Unmasking horror movies and thrillers

         Taking a step back to look at the overall conventions of movies we consider  "scary", we see the uncanny resemblance of inhuman monsters. There are quite a few movies that prey on our innate fears of things such as sharks, birds, piranhas, snakes, spiders, bats, crocodiles, and many other types of animals. As you may have guessed, there have been numerous movies with the antagonist taking one of those forms. But ask anyone if they'd rather take on a real animal or a monster from hell, I can guarantee most people will refuse to go with the latter.

        So what makes non-real things so successfully scary? The mystery is certainly and important factor. When you have a monster that does not follow our well-known biology, the audience is constantly wondering about what it may look like, as opposed to an already discovered animal. When refusing to follow conventional norms, directors are able to create terrifying monsters, from the indestructible Michael Myers to the nightmarish Freddy Kreuger.

        One great example of character design playing into tension is in Predator (1987). Throughout the entire movie we do not see the alien's face, not even a glimpse. However, as the final showdown begins, he removes his mask, showing his true face. This was not something unexpected, as the movie built up to this moment. We see the predator's "honor", as well as the malfunctioning technology, and we come to expect the moment, yet we are still surprised when it happens. 

                        In case you needed a reminder as to what he looked like

        We see this trope in many movies, both in literal and rhetorical way. Most times we see some sort of monster, we know nothing about them, but as the movie progresses, we learn more and more about them. And it's this discovery that we feed the audience that keeps them entertained, whether it's Jason Voorhee's physical unmasking, or the more figurative unmasking of Freddy Kreuger's past, we all want to learn and see more of the monsters that haunt our dreams.