I am a horror movie addict! There I said it! They say the first step to realizing you have a problem is actually admitting to it. Every year I go to horror movie conventions, film festivals, Halloween horror nights at Universal Studios Florida, etc. If it is scary, I will be there with bells on. Whenever I tell people I am obsessed with horror movies, I am almost always given the same look; someone’s head tilts to the side and their eyes squint like they are trying to “figure me out.” I guess in their mind, someone who would be obsessed with the genre would be perceived as odd, scary, or the making of a future psychopath. Let me explain, when I was growing up I would get together with my cousins and watch nothing but horror movies. All of us huddling together gave us a sense of security and brought us closer together. I have nothing but fond memories of my cousins, and now we often will get together and re-watch the same movies we grew up on together. A few years ago, I had an incredibly horrific day at work and began to stress eat. I turned on the most recent Texas Chainsaw Massacre flick and the scene that played made me drop my food on my plate. My stomach turned in disgust; the very thought of eating after watching that made me sick. I couldn’t eat, or think about my daily life for the duration of the movie, I was terrified and shocked at what I had just witnessed. That night, I had a nightmare where I was running through a basement and “Leather face” was running after me with a chainsaw. I woke up in a cold sweat, scared and grateful to be warm in my bed. As if that wasn’t enough, the following night I dreamt that I was running through the same house and Freddy Krueger was chasing me in a cowboy outfit. Yes, you read that right, a cowboy outfit. Why a cowboy outfit? Who knows, your guess is as good as mine. But I realized that night, that my life was not that bad!!! I began to see the world in a different light. Whenever I would watch horror movies, whether they are based on true events or not, it got me thinking about my current situation in life, and forgive me but I hardly believe that anyone’s problems including my own are remotely close to what the victims are experiencing in that movie or life story. For me, its approximately 90 minutes of very inexpensive therapy, I am completely engulfed in that world and when I leave I feel just a little bit better about whatever wrong is occurring in my own reality. Not to mention, the creative genius that goes into these movies. Think about the special effects that are used to trick your eye into thinking its real. Or even the amazing acting abilities of the person on screen pretending to be in fear for their lives. I truly enjoy watching makeup artists transform a normal person in to The Walking Dead.

 

Halloween may be over for you but for me it continues all year long. So when you are obsessing about a deadline you missed with the Public Service Commission or worried about bills you cannot pay, just relax and put on a horror movie. I can guarantee you that you won’t give those problems a second thought until long after the credits come rolling down the screen. 

And remember, no matter what is going on, at least Freddy Krueger isn’t after you in a cowboy outfit. . . .