Horror and Romance

by Jennifer G.
(Richmond, IL)

King Kong - the classic love story.

The horror film has not been kind to us romantics at heart. As much as we love blood and guts, there is always a place for that first kiss, lover’s gazing into each other’s eyes and the hope of a happy ending.

I have found four horror films where love blossoms even if there is tragedy in the end. So take heart romantics, and keep hoping for the happy ending.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
The Lovers: Donald Sutherland as Matthew Bennell and Brook Adams as Elizabeth Driscoll.

Bound together because of a common goal- to stay awake as long as possible- Matthew and Elizabeth support and protect each other the way only a couple fighting to save human civilization could. Unfortunately, this one doesn’t have a happy ending. Separated for but a short time, Elizabeth falls asleep. It doesn’t take long for Matthew to follow suit, leading up to the infamous alien scream of the final scene. If only Elizabeth could have stayed awake, they might have had a chance.

The Fly (1986)
The Lovers: Jeff Goldblum as Seth Brundle, Geena Davis as Veronica Quaife, and Stathi Borans as John Getz.

John loves Veronica; Veronica loves Seth. It’s the classic love triangle with a twist: One of them is turning into a giant vomit-on-your-box-of-powdered donuts fly. In the end, Veronica has no choice but to turn to John for help. She’s pregnant with Seth’s baby and he’s not turning human again anytime soon. But even in Seth’s final metamorphic state, Veronica cannot kill Seth. Seth finally pulls the gun to his own head. If you see The Fly 2 as a valid sequel to this story, Veronica was unable to have the abortion John insisted upon- even though there was a good chance her baby would be born a fly.

Jacob's Ladder (1990)
The Lovers: Tim Robbins as Jacob Singer, Elizabeth Pena as Jezabel and Patricia Kalember as Sarah.

This movie investigates the themes of good and evil, and redemption. Evil being a really crappy job in a post office with a less than interested romantic partner and demons following you everywhere you go. Good being a family, someone with whom to cuddle at night, and the saving grace called love. Jacob’s Ladder is loosely based on the teachings of the Tibetan Book of the Dead. I encourage all parties interested in horror to buy both the book and the movie. For all you intellectuals out there, the correlation is fascinating.

King Kong (2005)
The Lovers: Naomi Watts as Ann Darrow, Adrien Brody as Jack Driscoll and a large ape.

It seems as if one would be observing the love relationship between Ann and Jack. No chance of that! This story centers on King Kong and Ann all the way. Credit is most definitely given to the writers of this remake, Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens. It’s obvious that this love is mutual. This makes the death of King Kong even more heartbreaking. Whether he got killed because of love or because he simply got in the way of modern day urbana, it isn’t hard is shedding tears over this sweet love story.