It is often defined by the gruesome end of most of its characters, the horror genre has been so popular for so long. What is it about watching people die that entertains us so much?
Chris Nash, the director of In a Violent Nature, recently sat down with Digital Trends and was asked about his three favorite deaths in horror movies. His first choice was from Friday the 13th film, Jason X, where Jason shoves a girl’s face into a pool of liquid nitrogen, her face hardens, and then he smashes her face on a nearby table. Nash said, “It’s just a great kill. It’s fun because it’s really inventive. There’s no coming back from that; no one is putting Humpty Dumpty back together again.”
Nash’s second choice was from Creepshow, specifically The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill. He said, “I also enjoy the kills that are more esoteric and disturbing rather than just graphic and gory. That’s why I like The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill so much. I just love how that episode of Creepshow ends with such a gut punch. It’s unexpected, because it begins with Stephen King just hamming it up in front of the camera. It plays like it’s so fun and lighthearted. It’s a kind of a goofy segment.
“And then at the very end … you realize that he’s just been completely overcome by this alien plant life that’s feeding off of his body and he’s in agony. And he’s pleading to God before he kills himself. It’s like, oh, that sticks with you. That death really made me feel a whole lot of empty when it was done.”
Nash’s third choice was from A Nightmare on Elm Street, where Johnny Depp getting sucked into his bed and turning into a fountain of blood that covers his entire bedroom. Nash said, “My third pick is one that is pure nostalgia for me: Johnny Depp getting sucked into his bed in A Nightmare on Elm Street and turning into a fountain of blood that covers his entire bedroom. Yeah, that was just a whole lot to witness, especially when you’re a young child.
“I actually loved every death in that film, because I was really troubled by existential dread when I was a kid. And the idea that when you fall asleep, some guy can come and kill you in your dreams … it’s terrifying.”
