Horror Movie with most affect in theatre release?

[onewhosighs]

What do you think was the most controversial or affected most people?

My vote goes to The Exorcist. On theatrical release, people protested and threw stuff at the theatres demanding it be removed, many people sustained heart attacks, etc while viewing the movie, a woman had a miscarriage(gave birth pre-maturely) while watching the movie because she was frightened to the fullest extent, the pope wanted the movie to be banned and destroyed forever. There always was an ambulance called to every theatre that played the movie, the movie was then taken out and the full version was banned and never to be seen again until 30 years later.

Ofcourse this is because this was new to them, the people back then never expected to see what they saw, it was shocking and new. Nowadays we are use to this.

What do you think and why?

[Disease]

Well from what I have read and heard... If it is true or not I don't know, but people where leaving the cinema during the trailer for the origanal Texas chainsaw massacre.. While the trailer was playing before something else they went to see...

But from my own experience.. An Australian movie called "The Boys", when I went to se that there was around 10 or so people walk out during it , and it wasn't because it was shit.. Just to real and hard to deal with.. IT was realism, the horror of humanity so to speak!

[ChronoGrl]

Honestly, the first film that comes to mind in regards to cultural reaction and affect (and seems the most obvious choice) is Jaws.

Peter Benchley's book was already a commercial success with its summertime readability and pop appeal. But it wasn't until Spielberg brought this horror gem to the screen that we really saw the social impact. People ubiquitously reacted with irrational paranoia and fear in terms of getting near the water. The movie gave birth to a culture of swimming fear.

"Controversial" is a whole different topic, however, and I'm not sure that they should be grouped together. In regards to controversy, I definitely agree that The Exorcist had a cultural impact (the crucifix scene definitely stays in my mind).

To a lesser extent, I would argue that Night of the Living Dead was controversial for its racial undertones and 60s police-riot commentary. It was definitely ahead of its time.

[Zero]

no contest - psycho. hitchcock's little gimmick of 'not allowing anyone into the film after it started' literally changed the way we see films. prior to this period, films were run on a continuous loop with A and B pictures separated by shorts and news reels. people could and would walk in at any point and simply watch the rotation all the way around. hitchcock's gimmick proved that people were willing to stand in line and enter a theater at a specific time.

as for most controversial - a different question - NOLD was pretty controversial. probably, in a technical sense, Natural Born Killers (if you see that as horror) is the most controversial as it has been wrapped up in the most extended legal wranglings over supposed copy-cat cases.

[Yellow Jacket]

I'd go with The Exorcist as well. But, when I went to see The Devil's Rejects, people were walking out of the theater saying "This is too hard to handle".