Recently, the Macrobert Arts Centre Staff Pick was the 1982 horror classic The Thing. Seeing this titan of the genre on the big screen really helped to cement an idea – horror is best in the cinema.
There are a number of reasons for this, and one crucial factor is the immersive, distraction-free atmosphere. The cinema experience enforces concentration on the film through the social convention of turning off your phone for the movie’s duration. The room is pitch black, the film fills your entire vision, and the sound is booming around you. You can’t break the tension with a quick look on Instagram.
The size of the screen and the singular focus of the experience amplifies every aspect of the movie. Horror directors are masters of their craft, and every component is designed to heighten the fear. Being forced to focus on the movie heightens this to the extreme, and you can lean into the experience intentionally.
At home, even if you don’t have the light on in the room you’re watching the movie, maybe your flatmate has the lights on in the next room, causing it to shine in through the gaps in the door. A dog might bark, a car alarm might go off, you might get a text. At home, there are hundreds of things competing for our attention – in the cinema, there is only the movie.
The intensity of a horror movie is amplified further by the fact that as a cinema-goer, you are relinquishing control over the experience to the projectionist. They set things in motion and no amount of tension or fear will let you pause the film to take a deep breath. There’s no escape until the credits roll. This really enhances the fear of the experience, especially if you’re prone to pausing the film at home.
It’s worth dwelling on the superior auditory and visual experience of a cinema over home viewing. A monster is always scarier when it’s 30ft tall rather than 37in, that’s just common sense. And when you can feel the bass of the soundtrack in your chest, or the creak of a floorboard sends shivers, the terror is multiplied, making for a much better experience.
The social experience of the cinema
As easy as it is to focus on the physical elements that make the cinema a great place to watch a horror movie, some thought must be given to the social aspects too. The cinema is an extremely collective thing; even if you go to the theatre alone, you’re still watching the film surrounded by other people. This massively affects the experience.
For some folks, group watching is a reassurance. It can be a lot easier to convince your brain that something isn’t real and can’t hurt you if there are 120 strangers watching alongside you. Simultaneously, being surrounded by others reacting to the film with gasps, screams, and laughs, can really add to the overall film-watching experience. Take The Thing as an example – even if you’ve seen it before, being in a cinema full of people who all jump out of their skins when MacReady tests the infected blood will make you jump, too. It’s a pretty singular experience that can’t be replicated watching films at home unless you’re having a big movie night with ten friends.
And then, of course, there’s after the film. Hearing snatches of conversation as people file out of the screen, turning to your companion, or opening the group chat to share your thoughts is a key part of the collectivism of movie watching. Leaving the theatre after The Thing, and every conversation was about the ending – “Was Childs a Thing, was MacReady, were both or neither?” Obviously, you can talk about a film after watching it at home but you miss out on the momentary community of movie-goers that emerges after an experience like watching The Thing together in the cinema. The shared social experience is a key element.
So, the next time you fancy getting the socks scared off you, consider checking the listings at your local cinema. There are tons of reasons to ditch the sofa in favour of the big screen, and even if you don’t agree with all of them, there’s science to back up the general idea that watching films in the cinema is more fun.
Featured image credit: Canva/Universal Pictures
Student journalist & freelance writer. Check out Quick Play, where I review video games that are 10 hours or less.
