By Melissa Antoinette Garza
I am and have forever been a proud horror geek. I love unknown gems like Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things (1973) and recognized classics like Black Christmas (1974). I enjoy no-to low-budget horror productions with heart like The 28th Day: The Wrath of Stephanie (2013) and blockbusters like Oculus (2013).
I love Horror Geeks. I talk to them all the time. Whether they’re just fans of the genre, agreed with my review or disagree with it – it’s always cool to hear the thoughts of those who enjoy the genre…well almost always – but we’ll get into that in a bit.
I also go to the conventions and meet the coolest icons of all time. I’ll never forget the day that David Hess (RIP) kissed me or Rowdy Roddy Piper embraced me. I was able to meet the Rowdy one twice! He was such a gentleman and spoke with such a genuine sincerity. Hess was more shocked that I knew some of his lesser known gems. Both times, I was in awe of the men before me. I saw Corey Haim before he passed away and have exchanged a few kind words with Corey Feldman online. His book is amazing and really gives insights into the demons both men fought.
It’s easy to say that my brother, filmmaker and Acquisitions Manager of Cinema Epoch, (he has some other credentials but let’s leave it at that) Geno McGahee was my inspiration for loving horror….and that’s true. Geno and I as kids would sit in front of the TV and watch movies like the original The Amityvile Horror (1977) and TV shows like Tales From the Darkside (1983). He would write scripts and I would write stories with horror themes. I remember owning the entire R.L. Stine Fear Street collection. My allowance would constantly go to obtaining the newest book. I would anxiously go through the pages in a darkened room with a flashlight to scare myself – and it would work and then I’d go sleep on the living room couch.
So, Horror Geeks are fantastic, but sadly there’s another group in the horror world. These are the Horror Creeps. Some of these are simply failed artists. They desperately want to break into the industry without doing any work. Their lack of talent and/or laziness prevents them from going anywhere but instead of taking the blame and working on their own in-adequacies. They jump on anyone who disagrees with them and speaks in a manner equivalent to Godwin’s Law in any debate.
I unfortunately encountered these creeps today. I was the only woman in the debate which was over talking in a movie theater. One boy who started the conversation was angry with people talking. I countered by saying that I partially disagreed. I felt at certain times, like with RHPS or Troll 2 that talking was fine. Even in movie theaters where there are only a few people who voluntarily went to a bad movie, the viewers usually find amusement in making jokes about the bad acting or awful CGI. Immediately, I was called every name in the book by a very important person who no one seems to know. To paraphrase the great Clint Eastwood “he’s a legend in his own mind.” This dunce attacked without warrant, huffing and puffing like a Neanderthal.
So for awhile, I reacted to their idiocy with logic, but then I became bored and just blocked the whole crew. It’s sad that our horror community is plagued by these Creeps.
That said, nothing will ever take my love away from the real horror community. The ones who either truly enjoy the genre and add to it with their creativity or those who are simply viewers who understand why horror is so important, will always be in my heart.
The others…..well, I’ve blocked them and something tells me I won’t ever hear from them again. I haven’t seen any of their “work” yet and I don’t expect to.
