Between the readings, presentations, and screening I greatly enjoyed this week of classes. The essay that fascinated me the most was “What is a Cult Horror Film?” by Welch Everman. Now, I’m am not a fan of horror. At all. So it has always baffled me when a friend would go “Wanna see this new movie when it comes out? The trailer looks terrible. I bet it will be hilarious.” Why watch something if you sense it will be bad? How can you spend money on something that you know will fail to scare you?

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Everman does a brilliant job of explaining the love of horror movie fans, both of cult films and horror classics. Everman breaks the cult horror genre into three groups: films that are so bad they are hilarious (Sleepwalkers, a film written by Steven King), films that were cheaply made but are actually fantastic (Carnival of Souls) , and just plan bad films (Maniac). But what I found interesting was Everman’s explanation as to why horror films are so profitable. It’s because horror films have an aura so unique and special to the genre. That aura is what draws in true horror fans. While movies like The Conjuring are made so that a variety of audiences can enjoy them, cult fans are willing to watch anything as long as it promises scares. Based off a previous essay by Walter Benjamin, Everman goes on to say that “ Cult horror films seem to have auras too, something that makes them special- through, in many cases, the aura is more like an aroma and not a particularly good one.” Over all this essay reminded me of History of Film class last semester when we talked about B-list films, especially Roger Corman. I would argue that horror films make up a majority of cult films, simply because the genre is both conservative and revolutionary.

Now to talk about our screening for the week. Through I’d always heard that Carnival of Souls was a fantastic film, I never had any interest in seeing it because it was labled a horror movie. But now I can honestly say I’ve never seen a film quite like it. While the pacing is slow, it’s also perfect for the story it’s trying to tell. Even the opening scene through me off. No cast list, no opening credits, just the opening shot of one car challenging another to a race that later goes horribly wrong. And just like that, you’re drawn into this bizarre and creepy mystery.

I was fascinated with the main character, Mary Henry. There’s clearly something off with her right from the beginning. She doesn’t want to connect with anyone. Or rather she wants people to connect with her but feels no attachment to them. All of the people Mary interacts with are mainly men. Some try to help her but give up, others try to encourage her to reach out for help, and one just want to have sex with her. While the whole film is beautifully shot, the scene that made my skin crawl the most was when Mary returns to her room with her drunk neighbor. Now the guy has been leering at her since she arrived, but you see Mary struggling between her fear of the phantom man and her reluctance to sleep with this neighbor. To me that was the real turning point in the film, because after that scene all the other characters abandon her, thinking she’s crazy.

But who was the phantom? Herk Harvey actually played the character which just shows how low the budget was. My interpretation of ‘The Man’ and the other carnival goers was that they were some type of demon or ghosts come to reclaim Mary’s soul. Like, she was meant to die in the accident, but a part of her escaped. This part was no longer fully human, or ‘soulless’, resulting in Mary’s disconnect with the world. In the end this lost piece of Mary’s humanity eventually got called (or dragged) back to the afterlife. How did you guys interpret the film? Carnival of Souls is definitely a movie I want to show others, just to see their reactions. A classic example of how even a low budget film can become a master piece in the cult horror genre.

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