Horror Prequels Have No Suspense For One Specific Reason
Horror prequels infuriate me to no end because most of the time there’s no reason to get emotionally involved with whatever premise or characters that are established. Most of the time, I just feel cheated because if we’re talking about a serial killer plot, for example, and they’re just beginning their rampage in the prequel, then it’s safe to say that everybody you’re getting introduced to will die a horrible death before the film’s conclusion. Going into a horror prequel already knowing what the outcome will be to a certain degree strips these films of whatever first and second-act suspense that would otherwise have a solid third-act payoff in their non-prequel counterparts.
Spoiler Alert: Everybody Dies
I’ve been approaching horror prequels with guarded enthusiasm ever since The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning saw its 2006 release. I remember sitting in the theater, deflated and despondent because it was the first time I fully realized that this kind of movie didn’t need to exist. My friend sitting next to me was shocked that nobody survived and said something along the lines of “Wow! I didn’t see that coming!,” to which I replied, “are you an idiot?”
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise works on so many levels, but the most important reason it works is because you’re rooting for a daring escape while watching most of these films. If there’s no hope, or even a “last girl” defying all odds and surviving a harrowing ordeal, then you’re going into the viewing experience knowing that there’s really nothing at stake. Adding a The Beginning addendum to the title basically suggests that the events in the film take place long before anybody escapes from Leatherface’s wrath, meaning that there’s no other logical outcome to the horror prequel.
While it was interesting to see some lore added to the franchise’s canon, it really doesn’t offer anything new that you couldn’t piece together through context clues found in the other films, making it a useless movie all around.
I Wonder How This One Will End?
Slashers aren’t the only kind of horror prequels that suffer from a serious lack of suspense. I just went to see A Quiet Place: Day One, so you may as well skip the next paragraph if you haven’t. On second thought, just go ahead and read it because you’ll know how this movie ends five minutes after the title card drops.
The primary protagonist in this horror prequel is a terminally ill cancer patient living in hospice care named Samira (Lupita Nyong’o), who just so happens to end up in New York City (ground zero) when the mysterious sound-detecting creatures crash-land on Earth and start ripping people to shreds. Samira is already on the verge of death at the film’s outset, and her health is rapidly declining. With the city’s infrastructure absolutely decimated (that includes pharmacies), and a bunch of hostile aliens running rampant through the streets, you’d be a fool to believe that the person whose life you’re supposed to be the most invested in will make it out alive.
I actually loved this horror prequel because it established a healthy amount of lore for future films to explore, but still, I felt cheated because through its narrative construct there can only be one outcome.
We Get It, But Thanks For Spoon-Feeding It To Us Anyway
The most glaring example of a horror prequel gone wrong would have to be 2018’s The First Purge. If you’re at all familiar with The Purge franchise, I think you know where I’m going with this. The Purge films are about a corrupt and overreaching government that implements an annual “purge” that allows its citizens to legally commit crimes, including murder, for a 12-hour period.
The First Purge centers on the New Founding Fathers of America, who are working out the concept of … you guessed it, the first Purge. Just like the “beginning” addendum in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, the word “first” suggests that things aren’t going to go so great for anybody involved. I’ll extend an olive branch and admit that learning how the New Founding Fathers of America operated behind closed doors was fascinating, but the other four films pretty much cover everything you need to know.
Not All Horror Prequels
Aside from all of the horror prequels I’ve seen that totally screw the pooch in delivering suspense, I have to give it to Mike Flanagan’s Ouija: Origin of Evil. But this movie is the exception to the rule because it was basically created to retcon Ouija, which didn’t exactly do a great job in the first place. Since there was barely any kind of legacy to repair anyway, this horror prequel actually fills in the blanks, and gives the viewer a reason to rewatch its predecessor and connect the dots.
By going backward and explaining the source of terror with more granular detail, Flanagan was able to riff on the premise and create a suitable backstory that actually generated suspense because so many questions were left unanswered in the first film.
Horror Prequels Are For Sociopaths
In order for horror prequels to work, you need to care about the characters. If you know the characters are going to meet a grisly fate from the film’s outset, then you don’t need to care about the characters. Since I’m not a sociopath, and I want to be emotionally invested in the storytelling, I can’t say I’m ever thrilled when a new prequel title is announced in this genre anymore because most of the time I already know how it’s going to end.
