Confessions of a Horror Addict

When I see the words 'Dawn' alone, a few things come to mind. Blue zombies and shopping malls, and swat teams and blasted heads. I could go on forever, but I'll spare you the same rhetoric propaganda you've heard a thousand times over.

I remember the first time I saw 'Dawn of the Dead'. It was an experience I would never forget. Even at the tender age of eight, I was immersed in the world of zombies, and much to my knowledge at the time, I knew I would eventually turn into a full fledged horror fanatic!

I really couldn't believe what I was seeing. I wanted to cover my eyes, but the curiosity of the inevitable circumstances lingered with the outlandish actions as portrayed by most of the characters. It was a world like no other. A wasteland of chaos and anarchy. Even my impressionable mind picked up on these hidden commentaries, therefore boosting my love for the film. Everything from Romero's masterpiece was evident in my life. At the time, I was amazed at the technological world of video games and televisions. It was the mid 80's. Things were in full bloom, and the world of electronics was alive and kicking. Going to the mall was my favorite pastime. It just so happened that one had to drive past an independent airport that reminded me for the world of the one featured in 'Dawn of the Dead'. As a child, fantasies run wild, and the imagination is an endless playground of playtime and 'let's pretend'. I can remember going to the local A&P, and pretending that the customers were the walking dead. I would always make my way toward the candy weighing section, all the while hearing the 'Goblin' wails of the soundtrack in the back of my little mind--Heart thumping out of my chest. Just walking through the isles, I got the sense of dread and loneliness as the characters probably would have felt in 'Dawn'.

After eventually watching the film millions of times, I then proceeded to introduce my playmates to this most vile piece of cinema. A few of them were completely awe struck and fascinated by what they were seeing, and a couple have never watched a horror film since. It all had basically boiled down to preconceived notions that anything dead and walking wasn't good, and definitely not something a child should watch. I can remember my best friend at the time saying.." Does your Mom know you got this..?" Geeze, it was my Mumsy who introduced me to the grande horror flick in the first place. Hey, instead of going to the skating rink on Saturday night, I was at the theater with my Mother or Father, and on occasions my auntie, catching the new 'Friday the 13th' installment, or the next 'Halloween' sequel. I can remember seeing films like 'My Bloody Valentine' and 'the Burning' on HBO back in the day, and hence a slasher fan was bred alongside a zombie freak!

I guess most of you guys are thinking I probably had a strange childhood, and most importantly, 'why would your parents let you watch such a thing..?' Well, 'till this day, the answer isn't clear. Maybe they understood the difference in fantasy and reality, playtime and realtime. I guess they understood that I wasn't your average child who liked playing with G.I Joe or Tonka trucks. A few reasons could be me asking for a 'Jason' mask for Christmas, or a Freddy Glove for my birthday. Or maybe they just had great faith in their son and the fact that he was mature enough, even at a very tender age, to understand that what he was seeing on film was 'make believe'. Nonetheless, I'm glad that I was introduced to such filth(as many people will have you to believe).