The horror of love

Ever notice how some of the best horror stories are also really great tragic tales of love as well? True,the Bronte sisters caught on to that notion faster than many of us but they tended to focus more on the love than the terror by the end of their books. As time and the growth of the horror genre went on,the linkage has become more obvious.

From the twisted attraction between clever cannibal Hannibal Lector and determined to prove herself FBI agent Clarice Starling to the bizarre bonding of imprisoned author Paul Sheldon and his "number one fan" Annie Wilkes and the truly fatal attraction of Dan and his part time lover Alex,the consequences of romance gone wrong has been a key component in many horror films,books and TV series.

From the supernatural to all too real scary stories,love and horror have held hands and strolled into our nightmares for a long time now and as another early Halloween treat,we here at LRG have pulled together some of our favorite caught in a bad romance moments and couples:



THE MONSTER AND HIS MATE: The classics are a good place to start as any,especially when such a lovelorn gem of terror as The Bride of Frankenstein is waiting in the wings.

The despair of being alone and unloved is the motivational spur used by Dr. Pretorious to manipulate both Dr. Frankenstein and his alleged monster into making a female version of his creation.

While the science ultimately succeeds,there clearly is no chemistry arising from the newly made maiden and her intended lover. You really have to feel for the poor guy;he couldn't have done worst than if he had answered an ad on Craig's List:





COMPUTER DATING FROM THE HELLMOUTH: On an early episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer,Willow had a reaction similar to Frankenstein's bride,only without the screaming,upon her face-to-face meeting with her cyber boyfriend,who she thought was a nice guy named Malcolm.

Turns out that he was actually a demon given a robot body by his band of deluded followers and that his idea of true love involved deception and murder,with delight in spreading chaos via the internet as a bonus.

This wasn't the first off the beaten path romance that Willow(or any of her Sunnydale pals)would be part of-she did fall in love with a werewolf and a witch-but it was the one that ended with much less heartbreak than the others did. However,that cloud of romantic doom that lingered over the Buffy and her main Scoobies during the seven seasons of the show can be said to be officially acknowledged here:





BLOOD ON THE DANCE FLOOR: Vampires have long held the eternal romance crown in this category and since the 1985 vamp flick Fright Night was in part a homage to the old school style of horror film,it's no wonder that this trope was threaded into the plot's framework.

Newly arrived vampire Jerry Dandridge was just concerned about covering his gory tracks,thanks to the interference of the teen next door Charlie, but when he realized that Charlie's girlfriend Amy bore a striking resemblance to a former flame from his past ,the stakes really went higher.

The seduction of Amy began as she and Charlie ran into a nightclub to avoid Jerry but the vampire's hypnotic lure drew her out onto the dance floor and into his incredibly sexy embrace. I know that there are plans in the works to remake this film but I highly doubt that any new edition will be able to capture the sensuous energy of this sequence or the tingle of fear and desire during the mirror moment of truth for Amy:





QUITE THE SINGING CARROT TO DANGLE THERE: For wimpy flower shop clerk Seymour,the only true inducement that his chatty plant pal was able to use to get him to find fresh human chow in Little Shop of Horrors was the chance to win the heart of his beloved Audrey. Fortunately,Audrey's taste in men was on par with her wardrobe choices,so putting her brutal beau on the menu wasn't all too bad.

When Seymour got cold feet again regarding providing that made of man fertilizer,his leafy companion countered that move by tricking Audrey into a dinner date where she was the main course. That ploy was the deal breaker between Seymour and that mean green mother from outer space-chomping on a fella's fiance is truly crossing a line,after all:





It looks like love and horror will still continue to work together as friends,if not lovers,in order to make those themes of out of control passion and misguided emotions hit home for their audiences.

Whose to say this isn't an ideal pairing,really? Love can be pretty scary,even without any monsters,real or imagined,to make things more complicated than they usually are.

Then again,some frightening situations are better than others; anyone can be in a love triangle but if your choices are both vampires,the selection can boil down to which flavor of bloodsucker you prefer-blonde brooding or darkly devious. Talk about being caught between the fangs of a dilemma there!: