Upon second thought, that movie was better than I remembered. How often do you tell yourself that? Or, alternately, “What was I thinking? This movie was awful!” We’ve all been there. The movies don’t change, but we do. We get older. Our tastes change. Sometimes we weren’t in the right headspace to appreciate a film for the first watch. The Scariest Things gets contemplative in Episode 204 and reviews movies that we believe should be re-evaluated… for better… or worse.

Opinions can change. Sometimes, when you go to a movie, you arrive with expectations, which can affect your view. A film’s reputation may color the first impression, and many of our reactions to the movie are influenced by the environment in which we first saw it. It makes a big difference whether you first saw the film at a world premiere with the director and stars, or if you are seeing it in a living room with a bunch of talkative friends—context matters.

Was I too harsh on this film? Was I too generous? In many cases, a movie will stick with you and remind you that there was something that you really liked, and it stands the test of time, even if you didn’t initially think it was that great. Then, you go back and watch it, and realize that there was real gold there.

You might also have had a situation where you decide to watch a movie to impress a friend, convincing them that the movie was great —and then… nope. That movie didn’t age well. My sixteen-year-old self thought this movie was awesome, but I was young and stupid. The Mangler, not as good as my teenage me remembered.

There is a proud tradition of this in movie critic circles. A humble critic is one who can own up to re-evaluating a movie. I believe it is best to write a critical review independently of what others think, and I will avoid reading other reviews before I write my own. However, sometimes a movie arrives with tremendous buzz, all the bells and whistles: a revered director, a hot actor, and momentum from early festivals. I take these things into context, but I try my best to walk in with a blank slate. It’s tough, though.

PODCAST 204: Upon Second Thought – Reconsidering Horror Movies

Here is the podcast where Eric, Mike, and Heather sat down, peeled the bandage off, and admitted that perhaps we were wrong the first time. Most of these movies will be familiar to you, and some of the selections will shock you! If you want to skip the podcast and see what we picked, I have included our selections below.

As always, I recommend you listen to the podcast, and come back to this post for reference. Enjoy!

Upon Second Thought – The bad news: Movies we initially thought were good, but now the shine has come off.

It doesn’t mean these movies are bad (necessarily), but it does mean that they weren’t as awesome as we initially thought.

Mike’s List

• Rosemary’s Baby (1968): Dated and Slow?


• The Wicker Man (1972): Boring and Staid.


• Army of Darkness (1992): Nonsensical and not scary at all.

<figure class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Rosemary’s Baby (1968)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Wicker Man (1972)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Army of Darkness (1992)</figcaption></figure>
</figure>

Eric’s List

• Piranha (1978): A Jaws ripoff without a great conclusion.


• St Agatha (2018): My impressions were heavily influenced by meeting the cast and crew. Early journalism error.


• Hellraiser (1987): Too slow. Not sexy enough. Not bad, but not the iconic film that I remembered it being.

<figure class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Piranha (1977)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">St. Agatha (2018)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Hellraiser (1987)</figcaption></figure>
</figure>

Heather’s List

• Paranormal Activity (2007): Weak characters, particularly Micah.


• The Blair Witch Project (1999): Annoying banter.


• Dolls (1986): Loved it as a kid, but the campiness didn’t hold up.

<figure class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Paranormal Activity (2007)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Blair Witch Project (1999)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dolls (1986)</figcaption></figure>
</figure>

Upon Second Thought – The Good News: Movies that are better than we initially thought.

Sometimes we just got it wrong the first time. Don’t let the group think get to you, and like what you like. For these groups, we are going from bad first impressions to a more positive place upon second viewing.

Mike’s List

• Dreamcatcher (2003): A wild film with great pacing and strong camaraderie.


• Maxxxine (2023): Mike now appreciates the action-packed conclusion.


• The Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977): Burdened by being the sequel of an all-time great, it couldn’t help but struggle to live up to expectations. A great cast.

<figure class="wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-4 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dreamcatcher (2003)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Maxxxine (2023)</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977)</figcaption></figure>
</figure>

Eric’s List

• Bone Tomahawk (2015): Consider it as a western first, with strong horror elements.


• Deathgasm (2018): Eric wasn’t in the best of moods when he