Fear & Fun: 1Huddle’s Fav Halloween Hits

Did you know that  people who like scary movies exhibit greater psychological resilience than those that don’t?

That’s according to a recent study which found that fans of horror, along with the morbidly curious, tend to experience fear as a “form of play.”

And, like almost all other forms of play, engaging voluntarily in frightening fictional experiences can teach important lessons. Voluntary use of horror entertainment was found to lead to less “reliance on avoidance mechanisms in response to fear,” and, as a result, through simulation, provides a strategy for learning how to deal with unfamiliar situations by making the unpredictable predictable.

Take, for example, a film about a pandemic:  “A pandemic film gives viewers low-cost access to important information that is difficult or dangerous to come across in the real world. For example, how do other people act in the face of a pandemic? Are such events likely to prompt cooperative or selfish behavior in others? How might one navigate the altered social landscape of a pandemic world? What does the world look like when institutions that act as cornerstones of everyday existence no longer operate as usual?”

Not only can a greater propensity to gather information about dangerous phenomena help us imagine, and thus better respond to analogous real-life situations, but  morbidly curious individuals “may accrue a larger repertoire of knowledge and emotional coping strategies that would be useful in dangerous situations.” In other words, because they voluntarily subject themselves to low-risk, fictional scenarios that scare them, they also learn to better navigate and regulate their own emotions.

No wonder so many people downloaded the movie Contagion in March of 2020!

Here, at 1Huddle, not all of us find fear fun. But of those who do, in honor of Halloween, here are our favorite scary movies:

1. Halloweentown (1998)

This is the only “Halloween” movie I can tolerate. I’m just not a Halloween fan, but for some reason enjoyed watching this as a kid. –Dana

2. Freddy vs. Jason (2003)

“Still ranks as one of the coolest collaborations when it comes to horror. It just hasn’t really been done before, besides maybe Kong vs Godzilla. It combined both of my top horror movie franchises into one competition between them.  Love the thrill, excitement, and adrenaline rush!” –Roger

3. The Birds (1963)

“First watched – before you were all born – sometime in the 60’s. I’ll never forget the church scene, where they had to walk back to town, with both sides of the street lined with birds. It’s scary as shit!” –Vinnie

4. Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

“I don’t really like scary movies, but really love this film. Jack’s enthusiasm for Christmas is so earnest, and sweet, and somehow, watching this as a kid helped me get used to  the kind of creepy aesthetic.” –Bri

5. The Babadook (2014)

“This was the first horror movie I went out of my way to watch– it’s fuckin good, mate! Fear can be fun, like when you’re scared about performing under pressure. Which makes sense for the Babadook, since it’s essentially a film about learning to cope with difficult emotions.” –Jaime

Any scary movies that we missed or that you’d like to share? Send them to dana@1huddle.co!  

Happy Halloween! 👻

About 1Huddle

1Huddle is a coaching and development platform that uses quick-burst mobile games to more quickly and effectively educate, elevate, and energize your workforce — from frontline to full-time.

With a mobile-first approach to preparing the modern worker, a mobile library of 3,000+ quick-burst employee skill games, an on-demand game marketplace that covers 16 unique workforce skill areas, and the option for personalized content, 1Huddle is changing the way organizations think about their training – from a one-time boring onboarding experience to a continuous motivational tool. 

Key clients include Loews Hotels, Novartis, Madison Square Garden, PIMCO, TAO Group, and the United States Air Force. To learn more about 1Huddle and its platform, please visit 1huddle.co.