horror movies, part three

horror movies, part three

the ways in which we are challenged

Horror movies present threats of different levels of danger. In some horror movies, the threat is to the entire world – to humanity itself. I want to discuss some of these movies, and what this shows about the movie's portrayal of humanity.

28 Days Later
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0289043/
directed by Danny Boyle
2002

In this movie, a man wakes up from a coma to discover that London is empty – or not really. In fact, the INSANELY infectious “rage virus” has turned most of the population into bloodthirsty killers; the rest basically cower in fear. The movie follows this man and a few others he joins up with, and ultimately a group of British soldiers. But everyone in the movie, even the soldiers (perhaps especially the soldiers) are portratyed as very “ordinary human people.” The movie is about ordinary individuals – you and me – trying to survive in the face of horrific troubles. Indeed, it eventually comes out that the struggle is for more than survival – it is the struggle to remain ordinary, decent human beings in the face of the disaster. That is, more than a few humans, despite not being infected, become as bloodthirsty and awful as the raging infected. This movie portrays the distinctively human feature as (roughly) decency.

The Thing
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084787/
directed by John Carpenter
1982

(see description here)
What is interesting about this movie is the way it depicts scientists, of all people, as the first (and last) line of defense against a tremendous threat to the human species. In other words, when we are faced wih a global threat, it is not military or political might (or indeed any other force) but the power of our science – the best expression, perhaps, of human intelligence – of wha distinguishes us from the other animals that will enable us to survive (or not). Another movie in this vein is The Last Winter, and also The Ring – it is Rachel's reasoning and investigative abilities (that mark of science, perhaps) that enable her to survive what has killed so many others (plus a bit of luck, of course). This movie portrays the distinctively human feature as science and reason.

Resident Evil
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120804/
directed by Paul W.S. Anderson
2002

In this movie, a virus has gotten out in an underground research facility that turns people into zombies. A special forces unit goes in to sort things out, and proceeds to get killed, except for the most badass member of the group, Alice (last name unknown). In this movie, there's little reasoning or thinking or adapting oneself to new circumstances to be done – it all really come down to who can kick the most ass (it is Alice, here and in both sequels). This movie portrays the most basic (and I mean basic, and not distinctive) human feature (the one that all other features contribute to) as fighting ability (I don't mean this in a purely martial-artsy sense). (Alien, Aliens and Alien: Resurrection are all excellent examples of this).

I can't help but mention the pathological case for my discussion: War of the Worlds (which could easily have been presented as a straightforward horror movie) presents the most important feature of humanity as our ability to carry diseases. Some one-liners: Cabin Fever presents the distinctive features of humanity as stupidity and petty vices (petty evils); The Devil's Rejects presents humanity's defining feature as the capacity for (liberating?) evil.