Yes, monsters. And don’t go all girly on me. You liked them too. Admit it.
We’ve all been fascinated with monsters from the time we were at least three. Huddling under the covers with a flashlight, telling scary stories when our parents thought we were asleep. Yeah, you remember.
I got to wondering exactly what makes “horror” such a big market in film and fiction after reading a blog post by Tim Kane on the Five Most Common Misconceptions About Classic Movie Monsters. Monsters have been an uber-hot commodity for a looooong time. Way before Buffy or Twilight, that’s for sure.
But why?
Why do we conjure up grotesque creatures only to hurry through dark streets, afraid they’ll jump out of the shadows?
As soon as I asked myself this, the answer hit me like a stake through the heart (OK, maybe that’s just a tad melodramatic). Alfred Hitchcock once said that the scariest things are the things we can’t see. Monsters put a face on our fears, and once they have form we can conquer them.
The simple fact is … we need monsters. The hero’s light shines brightest when it’s contrasted against the greatest darkness. Enter … the monster.
Great stories require terrible villains, and Monsters are the perfect casting call. Nothing tests a hero’s strength like a monster. What would Harry Potter’s story been without Voldermort?
A badass monster generates conflict in epic proportions. Our hero has to dig deep to surmount superhuman obstacles, rising above fear and character flaws to save the day. Remember Indiana Jones going into the pit of snakes, his worst nightmare?
We pay good money to go on the journey with our hero (monsters and all), because along the way we glimpse what it would be like to conquer our own inner demons and triumph in the end.
So yeah, monsters are awesome. You’ve gotta love to hate them.
What’s your favorite monster from film or fiction?
Elizabeth Fais 
Great post, Elizabeth! My favorite monster has always been King Kong. But I love gorillas so I wasn’t happy about him dying at the end. Some monsters you love so much you don’t want to see them conquered … at least, that’s the way I’ve always felt about Kong 😦
Great post! We all do love monsters, don’t we? I think my favorite is that mummy with all the worms coming out of it…what is that movie called? Super gross. Perfect. 🙂
Hannibal Lecter from Silence of the Lambs. Hate him. Am horrified by him. But he still makes the movie worth the watch.
Congrats on your first post. I LOVE your banner and log line.
The Fly. The original, not the newer one. There’s something scary about something that looks every day, but isn’t.
Wonderful post, does anything really compare to Giger’s xenomorph from Alien? The one from the first movie, perhaps the ultimate thriller in outer space. I saw it when I was about 12, and it still scares me today.
And all done before CGI dominated.
For me, the most memorable monsters are the ones with a human face–they’re the scariest! e.g., Hannibal Lector or Kevin Spacey’s character in SEVEN.
I think Sauron pretty much leaves every other monster in the dust, because he’s basically invincible except for this tiny chink in his armor that no one in their right mind would ever try to take advantage of. He’s so evil that we never see more than his eye. It’s an awesome construct, when you think about it.
I agree. He was uber scary because he wasn’t visible (except for the eye later in the series), working mostly through other things like the Ring Wraiths (I think that’s what the creepy black ghost riders were called) .
Oh, and the blog looks lovely.
😉
I cried at the end the most recent remake of King Kong. In that particular movie, the people were the monsters (from my point of view).
I’ve never liked Medusa…the fact that you can’t look at her is pretty scary. Plus, the snake hair is very creepy. Great post Elizabeth.
Thanks Paul! Medusa was particularly creepy because if you looked into her eyes you turned to stone.
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