Horror cinema has long and for many, provided a needed release valve for social anxieties; from the Universal classics of the 1930s during America’s Great Depression (Frankenstein, Dracula) through the ‘big bug’ flicks (Godzilla, Them) which were so popular during the Cold War of the 50s. The horrific narratives of many of these films served to not only provide audiences a definable face to our shared societal fears (the antagonists were often a metaphorical representation of them) but also (and often therapeutically) a definitive resolution.
With the onscreen threat generally defeated in the film’s finale, those filmgoers clustered together in darkened theaters experiencing them were therefore not only able to breath a collective sigh of relief, but were whisked away through pure escapism from their shared worries for often the duration of the flick’s running time. The side benefit: a sense of community, of surviving together the (safe) threat which flickered on the screen before them, was born.
Composing this from my home in Los Angeles, quarantined under the ‘safer at home’ mandate and inundated by news headlines and updates revolving around the very real threat of the international Coronavirus outbreak (something impacting us all), that escapism, and its beneficial aspects come to mind.
While discussions are under way internally regarding how we may as a horror community may come together in some small way to aid in this unprecedented crisis, we also feel that the importance of keeping that release valve open remains, and with theaters now largely shuttered, we hope to provide a bit of that here at HalloweenMovies.com, however we may.
Whether that be merely a bit of news on the Halloween series, a silly meme, or a piece of trivia, we hope to, for at least minute or two, provide you with a moment of that needed escapism, and a brief respite from the collective worries we are all feeling.
As a community, we’ll get through this together.
Be kind to yourselves, and please stay safe.