The inspiration for this blog

82nd Academy Awards - Tribute to Horror films
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k343GWb8UDc

First off Thirty-Seven years! Damn right it’s too long since a horror movie has taken home any Oscars. However they hit the nail on the head – it’s where most in that room started but not where they aren't anymore. See horror now-a-days comes off as something that actors and directors do to learn the craft, earn a small loyal fan base, put food on the table and then move on to bigger and better things. Hell the same holds true of studios! It’s Hollywood’s boot camp or kindergarten depending on how you look at it.

Then once the writer/actor/director/studio pays its dues and gets that loyal fanbase –one of two things happens: They either become ‘serious’ and never touch the genre again save maybe every once in a while as a vanity project. Or they become icons of the genre and are scoffed outside the realm of horror fans. I could go on and on about who falls into what category but I don’t want to waste your valuable not-getting-any-work-done-while-the-boss-isn’t-looking-time on random venom. Mostly because there’s no real venom here. It’s not the ‘serious’ actors et al. that are the problem it’s the fact that this has become part of the norm, part of the movie culture or hell the movie going culture at large. Likewise those that stick in the horror trenches and make it their own should not be scoffed even if only a lucky few become so big in the genre to break out into normal movies – like Christopher Lee.

But back to where I was going – it’s OUR fault as a movie going culture that horror gets slammed as something that isn’t serious or is juvenile. At a certain point when we as a whole decide to ‘grow up’ we can’t be bothered to watch horror anymore like its beneath us, something childish. And if we do enjoy horror we’re either a nerd subculture or we do it as a guilty pleasure. Actors et al. come from this very same public and thus like us set aside horror as something that simply cannot have merit instead of giving it the fair shake that it deserves.

What can be done about this? Take your horror seriously! Discuss its underlying themes as well as its artistic merits in open with others. Once we as a whole consider it art again well so will the elite of the movie industry. Now I am not saying become a horror nerd, or goth, or gorefest loving emo kid. You can still do an honest days work, have a normal family, mow the lawn, walk the dog and like horror too. The same goes for comic books but that’s another post.

Second and I know it took me a long time to get here….

Well ladies and gents of the Academy how do we fumble around trying to make this year’s telecast relevant to younger views? Oh wait isn’t that Twilight thing popular? It’s horror right? Get some of the kids from that movie on the red carpet and have them give an award. No they might fuck that up… um… maybe introduce some sort of montage? Horror’s the biggest movie genre isn’t it? 14-25 year olds here we come!

Yeah… sure guys whatever.

-Crowbait.