build-up, where the audiences felt a shiver run down their spine.
You may close your eyes and ears, clutch your movie date's hand, drop your popcorn, spill your drink, but ultimately, you would still love to walk into the hall for the same experience all over again.
Hit American TV shows like The Vampire Diaries, True Blood or even the resurgence of horror shows like Fear Files and Haunted Nights on Indian television — a good barometer to judge audience preferences — indicate that we have an insatiable appetite for everything paranormal and occult. We love to spook ourselves silly — whether on TV or the big screen.
It's like a roller-coaster ride
But what is it about fear that tempts us so much? Psychologist Dr Rajendra Barve believes people like horror movies because of the unexpected jerks they experience. "These movies work upon people's curiosity about the unknown, which has always been a fearful territory. The fear makes them uneasy, and that is what causes the excitement. It's like taking a ride on the roller-coaster. You may fear it, but you still seek the thrill," he explains.
Social commentator Santosh Desai feels fear is the most primal among all human emotions. "The fear of losing makes a person insecure, the fear of hunger makes people greedy, the fear of being upstaged makes you competitive — in short, fear is the most identifiable emotion in a human being. When a person goes to the theatre to seek the thrill of horror films, somewhere deep down he's challenging his innermost fears, testing his limits, waiting to see how far he can go," he says.
Grandmom's ghost stories
Horror is one of the most ancient forms of art. Much before cinema and television were invented, you grew up listening to horror stories from your parents and grandparents. All those ancient parables, legends, myths and deep-seated beliefs and taboos that you hear about in your childhood are reinforced when you go to watch a horror film. The audience is given an idea of what could happen should a person violate the law of the land or goes against faith, the same way a mother would tell a child that the bogeyman may show up if he didn't sleep on time. Memories of being afraid of the dark, being frightened of a shadow, a strong feeling of an unknown entity around you, come flooding back while watching a horror film, both exciting and scaring you at the same time.
Director Vikram Bhatt says even as horror films which delve deep into the psyche of the human mind are thriving in the West, in India, horror movies are driven by the heart, and are best told in the form of a love story. He elucidates, "Whether you think of old horror films like Mahal, Bees Saal Baad or a more recent one like Raaz, the connect for the Indian audience is the length to which a lover, a husband or a wife will go to bring the partner back from the clutches of evil. It's not so much the horror, but knowing and realising what's at stake that terrifies you."
Stokes the voyeur in us
Alfred Hitchcock was pretty clear about the chill he intended his audiences to feel while he was directing a film. "Give them (the audience) the pleasure — the same pleasure they have when they wake up from a nightmare!" he had said. Have you ever woken up with fright after having a nightmare? And then felt the cloak of relief slide over you after realising that you were safe? You must have felt the voyeuristic pleasure of laughing about that kind of fear because you knew it wasn't real — though it felt real — and it really didn't happen to YOU. That's the kind of pleasure that the audience enjoys and keeps coming back for every time they watch a horror film. It's a cathartic relief for the audience when the actor on the screen feels the fear or stares at the deadly ending that the audience can foresee.
Screenplay writer Rajat Arora believes every human being has a secret devil buried deep within. "We all are capable of vicious feelings that are hidden under our ethical wraps. Horror movies let those emotions run riot. Psychiatrist Dr Harish Shetty explains the idea further. "The grotesque fantasy of a human being is entwined with his vicarious pleasures, and then the visuals and sound effects all put together result in a kind of heart-pounding suspense that we can't resist — whether it's a TV show or a film."
The master storyteller of the thrill and chill genre on TV and the big screen, Stephen King, had written in an essay on the appeal of horror films, "Horror films intend to take away the shades of grey. They urge us to put away our more civilised and adult penchant for analysis and let us be children again, seeing things in pure blacks and whites. It may be that horror movies provide psychic relief because their invitation to lapse into simplicity, irrationality and even outright madness is extended so rarely. We are told we may allow our emotions a free rein... or no rein at all".
Who else could have put it any better?
haimanti.mukherjee@timesgroup.com
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