That being said I want to talk about homicide for a moment.
There are a lot of shows out there recently that are making bank off of telling stories about mayhem, murder, money and manslaughter. And while that's all well and good, (Or actually evil and demonic depending on your opinion), I had a friend who said something interesting to me a little while ago. He said, "I suppose I like watching these shows because they depict an aspect of the human ego that all of us possess, we all have the power to become as these killers, and it is intriguing." (Not a real quote) At risk of sounding insensitive to my friend who should seek professional help, that is wrong! We don't all watch those shows because we like to toy with the idea of the power gained from taking life!
I think we watch gore and insane murder mysteries for one simple reason. It is fantastic. (Meaning exotic and imaginative) It is a world we do not live in, like a galaxy far far away. I think the reason I like watching CSI, and not CSI Miami cause is sucks, is because I like watching them catch these beings who are anything but human. Murderers are not like you and me, they have become alien to a society that exists in harmony when death is not on the menu.
So, there's a show out there called Dexter. About a serial killer who kills serial killers. People love it. They root for a murderer. Is this bad? No, go on ahead! Watching that is no different than watching a discovery channel special about a tribe off the coast of the edge of the world who drinks cow blood for breakfast. It's not my culture, I'm not a serial killer. I'm not even a regular killer. But, by golly they are a fun bunch of people to make up stories about, huh? Like vampires or werewolves, except not as cool, and murderers actually exist in the world. Ok, so really, don't call me a creep for enjoying stories of death. If you do, I'll kill you.
No no, I'm just kidding.
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2 comments:
Loved this post. Better than I could have said myself.
Haha. Amen
But there is an other reason to like horror movies (well, you didn't originally speak about that, but it made me think of it). I once read that horror movies reinforce sexual roles in society--and before anyone gets too excited about the S-word, let me expain: boy meets girl, girl likes boy, they go to the movies and see a scary movie. Girls will end up acting more scared than they really are and act as if they need protection, a "real man" to help them get through the movie (that they really aren't that scared of anyway--hello! slumber parties since the age of 7?). Guys will suddenly take on that role of the protector and pretend to not be scared at all (when in reality he's gripping the seat for all he's worth), and they come out certain that the other is the ultimate male/female. voila!
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