Horror movie classics remain favorites of many
There’s nothing like watching
a scary movie on fright night,
such as ‘Elm Street’ and ‘It’
Caron Alarab
Freelance Reporter
From the golden-eyed image of
Satan in “Rosemary’s Baby” to the
sick and psychological video twists
of “The Ring”, the horror genre has,
in some opinions, changed for the
worst. While special effects, star
dom and sequels have tainted the
already questionable quality of to
day’s films, one can’t help but re
flect on the times when evil was
“Exorcised,” “Elm Street” was sin
gular and phobia was king.
“Back in the day, (horror movies)
were way better,” junior Daejin
Joseph said.
Joseph said he has always loved
horror and he misses the days when
more time was put into costumes
and backgrounds as opposed to
graphics and special effects.
“All the horror movies now are
too hyped up and extreme,” he said.
Older horror films like “Rose
mary’s Baby” (1968) and “The Ex
orcist” (1973) have more attention
to costume and set detail. Possessed
images of an innocent girl’s spinning
head and shaking bed still linger in
the minds of those too savvy in the
genre to forget what Hollywood was
like before computers.
One of Joseph’s all-time favorites
is Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining”
(1980) which was written by novel
ist Stephen King.
“King focuses more on a phobia
in you so that people can relate to
the movie on a larger scale,” Joseph
said, referring to classics like “Cujo”
(1983), “Children of the Corn”
(1984) and “It” (1983). “And if you
don’t already have a phobia, he’ll
give you one.”
In scanning the titles and images
"All the horror movies
now are too hyped up
and extreme "
Daejin Joseph
junior
along the horror video section at the
1711 Willamette St. Blockbuster
Video, a person might not only note
the meager selection, but an interest
ing progression in cover art as well.
From the 1930s through the ’80s,
images of skulls, demons, monsters,
knives and blood adorned film box
es to give renters a small taste of the
blood-curdling contents within.
However in the past decade, horror
movies going the pop culture route
are displayed on video aisles as at
tractive cast rosters, boasting the
“who’s who” of young Hollywood,
rather than as indicators of any fear
factor. With films like “Scream,” “I
Know What You Did Last Summer”
and “Urban Legend,” movie buffs
are lucky to get an intense look
from the pictured cast, let alone an
idea of what the plot entails.
It’s no wonder establishments
with bigger horror selections, like
Premiere Video, don’t see too many
new releases leave the shelf.
“Mostly comedies, dramas and
cult movies are popular among stu
Get lost in labyrinth of com
Outsidejunction City lies a
‘dark, disturbing nightmare’
that is open this week
Chelsea Duncan
Freelance Reporter
It is a 10-acre labyrinth of corn
stalks, and has nearly three miles of
trails. It is filled with ghosts, goblins
and screaming teenagers.
It is the Haunted Corn Maze at
Lone Pine Farms near Junction
City. The maze is a unique alter
native to costume parties and
trick-or-treating.
For the past three years, Lone
Pine Farms has featured the maze
as one of its attractions during the
Halloween season. During the day,
its theme is “Scruffy the Loyal Farm
Dog: Dog Days of Summer” because
the trails are shaped like a dog. At
night it becomes a dark, disturbing
nightmare lit only by the moon and
a few glow sticks.
The maze was originally about
two acres, but three years ago Lo
rie Jensen, president of Lone Pine
Farms, expanded it to 10 acres to
attract more young adults. The
farm featured pumpkin patch rides
for small children and families.
Jensen said she saw the need to of
fer more activities for high school
and college students.
' “I felt like this filled that gap,”
she said. “Our motto is 0 to 100
(years old).”
Jensen and her daughter de
signed the maze. It has posts num
bered one to 10. Before people en
ter it, they choose from a number
of clue cards with topics such as
sports, millennium, Halloween and
Girl Scouting. At each post, a triv
ia question related to the clue
cards must be answered correctly
to find the way through the maze.
Each answer comes with direc
tions to turn left or right — an in
correct answer leads to dead ends
and confusing circles.
“I liked it because I was lost,”
Lane Community College student
Kindra Carroll said. “It’s not like a
haunted house where you know
how to get in and out.”
Questions range in difficulty and
include, “What are male witches
called?” and “How many kernels
are in a typical bushel of com?” If
all else fails, follow the throngs of
fellow lost wanderers, but beware of
the goblins and monsters lurking in
the corn. Some of these costumed
employees are armed with fake
chainsaws that look and sound real
in the dark. They are strategically
hidden among the towering corn
stalks and jump out at the unsus
pecting. Creepy scenes of cemeter
ies and coffins can also be found
along the trails.
“At first it was scary when people
jumped out and surprised us, but
toward the end I just got used to it,”
Carroll said.
Because of the many frightening
surprises, small children and the
faint of heart are discouraged from
entering the maze at night.
“Its design is not for small chil
dren,” said Jensen.
The maze can take anywhere from
45 minutes to two hours to complete,
and according to senior Kim
Sanchez, it can be a bit tedious.
“I think it would have been more
fun if there were less people,”
Sanchez said. “All you can see is
com and more com. I just wanted
Turn to Corn, page 5B
Diva's joined forces with Hot Body International and has become The Hot Body Club
1st Annual
Thursday Oct. 31st
l^T Costume contest $100
each for the Sexiest,
Prettiest, Funniest,
Scariest, Most Original
& Worst
The 6 winners will
compete for the "Best
Overall" for the
grand prize
All contestants must be
signed in by 10 pm
DIVAS EXOTIC DANCER'S "CLUB
r
dents,” said Don Johnson, a part
time employee of the 1495 E. 19th
Ave. location.
He said the three most recent re
leases on their shelf are King’s “Red
Rose,” “The Others” starring Nicole
Kidman, and “From Hell,” none of
which have done better than
“mediocre” in the renting scheme
of things.
Turn to Movies, page 6B
Special
Halloween Performances!
October 30 at 8:00 PM
October 31 at 7:30 & 10:00 PM
All tickets $20.00
McDonald Theater, 1010 Willamette
NOW PLAYING!
By Hamilton Deane
& John L. Balderston
Directed by Michael P. Watkins
Friday & Saturday at 8:00 PM
October 25-November 16, 2002
Sunday Matinee at 2:00 PM
November 3, 2002
Annex Theater, 39 West 10th
Tickets & Information:
683-4368
Visit the all-new actorseaharet.nrg:
///
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Malloveen
costume at the
Bal’vetion
Amy
015120'
2065 W. 7th Ave., Eugene • 343-3341
346 Main St., Springfield • 747-2665