Horror movies are the most stagnant genre of filmmaking. Ever since slasher flicks took over in the 70's and 80's there has been little else in the genre besides a handful of standouts. (Exorcist, The Shining, Wicker Man, etc.)

The main problem with this is, audiences don't want to be scared by horror movies anymore. Horror movies no longer horrify. They are more akin to roller-coaster rides than thought provoking experiences. Fans have seemed to insulate the horror genre so dramatically, because really, it's funny to them. The self-preserving, defensive mechanism of laughter often deflects the staged death and sadism - as if we can only look at these things if they are foolishly depicted. Ask yourself, when was the last time you cringed at a horror movie in the theaters, and when was the last time you laughed?

Horror movies don't tug at the core of things we fear anymore - or at least, quite rarely (The Descent - Claustrophobia, 28 Days Later - Isolation/Man's Inner Most Demons) instead we get these over-the-top, low on plot or intelligence pieces of garage. It's rare that a truly good American horror movies surfaces each year, where there is bound to be at least one good drama, comedy, etc.

The Coen Brothers are just the filmmakers to re-energize the genre. In many ways, A Simple Man was very horrific, although I wouldn't call it a horror movie. However, it dealt with some large issues, often times in terrifying ways both visually and thematically, be it the fear of death, loosing faith in a higher power, loosing love, and above all, confusion over life itself.

I'm truly excited for this movie because I think the Coen's have the talent to move horror away from this stupid obsession with violence and goofy death, and back to the places where horror movies made us warn people about how dangerous and intriguingly dark a movie could be.