Well, it's been quite a bit since my last post, and that's mainly because I haven't had steady access to the internet. (Also, screw Comcast.)
I wanted to make my mushy, heartfelt post about Wes Craven weeks ago, as soon as I heard about his death actually, but I guess late's better than never, right? So, without further ado, here's a look back at one of the most brilliant minds in Horror.
I have to admit that, even after I first became a writer, I didn't like Horror at all. I know that comes as a major shock to anyone who's known me the past three years or so, but it's true. My only real exposure to Horror (because my family was insanely religious and I wasn't allowed to watch it) was what I came to find out from Slashers like Jason X. The only Horror that I didn't consider a bastardization of the art form were older flicks with guys like Vincent Price and Boris Karloff. Those, I really liked, because they had intriguing stories and characters, and they raised questions that really made you think. In my mind, modern Horror was just a chance to pelt you with senseless jump scares a gore. I knew of Wes Craven during this time, but I'd never watched any of his films, only knowing what I saw from the previews of the first Nightmare and the Last House and Hills remakes. Surely this man was just like every other tired Horror director, right? There was no way he could possibly have anything intriguing to say.
I went on with that mindset for years, until one night some friends and I decided to grab a few beers and watch some Slasher, with our only intent being to make fun of them while we drank. One of my friends was a fan of A Nightmare on Elm Street, so we started there. An hour in, my head's spinning as a realize just how subversive the movie really is. I started thinking about all the times I'd dismissed all Horror post-70's to be cheap trash, and here was proof that I was dead wrong.
Next, my friend suggested Wes Craven's New Nightmare, and I jumped up to pop the disc in. It was even more mind-blowing than the original, and I realized Wes Craven really was something special. Even digging back into my favorite old Karloff and Price movies, nothing seemed as deep and subversive as Craven's work. From there, I tracked down everything by Wes Craven I could find and devoured it all. Nightmare's theme of the sins of the older generation coming back to haunt their kids resonated with me, and Last House's ugly picture of the cruelty of human nature still gives me chills to this day.
I think it's safe to safe that Wes Craven's influence made Horror film more subversive than they'd ever been. Without Last House to pave the way, Carpenter and Hooper wouldn't have been able to get away with Halloween and Texas Chainsaw. Here was Horror that not only made you feel incredibly uncomfortable and terrified, but made you think and question the Status Quo. At it's darkest moments, Last House made you question your own nature. After Krug has raped Mari and carved his name into her chest with a knife, he just stands there, looking at his gang. They all look at the blood on their hands and realize just what they've done, and it makes even them uncomfortable. They were humans, just like us, and the level of violence and depravity they're capable of makes us wonder just how far we ourselves could go.
I could go on all day about how Craven opened the Horror genre up to me. How he made me realize just how powerful Horror can be, and the questions it can pose where no other genre can. But, we don't have time for all that. So, I'll just wrap things up here.
Thank you, Mr. Craven. There will never be another mind like yours in the film industry, and that should sadden us deeply. I can't speak for all of us, but I know, as I writer, I intend to keep your influence alive as best I can. Your work has had a deep impact on my voice, and I thank you for that.
Well, guys, that's it from me today. Sorry if this post is kind of a scrambled mess, but I've got a very small window to write this, and no time to worry about edits. If anyone's interested, I may do a more in-depth look at some of Craven's best works in the future. Hit me up in the comments or on facebook and let me know if you'd like to see that!
