Author: Noah Berlatsky
With the success of Stranger Things and the new film version of Stephen King’s It, nostalgia feels like something of a current horror trope. In these stories, the evocation of childhood fears mixes with pleasurable memories of childhood pop culture, adding a bit of sweet to horror’s usual bitterness.
At first, the theatrical film Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark looks like it might be following in Stranger Things’ footsteps. The first scene is set to the background music of Donovan’s wonderful “Season of the Witch,” played by a never-seen DJ who recalls Wolfman Jack from American Graffiti. These period touches aren’t winking celebrations of childhood, though. The film is set in the past because director André Øvredal has something...
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With the success of Stranger Things and the new film version of Stephen King’s It, nostalgia feels like something of a current horror trope. In these stories, the evocation of childhood fears mixes with pleasurable memories of childhood pop culture, adding a bit of sweet to horror’s usual bitterness.
At first, the theatrical film Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark looks like it might be following in Stranger Things’ footsteps. The first scene is set to the background music of Donovan’s wonderful “Season of the Witch,” played by a never-seen DJ who recalls Wolfman Jack from American Graffiti. These period touches aren’t winking celebrations of childhood, though. The film is set in the past because director André Øvredal has something...
Continue reading…
Continue reading...