[Editorial] The Exploration of Paraphilias in Extreme Horror

Sex and horror have been tied together for decades, scenes alluding to a sexual nature are often seen in most of the classic horrors such as Halloween. This adds an  adult touch and can be used in a variety of ways to set up a kill scene. It is a common trait of classic horror that promiscuous teenagers often become the victims of murder.

It is almost as expected that there will be scenes of a sexual nature just as much as it is expected that there will be scenes of violence. The two come as a package and have been part of the formula of a typical horror movie to the point that it almost becomes a little boring as there is not much that the general horror viewer has not already seen. 

In extreme horror sexual scenes are conveyed in a completely different way which often push boundaries and make for some of the most disturbing parts of the movie. When you think of extreme horror you most likely think of movies such as Nekromantic 1& 2, A Serbian Film, the Human Centipede trilogy, August Underground trilogy and so on. All of these movies have something in common and that is scenes of sexual acts of a violent nature. Almost all of them include necrophilia for example, something which is explored often in the extreme movie genre. It is a debased act in itself and the arousal felt for a corpse is something which makes most people flinch in disgust, so it is well used in extreme movies as it is already something which is considered disturbing. These sexual acts-which occur after viewing someone being killed-are bizarre and uncomfortable to watch yet also show how  for those who are undertaking these acts it is how they seek pleasure; it could be considered that this is a fetishisation for them. It could also be said that just as scenes of a sexual nature are expected in horror scenes of necrophilia may be expected in extreme horror movies. Paraphilia is a term to summarise a specific sexual interest someone has in something, necrophilia being a well known one. Extreme movies explore these various paraphilias in a way where the viewer can understand, that for those performing the acts this is what they are sexually aroused by, this is what could be considered as their fetish. These films often push what sex and fetish may mean by exploring various paraphilias and making them even more extreme so they may be used to disturb the audience. Here is my guide to extreme movies which highlight a range of paraphilias well. 

The Vomit Gore trilogy by Lucifer Valentine

Paraphilia explored: Emetophilia, Urolagnia, Necrophilia

Before speaking about Lucifer Valentine, it’s worth noting that we do not condone this director, but when talking about paraphilia, he had to be mentioned in regards to his films. It is well known that the director Lucifer Valentine is open about his emetophilia fetish. So, it comes as no surprise that there are a lot of scenes of women puking in his movies. The Vomit Gore trilogy follows different versions of the same person (Angela Aberdeen) as if we are witnessing her demise and unsettling experiences during her life. It is often said that it could be understood that some parts are meant to visually show her journey to hell. The style of these movies is very surreal and seeing people vomiting ranges from the typical scene of a hungover person being sick in a toilet, to extreme amounts of vomiting to really drag out the unpleasantness the person is experiencing either to accommodate to an  emetophilia fetish or to disturb and gross out the viewer. Though there are various sexual scenes throughout the trilogy which are not always completely consensual and show the more expected types of sexual acts which you may expect in an extreme movie, it is the scenes which use vomiting which are unique to the trilogy and gave the movies the nickname the Vomit Gore Trilogy. 

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Squirmfest by Susumu Saegusa

Paraphilias explored: Coprophilia/ Scat, Masochism,  Urolagnia

Squirmfest is a Japanese extreme movie which is filmed in a handheld camera POV style. It is very far down on the “disturbing movies iceberg” and this may be because of the involvement of scat. It shows a woman who has been held hostage being made to do various acts which vary from eating insects to being shat on and eating shit for the sexual enjoyment of the men performing these acts. It shows how the woman is exploited in various ways so the men involved can completely degrade her and see how far they can push her. It is quite an unusual movie with disturbing tones and shows just how far Japanese cinema is willing to go to push boundaries and be as extreme as possible. 

Feed by Brett Leonard

Paraphilia explored: Feederism

Feed is a movie which explores how what can be seen as a consensual partnership with the (word) fetish it can actually be taken too far and be harmful for the person who has submitted to this relationship if the person doing the feeding has other intentions. It is quite a simple movie in terms of plot yet the visuals of seeing someone being bed bound and fed is quite unsettling. The feeder shows a kind of love and devotion which masks his motives so well that the woman who is being fed is often seen as happy and expressing feelings of love and feeling beautiful towards him. It is disturbing in the sense that you gradually learn what is really going on and feeling for her whilst seeing her so obese and somewhat brainwashed into this state of being feels unnerving. 

Melancholia Der Engel by Marian Dora

Paraphilias explored: Coprophilia, Abasiophilia, Mysophilia, Urolagnia, Zoosadism, Necrophilia. 

Going through the Wikipedia list of paraphilias, Melancholia Der Engel covers l more of them than any of the movies mentioned above. This could be due to the main protagonists in the movie deliberately doing as many debase and extreme things as they can as one of them believes he has not long to live. The term mysophilia is used for someone who has an attraction to general filth, soiled or dirtiness. This summarises the visual mood of the movie too there are a lot of visceral scenes where rot and decay are the main focus. It also summarises the general tone of what the protagonists enjoy overall, the house they have chosen to stay at is dirty and in decay and the way they partake in sexual acts including bodily fluids is done in a filthy way too. Though there are scenes of the natural scenery most of the movie feels quite dirty and unpleasant as well so someone with mysophilia may enjoy that whilst watching the movie too!

Though there are many more movies which I could discuss here! But instead let me leave you with some movies which fit into this category which I am excited to watch. Barf Bunny by Putrid Productions featuring the fetish porn model and actress Felicia Fischer is tagged as an emetophile’s dream and looks like a fun movie with a kitschy yet gory aesthetic to it. A Baroque House films by SamHel such as Spit and Love dump explore their own mix of fetish and gore in movies in different ways, each using different kinks to mix into the gore. All Night Long 1-6 are a set of Japanese movies exploring a range of paraphilias including, voyeurism, cannibalism, coprophilia and more. 

Follow me on Instagram @disturbingandunusal to find out what I think about these movies as I take them off my very long watchlist and for movie reviews about a range of movies which fit into the realm of extreme, disturbing and straight up batshit. 

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