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When implemented with care, a jump scare can be a powerful tool in the horror genre to pull authentic fear from its audience. When used sparingly and unexpectedly, the desired effect can be achieved, but in the modern era, jump scares are often solely relied on to scare the audience.
Modern jump scares have become predictable and cheap, overused, often applied in scenes where the viewers expect it, and reliant on loud noises to force the body to jump. Many horror fans have grown so tired of them that they wish the trope would die. While there is a legitimate reason why this tactic can be effective, there are also many examples of where it flounders.
10 Sinister was Authentically Terrifying Right Up Until the End
Sinister told the story of the demon Bagul and his influence over children who murdered their own families. The film was scary, utilized a few clever jump scares here and there, and some even argue that it might be one of the scariest films ever made. That’s why it came as such a horrible disappointment that Sinister was guilty of one of the cheapest jump scares in the book.
At the end of the film, when the movie appears to be over, and viewers are readying themselves for one last jump scare, Bagul disappointingly delivers. The monster or killer jumping out one last time at the close of a film has become such a cliché; it was upsetting to see a good film fall prey to it.
9 Paranormal Activity’s Hype Isn’t Quite So Deserved
The original Paranormal Activity launched a massive franchise of found footage films that grew more and more ridiculous as the series went on. While the series has a lot of negative points, many people argue that the original movie was absolutely terrifying. Upon a rewatch, fans might notice that not much actually happens in the film, though.
The end of the film climaxes with an all too predictable jump scare. Upon hearing loud wailing, Micah wakes and launches himself out of bed. Shortly after, the wailing ends. Ominous thuds approach the bedroom’s open door. Katie lingers unseen in the dark and then launches Micah at the camera. It might have terrified people at the time, but looking back, the jump scare is predictable and ends as many horror movies do.
8 Unfriended Ruined Its Entire Vibe
The expectations for Unfriended weren’t high. Shot almost entirely through webcams, the film focuses on a group of friends chatting on Skype who are being terrorized by a ghost girl who committed suicide after they leaked a video of her. Due to the low budget and quality, no one expected the movie to be enjoyable.
It was so disappointing when the film’s ending pulled away from the rest. As the last survivor of the call turns to face something off-screen, two hands slam her laptop shut. After a few moments, there’s one final jump scare of the ghost descending on the audience, but it feels completely disconnected from the rest of the film. Had it not resorted to such a cheap scare, the movie would have actually been good.
The Gallows was a standard found footage film. Trying to fill a niche within the genre, the movie told the story of a person who was accidentally hanged on stage during a live performance at school. Unfortunately, while the film had some interesting ideas, it ultimately fell flat the way many found footage films do.
They did try to get creative with their jump scares, though. Notably, there’s a scene where a noose appears around Cassidy’s neck, and she’s yanked backward. It’s trying to be poetic in the film’s theme, but it falls flat. The scene drags on for too long, everyone knows something will happen, and no one is quite sure how the noose got around her neck without her or the audience noticing.
6 Ouija was so Bad That the Sequel was Actually Better
Ouija may not be the worst paranormal film about the misuse of an Ouija board, but it’s still a bad movie. With a horrible plot and just as horrible jump scares, Ouija is a rare example of having a sequel outshine it, or, in this case, a prequel. How the film inspired a second movie, the world may never know, but Ouija: Origin of Evil was significantly better.
One of the worst jump scares in this movie was the classic turn around to see a scary face. Trevor approaches a pool searching for Sarah and finds a haunting face staring at him instead. After turning around to see the creepy visage, he’s thrown back into the pool.
5 Prom Night was a Needless Remake with Needless Jump Scares
2008’s remake of Prom Night was a remake no one asked for and no one needed. It wasn’t scary, didn’t elaborate much on the original, and was lackluster overall. Along with the lacking story and characters, it has some pretty lousy jump scares. One of the worst offenders was definitely the mirror scene.
It’s a jump scare as old as time. Someone’s in the bathroom with the mirror cabinet open, and when they close it, they see a person, a killer, or a ghost behind them. In this instance, it was the poor girl’s aunt.
4 The Amityville Horror Cat Jump Scare
Another jump scare trope that’s cropped up over the years is the infamous “it was just a cat” scare. There are dozens of bad examples of this sort of jump scare, but 1979’s The Amityville Horror is home to a particularly bad one.
George sits by a window so that he can enjoy a cigarette on a sleepless night. While lighting the cigarette, a cat pops up from beneath the window outside and screeches, startling him in the process. Yes, that’s the entire jump scare.
3 Friday the 13th Part 8 is Over the Top
No one can argue that Jason Voorhees of the Friday the 13th franchise isn’t one of the most recognizable slasher icons. That said, many of this slasher series’s installments are bad or ridiculous. Friday the 13th Part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan isn’t even the most outlandish film in this franchise (Jason has literally gone to space), but it’s up there.
It also delivers a horrible jump scare where the survivors believe that Jason is dead. But, of course, in the history of every slasher movie, the killer is never dead, so, inevitably, Jason pops out of the subway to continue on his way.
2 Blair Witch is Also Guilty of Crappy Jump Scares
While 1999’s The Blair Witch Project is praised as a terrifying movie and the beginning of found footage popularity, the franchise isn’t free of lousy jump scares. The original film doesn’t actually have any. Some believe the ending is a jump scare while others don’t, but its sequels are full of them.
2016’s Blair Witch was an attempt at a better sequel than the 2000 offering that completely dropped the ball. Even still, there are several scares where one of the main cast simply appears in front of the camera. Found footage movies are guilty of this in almost every entry. The cheap scare of someone who’s supposed to be there suddenly showing up just isn’t scary.
1 Ghosts of Georgia is One Continuous Jump Scare
No one should be surprised to know that The Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia wasn’t a good movie. Seeing as the franchise name indicates a Connecticut location, but then directly contradicts itself should be the first clue. As it turns out, there are 32 jump scares through in the 100-minute run time. That number is remarkably high.
According to WheresTheJump.com, it has more jump scares than any other movie they’ve reviewed, and the movie suffered for it. It’s hard to pick just one bad jump scare because the entire film is a what not to do manual on the art of a good jump scare.
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