I wasn’t kidding. It’s a very short list.
1. The Shining by Stephen King
That’s it.
Although I must say, I enjoyed it.I was braver back then. Oh, I also read The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien and that was scary. And there were times Harry Potter freaked me out.
In other words I don’t do scary.
So, I won’t be seeing this rendition of Carrie. I saw the original and that was enough. I think it was a right of passage kind of thing. Must watch Carrie like everyone else. So was Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the 80’s edition). I was eighteen and a couple months in to living on my own for the first time. We watched it at a girlfriend’s house. After they dropped me off I climbed into bed and read an entire Harlequin before allowing myself to drift off into nightmare land.
I’ve watched Criminal Minds. Once. My husband forbade me from watching it ever again. He complained my lack of sleep tired him out. But I mean come on, why be terrified alone when you don’t have to. Plus, I’m pretty sure there was a clause in our vows pertaining to him having to talk me down from those kinds of situations.
So now he’s proactive when it comes to stuff like that. Like this summer when camping and I realized the book I’d brought along to read was about the Campsite Killer. He told me, and I quote, “put that book away. Immediately.”
That doesn’t mean I won’t be watching Sleepy Hallow and Dracula! That’s too much awesomeness to ignore! Besides, there’s no such thing as headless horsemen or vampires. So, it’s not scary. Although…there is a Sleepy Hallow campground thirty minutes down the highway. By the way, my husband refuses to let us camp there.
What’s the scariest book you’ve ever read? Or movie you’ve watched?
My list is exactly the same as yours. “The Shining”. That’s it. And it’s not likely to get any longer. I don’t do horror. My husband was watching “The Exorcist” (sp?) the other day on TV. From the opening, I didn’t realize what movie it was. Until I heard that music. Then I scrambled into the bedroom. Geez, I had nightmares from watching “Jaws” back in the day!
What was about The Shining that we all had to read it? Omgosh, your husband! Mine would watch Jaws but not the other. For me, movies about real life dangers, like Satan and sharks, freak me way the heck out.
The Amityville Horror – ooh, saw the movie, too – back in the day when I was braver (but still scrunched down in my seat with my hands covering my eyes ’cause I knew when the bad stuff was coming)!! Now my biggest scary read would be psychological thrillers, which still leave me freaked out!! Latest one was Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes!!
FYI – I would NOT camp at a campground named Sleepy Hallow
Omgosh, saw the movie! Eeps. Wasn’t it a real house somewhere? Didn’t the walls bleed? I blocked the whole experience. But I do love psychological thrillers books! Will have to check out Darkest Corner. Have you read Before I Go To Sleep? If you haven’t you HAVE TO READ this book.
I know, right? Who in their right minds would name a campground, Sleepy Hallow?
I haven’t read The Shining at all. I read Carrie and it wasn’t that scary. I was rooting for her because those other kids were so mean to her. I also read King’s Firestarter, but that read like a suspense about the government coming after this kid. I liked reading Jaws and Benchley’s The Beast – more action/adventure to me. Somehow, reading a story must make it way less scary for me than watching movies. I can read what others consider scary books, but not watch scary movies.
For me it’s the anticipation. With Carrie you knew things were going to go horribly awry. So you’re waiting for it. You want her to be okay. But there’s no story if she’s successful. So you know it’s gonna be bad. But It’s an interesting thought: What makes a book or movie scary? How do they each do it differently? The same? Hum…