What horror films teach us about ourselves and being human | Dr. Steven Schlozman | TEDxNashville
Summary
TLDRIn this engaging talk, the speaker uses horror as a metaphorical mirror to explore profound questions about human nature and society. Drawing on personal anecdotes and iconic horror films, they argue that horror's transgressive nature captures our imagination, creating loyal fans. They delve into how horror teaches us about ourselves, entertains, and paradoxically, brings people together, fostering community and connection. The speaker, a child psychiatrist and horror enthusiast, reflects on the genre's ability to provoke thought and discussion on complex issues like mob justice and prejudice, suggesting horror's deeper, sneakily profound value.
Takeaways
- 🎭 The speaker humorously acknowledges the audience's applause before he has even begun speaking, setting a light-hearted tone.
- 🪞 The speaker uses a mirror as a metaphor to represent how horror reflects our inner selves and society.
- 👻 He shares a personal story of encountering a vampire at age 11, illustrating the lasting impact of horror on our imagination.
- 📽️ The speaker discusses various iconic horror films and their cultural significance, such as 'The Shining', 'Rosemary's Baby', and 'A Nightmare on Elm Street'.
- 🧠 As a child psychiatrist, he explores the psychological appeal of horror, suggesting it can provoke deep thoughts and discussions about complex issues.
- 👶 Horror films often target a young audience, with the average age of first exposure being 11, indicating a formative impact on viewers.
- 🔍 The speaker delves into the cognitive processes triggered by horror, such as metacognition and pattern recognition.
- 🤡 He uses the example of clowns to explain how horror plays with our expectations and fears, fostering a sense of community and connection.
- 🧬 The speaker speculates on whether horror's ability to bring people together and provoke thought could be rooted in our social and biological nature.
- 🎬 The talk concludes with an encouragement for the audience to embrace the reflective and communal aspects of horror films.
Q & A
What is the significance of the mirror mentioned in the script?
-The mirror mentioned in the script symbolizes a reflection of ourselves, highlighting both our own and the speaker's flaws, as well as a reflection of anyone who looks at it, with the exception of the person in the picture who 'shouldn't show up on film.'
What does the speaker suggest about horror that makes it appealing to audiences?
-The speaker suggests that horror teaches us about ourselves, entertains us, and helps us to love each other more, despite it sounding cliché.
What personal story does the speaker share about encountering a vampire?
-The speaker shares a story from when they were eleven years old in 1978, where they saw a vampire hovering outside a window, attempting to gain entry. The vampire was described as having long nails, glowing yellow eyes, and was smiling.
What was the speaker's reaction to seeing the vampire as a child?
-The speaker ran upstairs, turned on every light in the house, and made crosses out of tongue depressors and rubber bands to protect themselves, despite being Jewish and not typically using crosses.
Which movie is referenced when the speaker talks about the vampire from their childhood?
-The movie referenced is 'Salem's Lot,' a made-for-TV movie that scared the speaker as a child.
What does the speaker claim about the average age when people see their first horror movie?
-The speaker claims that the average age when people see their first horror movie is eleven years old.
Why does the speaker believe that horror films can lead to profound discussions?
-The speaker believes that horror films can lead to profound discussions because they present extreme scenarios that allow viewers to explore complex moral and ethical questions more easily than in real-life situations.
What is the significance of the character Freddy Krueger in the speaker's discussion?
-Freddy Krueger is used to illustrate how horror can make viewers confront difficult moral questions. Despite being a monster, his backstory humanizes him, making the audience question justice and mob rule.
How does the speaker relate the concept of pattern recognition to horror films?
-The speaker relates pattern recognition to horror films by explaining how our brains recognize when something is slightly off, which can create a sense of fear. Horror films exploit this by presenting familiar scenarios in unsettling ways.
What role does the speaker suggest that horror films play in social bonding?
-The speaker suggests that horror films create community and connection. They provide a shared experience where it is expected and acceptable to react out loud, fostering a sense of togetherness among viewers.
What does the speaker propose about the function of the distorted mirror in relation to horror?
-The speaker proposes that the distorted mirror in horror serves as a metaphor for how horror can reflect our own flaws and vulnerabilities back to us in a way that allows us to confront and accept them, leading to self-improvement and a deeper understanding of ourselves.
Outlines
🎭 Introduction to Horror
The speaker begins by humorously addressing the audience with a standing ovation before diving into the topic of horror. They use a mirror as a metaphor for self-reflection and introduce the idea that horror can be both entertaining and educational. The speaker shares a personal anecdote about encountering a vampire at age eleven, which left a lasting impression and sparked a lifelong interest in horror. They describe the scene in detail, from the vampire's appearance to their own reactions, and how it led to a deeper contemplation of horror's impact on individuals and society.
👻 The Transgressive Appeal of Horror
The speaker discusses the unique appeal of horror, noting its ability to create loyal fans even among less-than-stellar films. They highlight several iconic horror films such as 'The Shining', 'Rosemary's Baby', 'It Follows', and 'Nightmare on Elm Street', emphasizing their cultural impact and the way they resonate with audiences. The speaker, who is also a child psychiatrist, reflects on the seeming contradiction between their professional role and their love for horror, pondering the genre's deeper psychological significance and its capacity to provoke thought and discussion about complex issues.
🔥 The Complex Morality of Horror
In this section, the speaker uses the character Freddy Krueger from 'Nightmare on Elm Street' to explore the complex moral questions that horror can raise. They discuss the film's plot twist revealing Freddy's human backstory and the mob justice that led to his monstrous transformation, prompting the audience to consider the nature of justice and retribution. The speaker also references 'Salem's Lot', examining the conflicted loyalty between familial bonds and the threat posed by a transformed loved one, and how horror can serve as a medium for discussing difficult social issues.
🤹♂️ Metacognition and Pattern Recognition in Horror
The speaker delves into the psychological processes triggered by horror, such as metacognition—the act of thinking about one's own thoughts—and pattern recognition. They use the example of clowns to illustrate how horror can disrupt our expectations and provoke a deeper cognitive response. The speaker also discusses how horror films can challenge our perceptions and biases, using the juxtaposition of familiar and unfamiliar elements to create discomfort and prompt self-reflection. They argue that horror's ability to blend patterns in unexpected ways can lead to profound insights about human nature and societal issues.
🧠 The Social and Cognitive Benefits of Horror
In the final paragraph, the speaker argues that horror not only makes us think and recognize patterns but also serves a social function by bringing people together. They describe the communal experience of watching horror films in theaters, where audience reactions are both expected and encouraged. The speaker suggests that horror's predictability and derivative nature can create a sense of connection and shared experience among viewers. They conclude by reflecting on the transformative power of horror to provoke thought, recognize patterns, and foster social bonds, ultimately allowing us to better understand and tolerate our own vulnerabilities.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Horror
💡Metacognition
💡Pattern Recognition
💡Mob Justice
💡Displacement
💡Vampire
💡Cognitive Dissonance
💡Community
💡Prejudice
💡Mirror
Highlights
The speaker humorously acknowledges the standing ovation before they've even begun speaking.
The concept of a mirror is introduced as a metaphor for self-reflection and the reflection of society.
Horror is described as a genre that entertains, teaches us about ourselves, and can even help foster love among people.
A personal story about encountering a vampire at age eleven is shared to illustrate the lasting impact of horror.
The speaker discusses the average age people first experience horror movies and its transgressive nature.
The enduring popularity of horror films and their ability to create loyal fans is noted.
Classic horror films like 'The Shining', 'Rosemary's Baby', and 'Nightmare on Elm Street' are mentioned as influential.
The speaker, a child psychiatrist, discusses the irony of their love for horror given their profession.
A discussion on how horror can provoke thought and potentially lead to a better understanding and acceptance of oneself and others.
The backstory of Freddy Krueger from 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' is used to explore themes of justice and mob rule.
The importance of pattern recognition and its role in the human response to horror is explained.
Clowns as a metacognitive exercise are used to illustrate how horror makes us think about what we're thinking.
The speaker argues that horror films can ask difficult societal questions in a way that is more palatable than direct confrontation.
The impact of 'Night of the Living Dead' in addressing racism, sexism, and the Vietnam War through horror is highlighted.
The physiological responses to horror films, such as increased heart rate and sweating, are mentioned.
The concept of cognitive dissonance and its potential link to prejudice and racism is explored through horror.
The social bonding experience of watching horror films in a theater is described.
The speaker concludes by encouraging the audience to watch the next horror film, emphasizing the genre's value.
Transcripts
Wow
A standing ovation
I haven't done anything yet.
Don't hardly feel right as they say.
Okay.
Sorry this is your last thing.
Right so this is what you're
going to look at.
That behind you
That's a mirror. Okay.
That's a mirror of all of you.
Not trying to be insulting it's just true.
And it's a mirror of me
its a mirror of pretty much
anybody who looks at it
except that guy in the picture
'cus we know he shouldn't show up on film
but it's okay that that's the mirror
Right? We know how it works.
'cos if it were more pristine.
If it were more kind of accurate
I think it'd be hard to look at
this is what I'm going to try
and tell you about horror,
it teaches us about ourselves
it actually entertains us
and helps us to love each other even more
and I know that sounds like a cliche
so you're gonna have to
bear with me a little bit
and you're going to have to bear with me
as I tell you some stories.
So let's let's get started.
That's me with as just bangs
makes the difference.
When I was eleven years old
with bangs
I saw a vampire,
I- I- did,
he was someone's brother this vampire, and
he was hovering outside a second story window
through which he was trying to gain access
and his nails they'd grown
unnaturally long throughout the night,
he was staring at me with kind of these
kind of lifeless glowing yellow
bile filled eyes
and you know what?
I let that vampire into the house.
I've been thinking about that vampire
for a long long time.
He was scratching at the window
and he was smiling.
So,
if I could play you this scene,
which we can't because of copyright reasons
that's good because the music alone
would scare the hell out of me again
and I'd be back at that time
when I had bangs, So, rather than
to do that, what I'd like to do for you
is paint the picture.
I'd like to take you back.
So like I said,
I was eleven years old.
It's 1978
you need to picture wood panelled basement
okay, and I'm home all alone
it's just me and my my trusty dog Patches
this mongrel this white mongrel animal
whose white fur kind of blended seamlessly
with the white shack carpet.
My parents were out for the evening.
My sister is having a sleepover
at someone's house.
And I've eaten all but the last piece
of one of those God given Tostino's
Frozen Pizza. Those are like the greatest
gift ever to frozen food.
And I'm clutching one of those 70s
plastic translucent cups which you've seen
-which you've probably seen - have
in your basement
- I'm clutching a glass Dr. Pepper
and there's a vampire at the window.
Tell you what. You know what I did?
I got up and I ran up the stairs
and I turned on every light in the house.
Every light went on and I didn't care
that I had little bits of pizza crumbs
stuck to my flannel shirt. didn't care
that my dog was running after me going,
"What's going on Steve?
What's all the fuss?"
I didn't care that I was pretty sure
I'd knocked that Dr. Pepper thing
down below. None of that mattered to me.
What mattered was that there's a vampire
at the window. In the basement.
So I had to do something.
I had to take action.
My dad was a doctor.
So I went into the bathroom
and I found all these tongue pressers
and then I found these rubber bands
and I made them into crosses
I made like 12 crosses
out of rubber bands.
No really I did this.
But you know what the funniest part
of all this is? I'm Jewish.
I've never made a cross in my life
you know? I knew the rules. There was
a vampire in the basement.
And I'm wasn't taking any chances.
So -so that vampire
those of you who may have recognised him
that was from the made for tv movies
Salem's Lot. That was a network television
I don't know how that gets passed.
Network television.
You talk to people from my generation.
And you say "what was the scariest movie
you've ever seen?"
They'll go through the cannon.
They'll say the Handmaid, the Exorcists,
The Omen. Then you say, did you ever see
'Salems Lot?
And they'll eyes will grow wide
and look with this big smile.
Oh my god.That movie scared me to death.
Directed by the same guy who directed the
Texas Chain Saw Massacre. But -But
I will bet you a thousand tickets. To a
thousand horror conventions.
That if they tell you their story about
'Sales Lot, It'll be a lot like the story
I just told you.
It might not involve Tostinos Frozen Pizza
it might involve a bag of Torritos instead
it might involve a sleepover.
But nobody sleeps over. Right?
Everyone's up all night
in this delightful terror
after having seen the show.
This is what horror does.
Horror grabs you when you're 11 years old
which by the way the average age
when people see their first horror movie.
That's eleven
So there's something transgressive
about horror.
It grabs you and it makes some of
the most loyal fans on the planet.
Even bad horror films make money.
Don't get me wrong there are plenty of
really really good horror films.
Films that are celebrated by
the critics and the fans alike.
Let's wander through them.
The Shining
Who has not had nightmares
about the twins in the hallway.
That little kid with his redrum thing
and the bike and the elevator. The Shining.
There's Rosemary's Baby. 1968.
I teach this film to Harvard undergraduates
they've grown up with Youtube right?
they need to see the story from begin
middle and end by 3 minutes
and they sit through 2+ hours
of Mary's descent into littly and to hell
and they have this huge smile on this face
why don't we see movies like this anymore?
There's It Follows, a movie that
came out very recently.
If you want to see a terrifying depiction
of what it means to come of age
in this society
this is your movie.
There's this one we've forgotten to come to
Nightmare on Elm's Street
a generation of people grew up on this movie
including me.
And theres dawn of the freaking dead.
If you see one zombie film.
This is the one you want to see. 1978.
This movie's made.
What did Romero show with this movie?
He showed us that you don't need
a contagent or radiation
or the rage virus to become a zombie.
what you need is a shopping mall.
That's it. That's what makes the change.
These are the movies that I love.
I am a horror fan.
These movies scare me to death.
But I will go again and again
with a big smile on my face
and I'll come out with
an even bigger smile on my face.
But there's a bit problem for me here.
Because' you know what?
I'm also a child psychiatrist
I have a bodified MD
and I take care of children for a living
and they're not just the kids I'm raising
they're the kids whose parents
actually pay me and I see them.
If you bring your kids to see a doctor,
you do whatever somebody does nowadays;
you google their name right?
And in addition to being a child psychiatrist
I've written horror novels.
I've written a couple of novels,
I've written horror short stories,
been involved in horror movies
and video games and a project right now
where we're using virtual reality
to create this wrap around horror experience.
If you google me
and you say this is the person
I'm going to take my child to to help
you might get that image. Okay.
That's actually and image from
one of the books I wrote.
And you know what happens?
Kids they say yeah, that the guy I want to see
But the parents don't do that
the parents say ehh I don't know.
So if you're a child psychiatrist
and you like horror
that Harvard name can only get you so far.
But I think because I'm a psychiatrist
I'm not so bothered by this
I'm actually sort of fascinated by my love
of the macab
I'm wondering what is it about horror
that we find so attractive?
That those of us who are fans
find so illuminating.
How does horror teach us about ourselves?
Is there something sneakily provocative
about it?
Why when I was 13 years old still with
bangs did my grandma Bobby
give me that book my sweet grandma Bobby
for Hanukkah gives me this book I asked
for this book that's why. I wanted to
learn about this genre that I was so
fascinated by is there something kind of
sneakily profound buried in all the gore?
I'm going to say yes that's the case
I'm gonna make for you today. I'm gonna
say that horror makes us ask questions
that we are very uncomfortable asking in
any other setting except in the campy
displacement that hoar affords and
because of that we can get to know
ourselves better. We can tolerate our
foibles better and we could learn to
love each other better so let me give
you some examples. I told you were going
to come back to this guy. That's Freddy
Krueger from Nightmare on Elm Street. So
I apologize for the spoiler alerts here
if you haven't seen this movie and most
people have seen this movie many times
or they're never going to see this movie
there's not a lot in between on that one
but if you haven't seen I'm gonna spoil
a little bit of it. Freddy is a demon
now those claws he has those
are like razor blades that he's fastened
to these gloves and he haunts teenagers
in their dreams so so he he gets into
their dreams and these kids go to sleep
and he slashes them in their dreams and
then they wake up and they're still
bleeding in fact if he catches you in
your dream you could bleed to death in
real life. So what are the teenagers do?
They refuse to go to sleep. does that
sound familiar to anybody? So the
teenagers refuse to go to sleep in this
town and Freddy is a monster he is a
demon and you hate Freddy for most of
the movie but around three quarters into
the movie you learn Freddy's backstory
Freddy wasn't always a demon. Freddy was
once a human being he was a living
breathing soul just like you and me
and and he committed unthinkable acts in
the very town that he now haunts and he
got caught and he got tried but he's
released on a technicality that's the
words in the movie so the town folk
before their kids are grown up they take
justice into their own hands and they
capture Freddie and rather than giving
him back to the authorities they burn
him alive that's why his face looks like
this you don't see idiots in the movie
that's all the backstory so now you've
got a problem
I mean Freddie's a monster he's got to
go he's killing children in their dreams
children who didn't they weren't even
part of this mob justice thing right
they're not responsible and nevertheless
no one deserves to be burned alive
everybody who went to that movie
believed in due process everybody in the
movie believes in due process the whole
movies about due process believe it or
not and yet Freddie gets burned alive so
even if you don't believe in due process
does somebody really deserve that kind
of ending? And before you know it just
like that this trifling film this
throwaway this thing that you rented
probably because that face caught your
attention now you're thrust into this
really interesting discussion of the
ragged world of mob justice and we can
ask those questions much more easily in
a horror film. I told you that that
vampire was a brother and I told you
that we let that vampire into the house
so another spoiler alert here I got to a
little bit about Salem's Lot. Two
brothers on their way home. Suns going
down they know they're not supposed to
get home after Sun Goes Down and they
know they're going to be late so there
is of course an obligatory shortcut
through the woods every horror film has
a shortcut through the woods right
that's the way it works so the big
brother says to the little brother come
on dad's gonna kill us we don't get home
on time let's take the shortcut through
the woods the little brother says dad's
gonna be really mad if we go through the
woods and the big brother says
accurately dad will never know that we
went through the woods so let's just go
so the little brother sighs follows the
big brother because he's stronger he
could move all the brambles out of the
way and when he pops out literally into
his backyard out of where the woods end
he notices that his brother's not with
him anymore he's lost his brother in the
woods so he doesn't think anything
rottens happened he just as scared so he
goes inside he says to his parents look
we came home
through the woods and and I lost my
little brother and I don't know where he
is and his parents are mad so they send
him upstairs onto that second story and
they go out to look for him and that's
when that vampire shows up who used to
be his brother in fact that's why his
brother didn't make it home his brother
got attacked by the vampire when I was
watching this movie
I wasn't thinking don't let him in I was
thinking he will definitely let him in
because it's his brother okay and that
blood bond of brotherhood transcends the
fact that his brother is now a vampire.
Now this may seem really silly and trite
to you except take away the word vampire
and insert something new I will not let
my brother at the dinner table because
he is a criminal. Or I will not let my
brother at dinner table because he's an
addict or I won't have dinner with my
brother because he didn't vote for the
same guy I voted for
and if ever there were a timely debate
that we can handle better and that can't
be displacement of horror it happens in
movies like this and you might wonder
did I really get that when I was 11? Yeah
Not because I'm anything special I work
with 11 year olds for a living and I can
tell you they sense intuitively when
there's a profound question on the table.
They get it much better than adults. You
know the movie that did this best nNght
of a Living Dead. 1968. Hundred thousand
dollar budget not even copyright I know
George really well George Romero the guy
who made this movie he didn't know he'd
be a filmmaker he was and I'm not making
this up
the chief cameraman for Mr. Rodgers when
he made this film. So he chips in some of
his own money he gets his buddies to
make this movie and it takes the movie
world by storm and in one fell swoop
it attacks racism, it attacks sexism, it
attacks a war that we as a nation
couldn't seem to extract ourselves from.
It asks us what we do in a postmodern
world when science actually fails us
when we can't get the answers we need
from science and most importantly it
asks us what we do when fear overpowers
our ability to be reasonable and how we
can become violent all that from a
hundred thousand dollar non copyrighted
he didn't know he'd be a filmmaker so he
never copyrighted non copyrighted movie
that's a pretty impressive step if you
think about it so
how does it do that? Let's move over to
the brain that the organ I'm actually
supposed to know something about okay
let's talk for a second about the tricks
our brain play so that we can get to
these fairly profound conclusions from
horror films and we do that through
clowns. No we don't really do that
through clowns but I've showed you a
picture of a clown here so you could
engage in the first thing I want to talk
about a metacognition so a metacognition
means thinking about what you're
thinking about and in studies of people
who like horror films there's two really
important findings the first one is that
they are frightened so you know this by
measuring things like skin conductance
you can see that people are sweating
respiratory rate heart beat you know
that you at least have a fight-or-flight
response and as those folks come out of
the movie you sort of say okay you had a
fight-or-flight response to us you did
you did
what'd you think of the movie and the
first person of the fight-or-flight
responses never again never again you
say okay thank you for your time but
somebody else comes out and says yeah
yeah I was I was really scared but that
was really good that was really good and
say well what made it good? And then they
stop and they say that's a good
question I have to think about what made
it good. I have to think about what I'm
thinking. So clowns are the perfect
example of that. Many people even before
all the nonsense that happened this fall
are afraid of clowns many people don't
like clowns. Nope but why don't we like
clowns?
That's a metacognitive exercise so let's
just do a little little experiment here
a little thought experiment a clown at
the circus or at a birthday party or at
a rodeo that's okay right? I mean you
might not like clowns but you understand
that's where he belongs. But a clown in
your backyard holding a meat cleaver at
11:30 at night and staring? That's not
right. Right that's a moment that doesn't
fit the pattern.
That's a metacognitive moment where
you're saying I know we're clowns belong
and it's not there okay
that actually has to do with the second
concept I want to talk about and that's
the concept of pattern recognition you
recognize the pattern of where a clown
ought to be. So another example that's a
pug everybody does that when I saw that
photo at aw so if you ask your
two-year-old is that what is that she'll
say that's a doggy. And you'll say why is
that a doggy? And she cocks her head kind
of funny and like you're out of your
mind? She says well because it looks like
a doggy and if you say well how was the
doggy different from a kitty she's not
gonna say well kitties have retractable
claws and those funky pupils she'll just
say kitties look like kitties and
doggies look like doggies and can I go
now?
And you know what she's right she
recognizes the pattern of a doggy.
Pattern recognition sets in at a very
young age. It's an adaptive response it
allows us to see when things are just
slightly off and to take guard to be
aware to know that things just aren't
quite right. So we're gonna do a little
experiment with this very cute pug.
I'm not gonna hurt him. I promise we're
just gonna tweak this pug just a little
bit. There. Okay now you all laughed
right? You laughed because you recognized
before you understood why the patterns
here. Those are cat eyes on a pug and you
didn't say I am laughing because those
are kitty cat eyes on a pug face your
brain registered it is not quite fitting
in even before you knew why you had to
kick it north to that prefrontal cortex.
We heard about earlier in order for it
to make sense but you know what happens
then
when we have that cognitive dissonance
of two patterns that get shoved together
and we feel a little bit frightened then
we step away you wonder is that the
source of prejudice? Is that the source
of racism? Something that looks really
similar to you but it's a little bit
different. Is that under a biological
substrate for one of the worst things we
can do as humans? These are the questions
that horror can ask in ways that we
cannot ask directly. We're very funny
species we don't like difficult
questions unless somebody poses it in
displacement and horror films give us
that opportunity it's a
very subtle thing or you might not know
that horror is subtle except when it's not
guys remember this film my goodness this
movie that's alien that's Ridley Scott's
alien the tagline for this movie is in
space nobody can hear you scream I tell
you what when I watched this movie
people heard me scream like the whole
neighborhood heard me scream everybody
up and down when that thing busted out
of that guy's gut it was like you know
to quote the sequel to alien aliens it
was game over man game game over it got
Bill Paxton just passed away God rest
his soul well I don't remember being
terrified I remember laughing as I was
screaming game over and I remember
laughing with my buddies because I
didn't see alien in the theater I rented
it I was 17 years old then my parents
were not home I you guys are gonna think
I grew up with no one watching me ever
it was my parents weren't home my sister
wasn't there I had all my friends over
and mom dad were in the audience tonight
forgive me we had procured some 3.2%
alcohol beer which was legal at the time
in Kansas if you were 18 and in that
funky kind of logic that adolescents
like to engage in I was not 18 but I
figured because I had friends who were
18 we're in the same class I could drink
of this beer so we watched this movie
and laughed and screamed a delight and
this is what horror does for you it
doesn't make you drink that's not what
I'm saying
it creates community that creates
connection and that's the third part it
makes you think it makes you recognize
patterns but it brings us together and
that's like gold to our social brains
we're wired to connect with each other
and we need ways to do that have you
ever been to a horror film in the
theater because if you haven't you
should they place so much better than
the theater and it's the only movie
setting where it is not only permissible
it is expected to yell to scream to say
I can't watch to shout instructions to
the guy on the screen to say what are
you do we don't split up and if you if
you do split up there's this dark creepy
tunnel that you just discovered don't go
down there and if you do go down there
why in god's name are you taking a match
and not the flashlight that you
in your truck this is what happens in
horror that happened in the conjuring if
anybody saw that very seed and everybody
theater starts laughing we love that
moment we know that the filmmaker loved
the idea of the match and couldn't give
it up that connection horror is so
derivative that you see every horror
film in every other horror film and you
feel immediately like you're part of the
club liqueur is a mirror okay it's a
distorted mirror by high definition it's
not what we think we're seeing when we
look in it but if it were super pristine
I don't think we could tolerate it
because we've got some ugly sides to us
but if we move it into displacement we
can ask some pretty provocative
questions about ourselves and we can
answer them learn to tolerate our
vulnerabilities our foibles actually
even learn to love ourselves more that
mirror can be a present to us so go out
and see the next war film thanks for
coming.
[Applause]
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