Masks
Masks on their own are quite tolerable. I have a lovely Venetian carnival mask of a smiling lady that I think is cheery and sweet. Any other mask, however, is definitely sinister and scary.

With horror movies, I am absolutely bricking it until the masked protagonist is revealed. Slasher movies I can cope with - gore just makes me bored - but put a mask, no matter how innocuous, on a character and I'm gibbering like a monkey. Perhaps it was too much Scooby Doo in my youth. Once I know who is under the mask my fears subside.

But what's scarier than masks? CHILDREN IN MASKS. Sweet suffering mother of Christ! I never did get to the end of the Doctor Who "Empty Child" episode.

So, did the people who gave me rave reviews of The Orphanage warn me that it may contain scenes of masked children? No. No they did not (yeah, thanks a frickin' bunch, Enzyme). I left the cinema in a state of heightened anxiety and had to return to an empty house where I just knew that there'd be a masked child standing, alone on the landing, silently waiting for me to walk upstairs.

Holy crap, I'm scared of everything.
( crackhouseceilidhband Fuck off back to Mumsnet, Sun 13 Apr 2008, 10:11, 4 replies)

Geeky mask fact!
The mask worn by Michael Myers in Hallowe'en (note the correct use of apostrophe) was modelled on a bust of William Shatner, which just happened to be lying around in the studio... Go on, have another look at it.

And yes, The Empty Child freaked me a bit too...
( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Mon 14 Apr 2008, 10:11, closed)

well
it was a william shatner/captain Kirk mask that they had bought for halloween. the costume guys shaved the hair off and drew eyebrows etc on. worked pretty well! they were going to make their own version but the kirk mask was so good they used it instead!
(Katzilla Follow Me! @Kat_Zilla (I don't promise funnehs), Mon 14 Apr 2008, 10:39, closed)

but imagine how much more terrifying it would be
if worn by a small, silent child.

I slept with the landing light on last night. That was after I spent half an hour plucking up the courage to walk upstairs to the landing.
( crackhouseceilidhband Fuck off back to Mumsnet, Mon 14 Apr 2008, 10:57, closed)

mummy
are you my mummy??..............
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Wed 16 Apr 2008, 16:39, closed)