Editorials
How To NOT Start Getting Into Horror
For the past few months, I’ve been writing a series for people who don’t watch and/or appreciate horror. The series, which I’ve simply and lovingly called “How To Start Getting Into Horror” has taken multiple subgenres of horror and made several film recommendations to get someone interested in learning more.
At first, this series was met with no small amount of derision and scorn. Horror fans asked why such a series would exist and how this would even reach the people it was intended for. I’ll fully admit that I need your help in that matter to share it with those people. After all, they’re not going to seek it on their own.
But maybe you, fellow horror fan, have that person in your life that you would love to see at least appreciate your passion. That’s who this series is for. That’s who you share it with. That’s who you take the time to slowly but surely introduce to the films that we hold so near and dear to our hearts.
So, while I know you have the best of intentions to try and bring someone into the fray, sometimes it’s best to take a step back and let them flounder and discover things on their own.
That’s why this week is a small series of lessons to non-horror people who want to learn more (with thanks to Starship Troopers). But these are the ground rules for how to proceed, because we don’t want you to run away screaming. After all, that’s the job of the ancillary characters in the films.
With all that long-winded intro out of the way, let’s hit these rules!
Don’t Do It On Your Own
I know that everyone wants to be independent these days. But you don’t have to be. It’s not a weakness to ask for help or to look up places to begin. Hell, that’s why I wrote this whole series to begin with!
Doing it on your own might work. But there’s a far likelier possibility that it won’t and that’s just statistics talking. Everyone wants to try and prove, to themselves or to others, that they can handle things that are often a bigger bite than they can chew. There’s nothing wrong with starting easy and working your way into something, hence why I recommended films like The Mummy or The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen. You start with something that has horror elements and build from there.
The analogy I think is somewhat appropriate is learning how to play the guitar. Trying to play Van Halen’s “Eruption” immediately after picking up a guitar is impossible. You need to build up the callouses on your fingers first, which takes time. And as you build those callouses, everything else you begin to practice and play becomes easier and more manageable.
Take. Your. Time.
Don’t Ask The “Randy” In Your Life
We all have that friend that’s super passionate about something. I love hanging out with these people because that passion is infectious, it’s contagious, and it’s exhilarating. But many of these people don’t know how to bring it down from a “10”. They want to throw you into their passion pool head first, right into the deep end.
Can you imagine if someone were to say, “Oh, you want to get into horror? Alright, let me grab my copy of Cannibal Holocaust!” Yeah….no. No no no.
You need someone a bit more chill, a bit more relaxed. Find that friend that’s into the casual horror movie, the one that gives them a few shivers of the spine but not much else. They’re the ones who will give you the best recommendations on what to start with.
And furthermore, many of them will watch it with you, which leads me to my next point…
Don’t Watch Them Alone
Coming back to the first point, you don’t have to try and prove anything to anyone by watching a horror movie on your own. If they scare you, having people nearby who will watch with you is a comfort, a way to feel safe.
Look at the above clip from Scream. It’s a bunch of pals enjoying themselves to Halloween, which is considered one of the scariest films ever made. The movie can subtly mess with you later, haunting you as you walk through your place in the dark, but you’ll always have good memories attached to it. And that makes a big difference.
Some of the best memories we have in our lives, the ones we cherish the most, are the ones that we share with others. Horror doesn’t have to be any different.
Editorials
‘The Vampire Lestat’ Concert Event Launches New Season With The Ultimate Expression Of Fandom
There are thousands of passionate fans decked out in gothic chic and champing at the bit like feral creatures. They’re screaming for Lestat, a legendary vampire-turned-rock star, as if the entire crowd has been glamored into submission.
The entire experience is magic, but not because some supernatural thrall has been activated. What’s going on is even more special. It’s the power of the effusive fandom that’s been authentically assembled by AMC’s sublime Immortal Universe, namely Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, now, The Vampire Lestat.
The Vampire Lestat is far from the first Anne Rice adaptation, and it’s not as if there’s been a lack of erotic vampire material for audiences to sink their teeth into. On June 2nd, during a one-night-only spectacle, New York City’s prestigious Beacon Theatre shook from Sam Reid’s bravado performance and an audience full of adoring fans who had already memorized Lestat’s songs.
It’s clear that The Vampire Lestat just hits differently than its predecessors. It’s become more than just a TV series at this point, and this opulent display of ego, swagger, and pure sex is the perfect way to premiere the new season and give back to the fans who helped make Interview with the Vampire/The Vampire Lestat such a breakout success. It’s exactly the sort of hyperbolized hedonism that would make Lestat cackle.
For all intents and purposes, AMC has successfully created the illusion that this concert/premiere is just one of the many destinations on Lestat and his band’s 54-stop tour that is simultaneously playing out on this season of television. It’s such a sophisticated and thorough level of interactive fan engagement that the audience doesn’t just understand, but also manages to accentuate through its involvement.
It’s a level of seamless synergy that’s not unlike the give-and-take relationship of vampire and victim.
Before the concert started, “LeStans” were sitting in the Beacon and flipping through a fake Rolling Stone issue with Lestat emblazoned on the cover, complete with interviews with the undead frontman inside. Other fans were admiring the vinyl pressing of Lestat’s EP as they walked past a section of undead band merch. Fandom and fantasy blur together, and it all becomes this elaborate, immersive experience. Fan celebration, erotic gothic fantasy, and a lavish rock concert transform into one beautiful thing.
To this point, AMC Global Media’s Chief Content Officer and President of AMC Studios, Dan McDermott, introduced the event by reiterating to fans, “You are the heartbeat of the series.” That’s abundantly clear on nights like this as that heartbeat collectively pulses to this performance. In terms of how AMC engages with The Vampire Lestat’s fans, it’s as bold a reinvention as the season itself.
This intuitive gamble speaks to AMC’s creativity in this department and a fandom that is eager to seize such opportunities. It’s the same innovation that led to zombie walks for The Walking Dead and real-life Los Pollos Hermanos restaurant pop-ups from Breaking Bad. It’s a great way to pump up the audience for The Vampire Lestat and then maintain that enthusiasm for the whole season.
For most series, a rock ‘n’ roll concert just doesn’t make any sense as a promotional tool. The Vampire Lestat finds itself in a very unique position where it can deliver an excellent concert at an iconic theater, but also use it to showcase The Vampire Lestat’s music by Daniel Hart (who was shredding on stage alongside Reid and the rest of their band) and, more than anything, Sam Reid’s endless charisma.
The way in which Reid feeds off of the crowd’s energy, modulating his performance and giving different sections of the Beacon life, is a perfect distillation of the series’ thoughtful relationship with its audience and how it’s become such a breakout success for AMC. AMC Studios President Dan McDermott emphasized that the fans are the reason that the show is still here and why an event like this is even possible. It’s rare to see a series in which every single cog in the machine is so perfectly attuned to its fans. Reid’s fans already cheer whenever they see him, so why not translate that to a concert setting?
It’s clear in this season of television that Reid was born to be a rock star, but it’s surreal to see him effortlessly command the stage — and the audience — at every step of the concert. He recites Shakespeare monologues and bitches out Armand between songs, all while the audience screams in support. For the duration of this concert, Reid is Lestat, and he’s given thousands of fans a memory that’s as immortal as any vampire.
Now bring on the encore and get this show on the road!
You must be logged in to post a comment.