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Ari Aster & The Modern Horror Flick
A review of how Midsommar & Hereditary succeed by provoking divine discomfort in their audiences
Long gone are the days of cult followings in horror movies such as Halloween or the Scream saga; modern times call for thought provoking, uncomfortable films about cults.
But how do these modern horror films pan out against the classic slasher flicks of the olden days?
An old-but-great 90s flick is a great place to start in the transition from horror films relying on jump scares and gore to the modern trance of these two Ari Aster films. Scream (1996), and the following four sequels, rely on a fear factor that once upon a time dominated the industry: the jump scare. Accompanied by appropriately timed sound effects and the right balance between shock and gore, these movies kept me hiding behind pillows as a kid and checking my closet before going to bed. The after effect of these movies were grand — movies like Mirrors (2008) kept me from even so much as looking in a mirror for fear that I might slit my own throat open while being puppet mastered by a mirror demon. An immediate fear of every relevant item — a closet, a mirror, a seemingly harmless doll (thanks Chucky..and Annabelle). The haunting of these movies, however, are quick to fade. A good night’s sleep and some daylight, or the occasional quick comedy episode after a good…
