Thump-thump, thump-thump… hearts pound as adrenaline pumps through veins. Sweaty hands grasp whatever is nearest, then the killer jumps from around the corner and the theater is filled with blood-curdling screams.

Junior Ethan Lanham enjoys nothing more than a great horror film. He enjoys the thrill they give him and he just can’t get enough of jumpscares.

“The symbolism behind some of the horror movies is enough to keep me interested in the story,” Lanham said. “But, they always put in characters that range from very interesting and captivating, and then they put in the more shallow characters to make it fun when they get killed off instead of hard to watch like it would be if they killed one of the main characters.”

Horror movies tend to make people scared but Lanham said they also make him “pleasantly surprised” because of the plot twists or just how the story unfolds because it’s not always predictable.

“My favorite horror movie is “Halloween” because Michael Myers is such an interesting character,” Lanham said. “We don’t know much about him except that he murdered his sister and then he killed a bunch of other people when he got older. The movie sagas explore many different backstories and different reasons he does what he does but none of them really explain why Michael is the way he is.”

Lanham said anything that happens in horror movies could really happen to people in the real world. Horror movies like The Conjuring are based on true events as well as many other movies so it is very possible for people to encounter ghosts or serial killers. Anything can happen and horror movies might be what prepare the world for these terrible events.