IanMovies That Made Audiences Sick
December 20th 2010 01:18
Is it possible to become seriously ill or injured while watching a movie?
Have lawsuits being filed over the effects of watching a movie?
The moviefone blog takes a look at the some unusual stories surrounding the regular pastime of seeing a film. Read the full list of Seven Movies That Made Audiences Sick here.
When Warner Bros. released 'The Exorcist' in 1973, they got a little more than they bargained for: A film that rewrote the entire concept of horror movies, a blockbuster box office smash that continues to earn them money to this day and, lastly, an unusual lawsuit from a moviegoer. His claim? 'The Exorcist' was so scary he fainted -- and broke his jaw when he fell onto the seat in front of him. The suit was settled out of court, but may help explain why theaters began showing the movie with preventative measures, including 'Exorcist' barf bags, close at hand.
Before 'The Exorcist,' of course, there was 'Psycho,' which shocked audiences in 1960 with the sudden and gruesome murder of star Janet Leigh less than halfway through the film. Audiences around the globe were reported to have been afflicted with widespread fainting and vomiting spells, which only helped pique interest about the movie. Director Alfred Hitchcock wisely played things up even further by instituting a policy that nobody was allowed to enter the theatre after the movie began, ensuring that new groups of victims -- er, curious movie fans -- would line up to see what was causing all the sickness.
You might expect horror movies to headline a list like this, but the mass sickness caused by 1999's 'The Blair Witch Project' was due less to the content than to the style: The movie's use of handheld cameras and jerky editing led to motion sickness among audiences from coast-to-coast. It got so bad that some theatres were forced to post motion sickness warning signs in order to help retain workers tired of cleaning up vomit after every showing.
In 2004, 'The Passion of the Christ' shocked audiences with its graphic depiction of the crucifixion, a sequence which was later attributed as the direct cause of at least two fatal heart attacks suffered by audience members. Mel Gibson's follow-up, 'Apocalypto,' tanked at the box office -- and had correspondingly fewer fatalities.
Everyone knows that James Cameron's 'Avatar' killed at the box office, but you may be surprised to find out that it did so in a very literal way: A 42-tear-old Korean man fell ill while watching the 3-D epic and later died. His doctor's official verdict? "Over-excitement from watching the movie triggered his symptoms." An unfortunate footnote for the biggest smash in Hollywood history.
Have lawsuits being filed over the effects of watching a movie?
The moviefone blog takes a look at the some unusual stories surrounding the regular pastime of seeing a film. Read the full list of Seven Movies That Made Audiences Sick here.
The Exorcist
Psycho
Blair Witch Project
Passion of the Christ
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Unfortunately, it seems that even if a person does not like the fact that it was Jews that HISTORICALLY killed Jesus, it should not be said. History is not happiness. History is (or should be) raw fact. Jesus, it has been historically confirmed, was killed by the Jewish priests under their authority when Pilate "washed his hands" of the situation. In saying that, I am not anti-jew. I am pro-truth. Likewise, I am not saying that Christianity is for everyone. Just like I would not say Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Shintoism, or any other -ism is for anyone. But, how different I feel many people in Hollywood would have reacted if the story was about Islam or another religion. (Just an observation.)