How do you feel about people who love/are repelled by extremely violent films?

[C-Desecration-]

“This is real life, you fuckers!", said The Arrow to a crowd of displeased Cannes walkouts. He went on to say: "Maybe if you’d take two seconds away from your satin sheets and your fancy cars, you’d realize that it’s not ALL puppy dogs and ice cream all over the world. Go rent "Black Knight" and stay ignorant you freaking fools!”

That is a quote from Arrow's review of Irreversible. Personally I think that's a little too close to the "if you don't want to watch rape you're pretending it doesn't exist" angle (an angle I think's bullshit). I remember bringing this up a good long time ago, but I think that thread got closed. On any account . . .

How do you feel about people who are either repulsed by these extremely violent films (Cannibal Halocaust, Irreversible, whatever) or adore the hell out of them? Now I doubt many "adore" the films, bad choice of words . . . just people who watch these films for the emotional impact/curiousity/what have you.
I personally know of at least two schmoes who are really into the "gorehound/extremely voilent" genre: Nekro and eraser. I know there's more (a lot), but those are the two that immediately came to mind. For those people, how do you feel about those who are repulsed by these films? Is it more of a "different strokes for different folks" feeling, or more insulting because they refuse to see the art/point to those films, mindlessly classing them and anyone who watches them as "trash" (obviously those are the more extreme viewpoints).
And for those who view these films as trash, how do you feel about the people who watch them?

Most likely this thread'll get "eh" replies, as if "if you like em' cool, if not cool." But if people get opinionated I just want to remind everyone (especially me) to try and argue/clash views without directly insulting schmoes. As long as people are only fighting with viewpoints and opinions I doubt a mod would have any problem with it.

Like I said right off the bat, I get peeved with fans of the genre who think that those who choose not to watch are simply trying to pretend that bad things don't exist. So in other words, just because someone doesn't care to sit down and watch someone get raped means they're pretending rape doesn't exist. Uh-huh. Right.
I also don't like the negetivity associated with all "gorehound/extremely violent" films. As in, if you watch them you're immediately thought of as sick. Funny thing is, I actually had that very thought on this Mordum thread in current/upcoming horror. Of course, after talking with the fans of the "gorhound/extremely violent" genre I obviously realized that the sterotype was ridiculous.

[XpatrickX]

I love to watch fake gore, but they go a way overboard with actual cruelty to living things. I can understand the curiosity, but I dont at all understand how someone could deep down enjoy watching the cannibal films. I agree with you though...just because it's out there doesn;t mean I want to be watching it...and therefore...I don't.

[TheDeadWalk]

We've got to remember that most horror is just that... horrifying. Some people find certain films/images extremelly disturbing and unsettling. I can't really be against them getting scared. That's what it was meant to do, really.

It's a minority to find people that LOVE incessant gore, and wicked torturous violence in films, and can laugh and eat popcorn while watching it. Because you remain in the elite few, shouldn't proclaim one's right to judge others who can't handle such things.

Of course, there's political views on things, but remember this is film. As a seasoned horror veteran myself, it took me FIVE years to get the balls to rent Cannibal Ferox, and my palms were sweating before I had even paid for it. I could smell the stench off of the old box, and it was creepingly horrifying. These films are meant to be disturbing, and it shouldn't come as a shock when they actually disturb.

Loving it on the other hand, is cool too. That's your thing. But neither side should try to convert either to their side. They should only see their point on why they remain on that side of the fence, and be like Fonzie about it.

[deadeye]

It depends on a combo of what they love and why they say they love it.

[MRPINK]

Stuff like "Last House on The Left" happens every day. The whole horrible revenge things do not. People tend to believe that rape and sadidtic behavior isnt as bad as they hear. Seeing movies like "Last House" and "I Spit on Your Grave" show the horrors of society No i do not think that people dont believe that these things dont happen. But i know to many people that do. Some of it is to much. But the problem is people cash in on these ideas,to much, and dont care about a story, but just exploitation.

Believe me, I love exploitation. Its made for some great films. But there is a line. This stuff isnt for everyone. But its meant to horrify. We are supposed to hate the killers and villians. They do the most horrible unspeakable things. And then they get theirs, Its not so much the way with reality.

We have the choice to watch it, or turn it off. And that what i do.

[X-Nightcrawler]

I don't know about this, I was extremely sickened by Irreversible but I really loved it (Im not watching it again in a long time, though)...but I think that's the mostly normal reaction someone should get. I understand how real this might be (shit, it's like BEING THERE), and how often it happens, maybe that's why I felt so disgusted by it.

[Haddonfield]

Im a huge horror fan but I have no desire to watch the ultra violent movies. I love gore and blood but not in a sadtistic way, more in the fun way. I do understand that shite like this does happen throught our world and for me Id rather not watch it. It creeps me out, stays in the head, and overall is a good thing for my paranoid ass! :)

[Nekroman]

It's all a matter of degrees I think. Lets say something like, oh, I don't know, Scream, were to have come out in the fifties or sixties. Now we watch it and laugh our asses off but back then it would have shocked and appauled audiences. So I do think it's a simple matter of how strong your immunity to the carnage is. I remember as a teenager I thought I was a badass gorehound but movies like Bloodsucking Freaks and Dr. Butcher MD totally sickened me. Now those are like episodes of Dora the Explorer to me.
While I watch everything under the sun no matter how extreme and violent I can easily understand why others choose not to. For me I guess my reasons are pretty deep rooted psychologically speaking. I think part of it is a subconscious "fuck you" to polite society by watching these taboo films. Another part is the challenge. Being told a certain film is "extreme" or that "once you see it you'll NEVER forget it" makes me think to myself "Oh really?" and so I give it a shot. I admit my tastes are not as sophisticated as some others as I don't always look for certain values in movies but go in for cheap shocks.
I know that me, Blag and Eraserhead and the others go for the nasty stuff but I have total respect for anyone that declines the invitation. You might be right because while most of the stuff I watch I shake off minutes after the credits roll there are a few where the hype was justified. But at the same time for those ones I have a private little victory in that I endured the worst of the worst.
So my opinons are if they are your cup of tea then have at it. If not there's nothing wrong with decaf!

[Corpse Candle]

My view of gore at least exsessive gore is that it is a lazy device to cause the sensation of fear and dread.
Films such as Funny Games are disturbing because of what of don't see in explict detail much like the method hitchcock used.

Films such as I Spit On Your Grave do not serve much value to me I understand the need for extreme cinema some of it can be excellent(Man Bites Dog).
However I Spit On Your Grave is a film where a rape scene is one of the main scenes in the entire film.

Personaly that doesn't sit easy with me.Also the fact that the film seems to play for cheap thrills during the rape scene makes me feel uneasy.

I may watch Irreversible because of the way it handles the rape scene showing the pain and horror of act responsably.
I draw the line at the Guinea Pig films....these films are simply about torture and the degregation of the fleash.

Personaly there is nothing educational or entertaining about that.....

[pyscho dude]

I'm a pretty twisted individual and I personally like excessive gore. Hell I even sometimes like to watch the surgery channel.

[John Mullets]

I agree with Corpse Candle.

Personally, I find all this sadistic torture/rape stuff to be completely foul and I wouldn't like to watch it for cheap thrills.

I admit, I love gore but I don't like to tread into torture and sadism. I love when it's ultra-gory but can be taken with a grain of salt (e.g. Premutos - Lord of the Living Dead).

There are films that are realistic and disturbing but fantastic and gritty cinema (e.g. Irreversilbe, as mentioned earlier, and A Clockwork Orange) and some films that are totally disgusting and use torture and rape for cheap thrills (e.g. Guniea Pig). I would never watch a film in the latter category. I am not excited by rape or torture.

[KillerKlown]

I'm into gorey/violent films - the gorier and more violent the better! As for those who are repulsed by them, fair enough - each to their own, as far as I'm concerned.

[HeavyK]

I'm a gore lover (fake makeup effects gore that is) so people that like those kind of films are the kind of people i'd love to have as friends, or even better girlfriends.
As for gore haters, i could care less what they think so long as they don't want the films censored or banned. If they want them censored or banned, then i say screw you, no one is forcing you to watch it or forcing your children to watch it so leave us people who like these films alone.

[Corpse Candle]

Originally posted by HeavyK
I'm a gore lover (fake makeup effects gore that is) so people that like those kind of films are the kind of people i'd love to have as friends, or even better girlfriends.
As for gore haters, i could care less what they think so long as they don't want the films censored or banned. If they want them censored or banned, then i say screw you, no one is forcing you to watch it or forcing your children to watch it so leave us people who like these films alone.

Nobody is saying anything about banning anything and censorship is usualy best left to the indivdual in most cases.
I just take issue with films like Guinea Pig because it has is little of substance concerning story telling.

I think it is the first Guinea Pig film where the film is based upon the premise of kiddnapping a woman and torturing here.
I know it's fake I just would find it hard to justify the time wasted with watching this as entertianment.

I would really only watch this as part of a research for course work (as when I did media studies A level I had to watch particular pieces of cinema).

However on a personal level films this extreme I would be disturbed by because they portray torture as a form of entertainment.
I don't judge others on what they watch only on their actions I do not like watching or reading things that insult me and my inteligence.

I can imagine what people are capable of doing to there follow man I can read about it too.
Watching something on the screen that I know goes on isn't always a method of opening your mind.

It's just conformation upon what you already know...I would rather move on a discover.

[C-Desecration-]

However on a personal level films this extreme I would be disturbed by because they portray torture as a form of entertainment.


I don't think I've ever heard the problems of exploitation put in such a perfect way.

Once a film shifts its violence/torture away from disgust and into entertainment, THAT'S when most people have an issue. Then again, films like T2 (which I love) portray violence as entertaining . . .
So what, is torture-as-entertainment bad, but shootings-as-entertainment not?

[Nekroman]

There's seems to be an unfair stereotype that people like me are seen as demented jackasses, laughing at people getting hideously tortured and maimed realistically (or in the case of mondo films, literally). I have not once seen this stereotype to be true in any form. It is true that I watch some sicko extreme movies. Ones that push envelopes and so forth but not one of us that I know of watches these cheering on the people doing the torture or killing. I guess it's assumed by others that we do otherwise why would we subject ourselves to such vicious movies? The truth is these movies are supposed to be shocking. They are made to appaul everybody, including the very people who dare watch them. I guess I just don't mind the endless mind-raping that these movies do to me. I wouldn't say I watch them for the sake of entertainment (I have Event Horizon for that). I'd say I watch them because nobody else will and maybe in a way I like the feeling to seeing something not many others would be brave enough to endure.

[C-Desecration-]

There's seems to be an unfair stereotype that people like me are seen as demented jackasses, laughing at people getting hideously tortured and maimed realistically (or in the case of mondo films, literally). I have not once seen this stereotype to be true in any form.


NO OFFENSE IS MEANT TO ANYONE (except for that duck over by the curb)!

That's not quite true, Nekro. Oddly enough we can see proof of that on joblo.com. Who? Eraser (full username is _eraserhead). Now this guy's never fully said if he's been serious or joking, but he's constantly mentioned that human gore/death, whether real or violent, is "funny". Eraser's a gorehound, and if he's serious, than he definitly fits that stereotype to a T.
Of course he's probably an exception. The gorehounds on this board usually give the impression that these violent films repulse them (I didn't once see anyone say "mordum was so fucking cool! loved it when that guy fucked the kid's corpse! ahahhhahha!").

[Nekroman]

I don't know. I can't speak for Eraserhead but my conversations with him on AIM have been cool. I can personally testify that some of the atrocities I've seen will never be forgotten. And just so it's clear where I stand, although I watch these things frequently (I'm a glutton for punishment) some stuff I can never under good conscience call myself a "fan" of even though I watch it. Perfect example is Men Behind the Sun. It's an absolute mindfuck of a movie that sticks in your head days after seeing it and since that one is based on actual historic events I would feel guilty and dirty for admitting any enjoyment from watching it.
It's funny though because on a side note I often see threads where a schmoe is trying to find the sickest, most gut-wrenching horrific movie on the planet and even though I've been there and still am I think a great number of schmoes underestimate what they are getting themselves into because those types of movies are leagues beyond what even your sickest imagination can conjure up and even hardened gorehounds may be in for some shocks that are a bit more fierce than they expect.

[Cronos]

i love excessive gore and excessive violence, but not stuff like anumal snuff, i am strongly against that

i dont really care if people hate gore or violence because it depends on their personal opinion and feelings

[jagged halo]

I don't take issue with those who do not enjoy horror films and the gore they may contain.

What I do take issue with, and I speak from experience, is those
who ridicule my hobby and come to the entirely wrong conclusion I must be mentaly unstable for having such a HEALTHY appetite for this particular genre, how naive is that?.

I respect individuals differing view points on the subject of horror films, likewise I expect exactly the same treatment.

I must confess for people who find amusement viewing real life tragedies or murders, I would have to question their equilibrium.

[countchocula]

Originally posted by C-Desecration-
That's not quite true, Nekro. Oddly enough we can see proof of that on joblo.com. Who? Eraser (full username is _eraserhead). Now this guy's never fully said if he's been serious or joking, but he's constantly mentioned that human gore/death, whether real or violent, is "funny". Eraser's a gorehound, and if he's serious, than he definitly fits that stereotype to a T.

I don't like countering a schmoe's platform before he's had a chance to defend himself, but some of the comments that Eraser has posted have been disconcerting. He seems to view mondo films as gross-out comedies. Again, I hope he interjects with his stance on the matter because I wouldn't mind being proven wrong.

[C-Desecration-]

This thread seems to've slipped beneath eraser's radar, so a healthy bump might do the trick.

Oh, and . . .

What I do take issue with, and I speak from experience, is those who ridicule my hobby and come to the entirely wrong conclusion I must be mentaly unstable for having such a HEALTHY appetite for this particular genre, how naive is that?.

You know, I'm never very vocal about the movies I watch unless someone brings them up, so I don't typically go around talking about Irreversible (still haven't seen it . . .) or anything . . . but whenever that does come up whoever I'm talking to usually pauses, hesitates, then: " You like those movies?"
Then they blink. Twice. Dip their eyebrows. And finally:
" You don't seem . . ." then they trail off and shrug.
Its kind of amusing.
Hell, look at joblo.com--horror fans HAVE THEIR OWN BOARD. Like, we're excluded from general movies becaue we're so sick and twisted. ;)

[jagged halo]

Lol!, we are not alone.

;)

[poopontheshoes7]

Well to me over the top gore is just silly entertainment. People who get a real sick kick out of are a little kookoo, imo. People that are against it dont bother me unless they preach about to the world. See my mother hates me watching the stuff alot because she claims "Its all you ever watch". In a way ya shes right but its not the only form of entertainment I like so whats the big deal.

PS: Sorry I havent been around for a while computer took a big crapfart.

[Richard Stuart]

I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with people admitting they find really extreme movies entertaining - if it's just acting and 'only a movie'. It's different for the real death footage stuff - I think that's more a morbid curiosity, which is the same as watching atrocities on the news. Perhaps even the news is 'entertaining' on a certain level, though..?

Strange thing is, I met someone once who thought horror films are disgusting and 'wrong', and yet they watch boxing! I don't want to get all moral here, each to their own, this is just my opinion - but I think that wanting to watch some poor sod get hit so much he loses consciousness - then cheering when he does - in 'real life' is infinitely more sick than watching and enjoying any make-believe film.

[C-Desecration-]

Strange thing is, I met someone once who thought horror films are disgusting and 'wrong', and yet they watch boxing!


There's got to be a few thousand examples like this. We're a little morally confused as a society, I guess. Who knows.

What does everyone find more morally reprehensible?
A. A person laughing while they watch Scream/Nightmare/Friday/Halloween films, cheering on the lead villain as he guts up teens. (option 'A' involves "okay" horror films that appeal to mainstream)
B. A person watching Irreversible/whatever and being thoroughly repulsed by the violence shown. (option 'B' involves "bad" horror films that are way too intense for mainstream)
Option 'A' is more publicly accepted than option 'B'.
Hmm . . .

[movielover999]

I completely understand why people would not want to view violence, etc... Some people have had terrible things happen to them, etc... It's understandable...

The types I cant stand are the preacher types... Your going to hell for watching a horror movie, your evil and sinful, etc... The types who try to *pretend* they are better in every single way than everyone else... Yet, in many cases in my experience, these same people have done worse things than I have ever done in real life...

IMO, if your going to preach, you better know your shit and be perfect in every way (if your preaching to be perfect)...

I completely understand if someone doesnt want to watch horror movies... Not like I am going to force them... As long as your not preaching to me telling my am a sinful, evil, or whatever, I am fine with it...

Tell me I am going to hell for watching Poltergeist or whatever, then I have a problem and will discredit (basically shread the person apart)...

Basically, we all like different things... Everyone has their hobbies and likes... As long as it's not hurting anyone, I really dont care...

[poopontheshoes7]

Well said Movielover999, very well put. I couldnt have said it better myself.

[Carrieattheprom]

For people who like them, cool. I'll watch a movie with them long as it's FAKE. No Cannibal Holocost. Even if the animals were eaten later, they were still killed on camera and I'd rather not see how my dinner got to my plate. Other than that, I'll watch about anything.


People who are repulsed by it-fine that's your thing but I think you're a bit of a wimp.





Note about my Mom- She once had nightmares after watching an episode of Nickelodeon's Are You Afraid Of The Dark? I was nine and I wasn't scared at all!

[Corpse Candle]

People who are repulsed by it-fine that's your thing but I think you're a bit of a wimp.


Hmmmmm...well it's just a naturel reaction and I rather that than being thrilled at mock snuff or prolonged rape scenes.
Also when you I think of extreme I think of Guinea Pig,I Spit On Your Grave(uncut),Salo....

You can deal with taboo and socialy rejected issues in films such as rape,insect,murder e.t.c...

I think that is where extreme cinema works and that's where it's place is on an entertianment level it's despratly limited.
If a majority of these films are designed to repulse people and make you think about issue that wouldn't not cross your mind i:e Irreverseable,Funny Games,Henry,Man Bites dog.

Then why do some see such films as a fun and cool way to spend an evening I can only speak from my own mind set and the way such films make me think.
I don't look down on anyone but if I wounder why some people see these films as pure fun when a lot of them are created to state a serious issue.

[C-Desecration-]

People who are repulsed by it-fine that's your thing but I think you're a bit of a wimp.

For people who like them, cool. I'll watch a movie with them long as it's FAKE. No Cannibal Holocost.

. . . wimp.

And corpse, I really doubt there are a lot of people who watch these for "fun". Like you said, its a person's mind-set and the way they want their thoughts to be manipulated that they seek out these extreme films.

[Corpse Candle]

Oh I don't think there are a lot of people who do watch them for fun...but they do exsist if only in small numbers I have encounterd someone who "claimed" to own snuff films for instance.

I think he was lying or owned something that is clearly fake the fact is he was proud to say he owned his supposed snuff.
My mind jarred and I never speak to the guy about films to this day....hell I don't hardly speak to him.
Also I just wish to say I am not making a judgement on people here I don't know you and it would be uneducated to cast aspertions upon what someone write on a message board:)