Forums Horror Movie Talk
Is Technology Ruining Horror Movies?

Do you miss the days where when the killer can actually cut the phone line and it would make a difference? Or when a group of teenagers get lost they dont have a GPS to pull out to get them back on track? Or how about the days before CGI was as common the actors themselves?

Call me mple, call me an old man, but i miss the days where the killer can trap the kids in the house by cutting the phone line. Horror movies are being written differently now, you cant have the phone line being cut scene anymore, "why dont they just use their cell phones?" Its a lot harder to get a group of people lost nowadays with all the damn technology. I just picked up an iphone and it has a GPS on it (which is actually pretty cool).

And of course the old school special effects, which has been talked about many times on this te but rightfully so. I think almost everyone prefers old school effects over CGI.

I don't think its all bad though. I do admit i have seen some really cool CGI, not as much in horror movies but i have seen it. Another thing is that technology adds to the challenge of writing. You have to be a bit more creative to get from point A to point B.

Im sure i did miss a few good points, don't be afraid to chime in if you like. So when you take the good and bad, i think the bad out weigh the good. But i guess its just part of life...(tear)...What do you guys think?

I agree very much with what you wrote. It's one of those things I find myself saying in some horror films about the cell phone problems. It's always "No gnal". Can't the cell phone just break? Maybe, have the cast be very poor people who can't afford one LOL!

Overall, it seems to be the writers have not found a way to make these advancements work more into the story telling. As each year comes and goes a new idea should bring with it.

What I really would love to see is just less use of the "No gnal" on the cell phone.

I do miss the old school special effects..I don't like CGI much, most of the time, it looks really fake.But the cell phone thing is easy to get around..Like there is no reason why someone can't write a movie that takes place a couple decades ago, or even in the 90's, when everyone didn't have a fucking cell phone..Also, cell phones do break, one of mine broke when I dropped it one day. People also loose them or forget to charge them like my friend does. That does happen in real life, so why can't it happen in a movie?