---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People who love horror films are people…"
description: "\"“People who love horror films are people with boring lives... when a really scary movie is over, you're reassured to see that you're still alive and th..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png"
---

#  People who love horror films are people with boring…

![“People who love horror films are people with boring lives... when a really scary movie is over, you're reassured to see that you're still alive and the world still exists as it did before. That's the real reason we have horror films - they act as shock absorbers - and if they disappeared…” quote by Ryu Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png)

> ““People who love horror films are people with boring lives... when a really scary movie is over, you're reassured to see that you're still alive and the world still exists as it did before. That's the real reason we have horror films - they act as shock absorbers - and if they disappeared altogether, I bet you'd see a big leap in the number of serial killers. After all, anyone stupid enough to get the idea of murdering people from a movie could get the same idea from watching the news.””

[Ryu Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Horror movies provide a safe outlet for fear, allowing viewers to confront danger and feel relief that life continues unchanged.

**In simple terms:** Horror acts as a psychological safety valve.

Key Takeaway

Films let us experience terror without real harm.

Themes

psychology media effects catharsis fear social behavior

Mood

thrilling reflective cautious

Type

observation analysis cultural critique

When to use this quote

- after watching a scary film
- during a stressful period
- when seeking adrenaline
- in a group setting

Key Concepts

shock absorption mortality awareness cultural coping

Practical Applications

- therapy for anxiety
- entertainment that reduces aggression

Questions to Reflect On

- Why do people seek fear in entertainment?
- How might horror influence empathy?

A Different Perspective

Some argue horror can desensitize viewers, but evidence on increased violence is inconclusive.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Horror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/) [Horror films](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror-films/) [Serial killers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serial-killers/) [Shock absorber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shock-absorber/)

## Related quotes

> [I love horror movies. Any scary movie - if one comes out, I go see it, even if it's supposed to be bad. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-conley-jr/i-love-horror-movies-any-scary-movie-if-one-comes-out-i-go-see-it/)

[Mike Conley Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-conley-jr/)

> [I love horror, I love scary movies, I love thrillers. If things creep you out and spook you? I love it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lana-parrilla/i-love-horror-i-love-scary-movies-i-love-thrillers-if-things-creep/)

[Lana Parrilla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lana-parrilla/)

> [I've always loved... actually I didn't always love horror films. I started out and I only liked comedies and dramas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-raimi/i-ve-always-loved-actually-i-didn-t-always-love-horror-films-i/)

[Sam Raimi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-raimi/)

> [I love horror films. And I like chick flicks! I like to approach the different genres of moviemaking and explore them. And you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-matheson/i-love-horror-films-and-i-like-chick-flicks-i-like-to-approach-the/)

[Tim Matheson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-matheson/)

> [I love horror films, so I guess it's one of those things where I find myself interested in the script.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisha-cuthbert/i-love-horror-films-so-i-guess-it-s-one-of-those-things-where-i-find/)

[Elisha Cuthbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisha-cuthbert/)

> [I love horror films, but it's more than an adrenaline rush for me. I love them because I know they scare me. It's kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/i-love-horror-films-but-it-s-more-than-an-adrenaline-rush-for-me-i/)

[Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/)

> [I'd love to continue my career in Hollywood - I'd love to do another action film, or a romantic comedy, or horror. I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rain/i-d-love-to-continue-my-career-in-hollywood-i-d-love-to-do-another/)

[Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rain/)

> [I love well-done horror films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emilie-de-ravin/i-love-well-done-horror-films/)

[Emilie De Ravin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emilie-de-ravin/)

> [I love my horror films and they will always be very close to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/i-love-my-horror-films-and-they-will-always-be-very-close-to-me/)

[Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/)

> [I did love horror films from the '70s and '80s. That was my sweet spot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-barrymore/i-did-love-horror-films-from-the-70s-and-80s-that-was-my-sweet-spot/)

[Drew Barrymore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-barrymore/)

> [I would love to do more horror films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillermo-diaz/i-would-love-to-do-more-horror-films/)

[Guillermo Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillermo-diaz/)

> [I love horror films. I love ghost movies and haunted-house movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-lowery/i-love-horror-films-i-love-ghost-movies-and-haunted-house-movies/)

[David Lowery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-lowery/)

> [I love all kinds of movies. I love a really good comedy and not the cheesy ones. My parents hate this, but I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liana-liberato/i-love-all-kinds-of-movies-i-love-a-really-good-comedy-and-not-the/)

[Liana Liberato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liana-liberato/)

> [For some reason, Horror movies, they seem like good date movies. When you go to them it's all high school kids, all over each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-zombie/for-some-reason-horror-movies-they-seem-like-good-date-movies-when/)

[Rob Zombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-zombie/)

> [I guess the reason that I'm a horror fan is that I think it gives people the opportunity to enjoy the feeling of being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-parisse/i-guess-the-reason-that-i-m-a-horror-fan-is-that-i-think-it-gives/)

[Annie Parisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-parisse/)

## More by Ryu Murakami

> [“Even when you're talking to them face to face you have this feeling of not connecting, as if the words just pass through them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/even-when-you-re-talking-to-them-face-to-face-you-have-this-feeling/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“Of course, I'm not sure there is such a thing as a real self. You could ransack your innards looking for the real you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/of-course-i-m-not-sure-there-is-such-a-thing-as-a-real-self-you-could/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“The feeling that the world was at my feet and the feeling that I alone was cut off from the world, the sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/the-feeling-that-the-world-was-at-my-feet-and-the-feeling-that-i/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“Everybody wants to talk about themselves, and everybody wants to hear everybody else's story, so we take turns playing reporter and celebrity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/everybody-wants-to-talk-about-themselves-and-everybody-wants-to-hear/)

[Ryu Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“Only time can heal wounds as deep as that—a lot of time—and all you can really do is place yourself in its hands and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/only-time-can-heal-wounds-as-deep-as-that-a-lot-of-time-and-all-you/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“What these young men feared and hated more than anything else was being spoken to by people they hadn't met, or having to explain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/what-these-young-men-feared-and-hated-more-than-anything-else-was/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“There in that pool stained with green blood, he had learned two things: one was that all the pain stopped when you stopped fighting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/there-in-that-pool-stained-with-green-blood-he-had-learned-two-things/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“The song was the late Ishihara Yujiro’s “Rusty Knife,” and Sakaguchi’s singing was so bad that it gave the lyric a strange new pathos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/the-song-was-the-late-ishihara-yujiro-s-rusty-knife-and-sakaguchi-s/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“But for all we’ve lost, hope is in fact one thing we Japanese have regained. The great earthquake and tsunami have robbed us of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/but-for-all-we-ve-lost-hope-is-in-fact-one-thing-we-japanese-have/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“Yeah, he'd said, maybe it's just my idea, but really it always hurts, the times it don't hurt is when we just forget, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/yeah-he-d-said-maybe-it-s-just-my-idea-but-really-it-always-hurts-the/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“A person without self-confidence is incapable of being independent, and people who are dependent on their partners always create unhappiness. Always.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/a-person-without-self-confidence-is-incapable-of-being-independent/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“We sat side by side on the swings. The creaking sound they made seemed sexier to me than a Jimi Hendrix guitar solo.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/we-sat-side-by-side-on-the-swings-the-creaking-sound-they-made-seemed/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“Who hasn't wanted to die at one time or another?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/who-hasn-t-wanted-to-die-at-one-time-or-another/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“Yeah. He wants to be a…what do you call those guys?” “A sommelier?” “Right. Said he wanted to see your collection.” “At fifteen he’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/yeah-he-wants-to-be-a-what-do-you-call-those-guys-a-sommelier-right/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

> [“All Americans have something lonely about them. I don't know what the reason might be, except maybe that they're all descended from immigrants.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/all-americans-have-something-lonely-about-them-i-don-t-know-what-the/)

[Ryū Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

[Explore all 82 Ryu Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/)

## More Horror quotes

> [“In the attempt to find the just measure of horror and terror, I came upon the writing of Carole Gill whose work revealed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-gill/in-the-attempt-to-find-the-just-measure-of-horror-and-terror-i-came/)

[Carole Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carole-gill/)

> [I will say that when it comes to the horror genre, for me, the scariest thing is when something is actually in the frame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leigh-whannell/i-will-say-that-when-it-comes-to-the-horror-genre-for-me-the-scariest/)

[Leigh Whannell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leigh-whannell/)

> [Pakistan now is like a horror film franchise. You know, it's 'Friday the 13th, Episode 63: The Terrorist from Pakistan.' And each time we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/pakistan-now-is-like-a-horror-film-franchise-you-know-it-s-friday-the/)

[Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/)

> [“October 3, 2017 The clown, Hagarty said, looked like a cross between Ronald McDonald and that old TV clown, Bozo—or so he thought at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/october-3-2017-the-clown-hagarty-said-looked-like-a-cross-between/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [What I love about watching classic horror films is that they take you on a ride and they obviously make you scared because you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-holmes/what-i-love-about-watching-classic-horror-films-is-that-they-take-you/)

[Katie Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-holmes/)

> [One day, if I had to do a horror movie, it will be a very realistic war movie. For me, war is horror.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-noe/one-day-if-i-had-to-do-a-horror-movie-it-will-be-a-very-realistic-war/)

[Gaspar Noe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-noe/)

> [“Flakes of snow swirled and danced across the porch. The Overlook faced it as it had for nearly three-quarters of a century, its darkened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/flakes-of-snow-swirled-and-danced-across-the-porch-the-overlook-faced/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [“Damn it, it wasn’t quite fresh enough!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft-2/damn-it-it-wasn-t-quite-fresh-enough/)

[H.P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft-2/)

> [The ghost story movie that scared me the most was The Changeling with George C. Scott. I think that's sometimes overlooked, but it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-ghost-story-movie-that-scared-me-the-most-was-the-changeling-with/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [Photojournalists know the horrors of war can only be exposed at close range. Kodak Film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nachtwey/photojournalists-know-the-horrors-of-war-can-only-be-exposed-at-close/)

[James Nachtwey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nachtwey/)

> [“Other folk thought the Rage was simple bloodlust, a berserk savagery that neither knew nor cared what its target was, and so it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-weber/other-folk-thought-the-rage-was-simple-bloodlust-a-berserk-savagery/)

[David Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-weber/)

> [“When we mated I felt your heart stop beating and it was as if the world had stopped turning. It was only while surrounded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/when-we-mated-i-felt-your-heart-stop-beating-and-it-was-as-if-the/)

[Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/)

> [I'm generally never at a lack for words, but it's indescribable how poor the response was from our own government officials, ... We could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannibal/i-m-generally-never-at-a-lack-for-words-but-it-s-indescribable-how/)

[Hannibal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannibal/)

> [“Unlike the rest he had seen of the bungalow, the hall beyond the door was dark. He could see the glimmer of three doors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramsey-campbell/unlike-the-rest-he-had-seen-of-the-bungalow-the-hall-beyond-the-door/)

[Ramsey Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramsey-campbell/)

> [Some of my fondest and most impressionable movie memories are from those early sci-fi and horror films. I've always been a Dracula/vampire aficionado, being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-wise/some-of-my-fondest-and-most-impressionable-movie-memories-are-from/)

[Ray Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-wise/)

[Browse all 4,296 Horror quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horror/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“People who love horror films are people with boring lives... when a really scary movie is over, you're reassured to see that you're still alive and the world still exists as it did before. That's the real reason we have horror films - they act as shock absorbers - and if they disappeared altogether, I bet you'd see a big leap in the number of serial killers. After all, anyone stupid enough to get the idea of murdering people from a movie could get the same idea from watching the news.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Ryu Murakami"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/people-who-love-horror-films-are-people-with-boring-lives-when-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Horror"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/people-who-love-horror-films-are-people-with-boring-lives-when-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed5/ryu-murakami-8219_horror_people-who-love-horror-films-are-people_14468.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“People who love horror films are people with boring lives... when a really scary movie is over, you're…” — Ryu Murakami",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Ryu Murakami",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryu-murakami/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“People who love horror films are...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/people-who-love-horror-films-are-people-with-boring-lives-when-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryu-murakami/people-who-love-horror-films-are-people-with-boring-lives-when-a/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
