We as horror fans have been subjected to some of the most terrifying, horrifying, and sickening scenes in film history. After all, that’s kinda the purpose of a horror film, right? It’s meant to shock viewers, to scare them and make them feel unsafe. The problem is that after seeing tons of horror movies, it’s really hard to make me feel not only uncomfortable but actually genuinely horrified much these days.
As it turns out, a recent film offered me that experience and it’s stuck with me ever since. In fact, it’s a scene that actually makes me cringe and squirm every time it comes up in discussion because the very thought of it is so horrifying. That film is 2012’s Looper and the scene I’m referring to is Seth’s death.
Let’s watch the scene and then below the video I’ll explain why this is such a horrifying scene for me.
Okay, made it through? Let me explain what’s happening before I get into specifics.
The universe of Looper allows for time travel. I mean, that’s a given, considering the nature of the film but it helps to have a foundation here.
Old Seth is sent back in time to be killed by Young Seth, who hesitates and ends up letting him go. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) turns Seth in so that he doesn’t lose his cut of the money but makes it clear that Seth is not to be killed. Instead, what happens is far, far worse.
In order to retrieve Old Seth, Young Seth is tortured and mutilated, his limbs and extremities removed one piece at a time. As a result, Old Seth begins losing the same pieces of his body, only they happen immediately and without warning. One moment he has all four fingers, the next he has two. Then his nose is gone. And so on. Desperate to stop this horrifying sequence of events, he travels to the address that has been carved into his arm and accepts his fate.
Many people wondered why Young Seth simply wasn’t killed. After all, wouldn’t that make Old Seth disappear? The answer is yes but they were unsure what Seth would do with his life in between the years of Young Seth and Old Seth. Killing him off might drastically alter the future in ways that they couldn’t even begin to expect. That’s why they had to keep him alive, even if in a state such as the one he is now forced to live in.
And that’s what is so horrifying. Not only does Old Seth live in absolute terror while his body literally falls apart on him, Young Seth is now going to live his life minus all the extremities that were surgically removed. No tongue, no nose, no arms or legs… This was his punishment for wanting his own self to live. And that’s why Old Seth was so desperate to make it back. He knows that for every piece he loses, his younger self will be forced to endure a lifetime of even greater hardship. His cries of “Wait!” aren’t for him as an old man. They’re for the rest of his younger self’s life.
What do you think? Is this a horrifying scene or am I just being too sensitive? If you’ve got a better sequence, share it in the comments below!