By Kelly Stewart

Opinions Editor

SEATTLE – The killer slowly removes the blindfold from his victim’s head, revealing a terrified young man. He turns and looks pleadingly at his murderer as the hunter brings the chainsaw towards his face –

… And the video cuts back to the director’s grinning face as he reiterates the mood and message he was trying to convey with the scene. I shake my head and remind myself that I am not in the world of the movie Hostel, I am in a museum, although the intricate detail and overall creepy atmosphere of the exhibit is making it hard to remember that a man with a chainsaw is not going to pop out at me at any second.

This hall that is part of the Experience Music Project’s (EMP) exhibition on horror movies and their place in our culture. Chainsaws and axes and realistic looking body parts are displayed everywhere in the half lit rooms. It is this exhibit that I have been so looking forward to since I learned we would be traveling to the EMP on our three day voyage to Seattle, WA.

For everyone who thinks that horror movies have nothing to bring to the table, I would like to prove them wrong.

Spending time at the EMP exhibition on the history of classic horror movies has only strengthened my views on this matter.

Horror movies have been around for years. Since the beginning of time, humans have wanted a way to give themselves an adrenaline rush without the danger of being chased by a crazed killer.

But why do we like them so much? Is it because we truly understand the underlying messages some of them are trying to convey? Or are we just an incredibly morbid race of beings?

I think it’s something deeper than that, and the exhibit at the EMP has made me realize just what the reasons are that humans are so obsessed with scaring themselves.

First, it may not be that we actually like the movies themselves, but that we like the feeling of accomplishment we feel when we get through watching one. Then, we can tell all of our friends that we watched The Exorcist without flinching (even though we may have been cowering under the covers the whole time). Of course, we could just lie about it, but what would be the fun in that?

Second, horror movies allow us to explore and think about subjects that would normally be off limits. Take the aforementioned Exorcist. In the movie, one of the priests who tries to free the girl from the demon not only has to battle the demon, but his own doubt in his faith. Even now, doubt in one’s religion (especially if you are a member of the clergy) is swept under the rug. The Exorcist gives those who may be experiencing doubt a person to identify with.

Horror movies also allow us to experience a rush of excitement without the danger. We have all of the adrenaline with none of the risk.

Horror movies have become a part of human culture, and whether you are a hardcore fan of them, or just dabble in the world of horror from time to time, they hold a value that cannot be replaced by any other genre.