I think one of the biggest influences on our view of the genre's past and present is that particular point in our life when we actually became fans of horror movies.
For instance, I started collecting horror on VHS in the late 80's when most releases in Germany and the Uk were cut to shreds, with the following notorious "dire 90's" making even the arrival of a C-class, censored DTV cheapo in your rental store into a minor feast.
There are others on this board, who actually had the pleasure of seeing those early 80's classics on the big cinema screen
.
Some fans got into the genre around the "Scream" craze in the late 90's, even more had their first "strong horror" experience with "Saw" or "Hostel".
Each of those different eras suggests a different take on the genre as a whole.
While I personally agree that the "more experienced" fans tend to demand more "originality"/ "quality" of their genre product, it sometimes feels as if the younger ones (and those who've stayed young at heart
) seem to have a lot more fun, as I for one wouldn't waste a minute of my lifetime with today's genre movies if I didn't enjoy them any more. (That's why I've basically stopped watching action movies- with the occasional exception, like "Rambo"
).
Another problem is that even long term fans are often far too focussed on what's happening in Hollywood as an indicator for the genre's health.
Fact is that much stronger and original horror has been made in Asia, other countries- such as France- and even the last decade's UK horror output is shining brightly, enjoying its fair share of fan appreciation.
Let's not forget that "we" don't have to sort out the "classic status" of those 70's/80's movies ourselves- it's been done over the course of decades.
With the current crop of genre movies, it's still totally in the open, which movies will be rewarded with a "cult fave"/"classic" reputation in the years/decades to come.....which is in fact one of many reasons why I find this current state of horror so exciting.
