A Master of Horror….and a Great Human Being
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Wes Craven
moviekid-2 — 10 years ago(August 30, 2015 08:42 PM)
Perhaps the first thing that comes to mind about Wes Craven is his amazing taste for the dark side of life. We have seen it throughout his body of work: The Hills Have Eyes, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Serpent and the Rainbow, the Scream franchise, and Red Eye.
But what was fascinating was the fact that this man that we perceived as the morose, dark man was actually one that had a zest for life. He was not just a horror-meister, but a true lover of the arts. He explored that avenue with Music Of the Heart, which could not have been any more removed that the slasher flicks that made him famous.
As I am writing this with sadness and a heavy heart upon learning of my untimely passing at the age of 76, I look at Wes Craven as one of the few artists to delve into the underbelly of human nature, as well as celebrating it by recognizing the sweetness as well.
When Mr. Craven was four years old, his father died of a heart attack. His father's passing and the numerous moves from one home to another engineering his fascination on the unpredictability of life and the twists and turns of it. At Wesleyan College, he received his Master's Degree in English and became a teacher, but feeling constrained by the limitations of teaching, Wes was eagerly interested in trying a new venue: filmmaking.
His first film, The Last House on the LEft, developed a cult following over the years, concerning a group of strangers encountering a house that is not what it seems. It was not until The Nightmare on Elm Street brought him into the forefront as one of the film industry's most promising filmmakers.
Wes Craven will be missed. This was what he said when asked how he would like to be remembered:
"If I am to be remembered at all, I hope it's that I wasn't predictable. That I have a sense of humor and was not afraid to go to dark places, rather than going around them and pretending they weren't there."
Navid Sitarian
August 30th, 2015 -
downtowneb37 — 10 years ago(August 31, 2015 02:26 AM)
I concur your sentiments and actually can verify this. When I was in film school over 10 years ago, I had a chance to go to a directors guild seminar that they were putting on at the DGA center in Hollywood. One of the scheduled guests speakers that they had to speak ended up getting the flu, and had to cancel. I wasn't really phased by it as I didn't even know who the guy was, I was just going so that I could get some insider information on how to break into the film industry and how to be a successful writer, producer, & director. So who did they get to replace the guest speaker who had to cancel on such short notice? Wes freakin' Craven. I couldn't believe it. I sat there mesmerized for the hour and a half to 2 hours for however long the seminar was listening to this master craftsman tell us some really funny stories and just some useful information on how to be a successful filmmaker. What struck me as odd was the 2000fact that this man made the movies that scared the hell out of me more than any other films I had ever seen, but he was the sweetest, kindest, smartest, and most down to earth person you would ever meet. One of the things that he told us as aspiring film makers is to never give up on your dreams if you want to make it in the film industry. He told us how he had always wanted to make movies, but he took a job teaching because he was told to give up on his passion and to just make money in order to provide for his family. He said he had finally had enough and that he quit his job teaching and his wife was furious with him and asked him (and these were his words): "What the beep are you doing? You'll never make it in the film industry!" and I believe he said that's why she left him. This really resonates with me now because I am in my early 40's, and have struggled trying to break into the film industry for 10 years now, having briefly worked in it working remedial jobs and other stuff connected to it, and my brothers, and my mother-in-law and my late parents have all told me to just give up and be a truck driver, or a bus driver, or something and to just accept the fact that I will never get my dream job. After the seminar I had the honor of speaking with Mr. Craven for about 30 minutes to an hour, and he told me that he saw in me himself when I was his age, like the fact that we were both raised by extremely religious parents, and most people don't realize it but the whole reason he started making horror films was to say F you to his parents and all of their strict religious rules. He was so kind and caring and I was so happy to just be standing in his presence, let alone having the honor to speak with him. After we were done I asked him for his autograph, and instead of just giving it to me, he wrote me a long letter telling me to never give up, to not listen to what others tell me, and to always be vigilant and to pursue my dreams, and that he hoped that we would one day meet again on a film and work together before signing it for me. Sadly, that never happened, and my heart is really heavy now after hearing about his passing. RIP Mr. Craven, from someone who had the honor and priviledge of getting to speak with you and you will truly be missed.
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Mackentorsk — 10 years ago(August 31, 2015 02:39 AM)
When Mr. Craven was four years old, his father died of a heart attack, engineering his fascination on the unpredictability of life and the twists and turns of it. He received his Master's Degree in English and became a teacher
I never knew he got his masters at 4 years of age.
Truly a prodigy.
I liked his movies too.
-Inserting random phrase by famous madman/idiot that makes me feel intelligent- -
moviekid-2 — 10 years ago(August 31, 2015 10:46 AM)
Mackentorsk, I kind of made a mistake with the wording. I think it's safe to say that he did not get his Master's Degree at 4 but wound up getting it in his 20s. Apologies.
Downtowneb37, that was one of the sweetest stories that I ever heard. You are truly the luckiest man to have met him. I am sure you will have a gigantic film career and not only we will be the first to know, but Wes will be up in the clouds cheering you on.
Navid Sitarian -
Kuato_and_George — 10 years ago(September 27, 2015 01:06 PM)
You made some surprisingly funny movies. Scream, Swamp Thing, The People Under the Stairs to name a few.
http://www.hesaidshesaidreviewsite.com/ -
gbean2397 — 9 years ago(January 08, 2017 01:24 PM)
I know right. I told my mom that despite the movies Craven has made (of which she dislikes), I said to her yet in reality, Craven is the nicest guy who even did bird watching as a hobby. And she was surprised about it. He is such a cool guy.
It's such a shame that he wasn't able to branch into other genres more often, cause I think he could've proven himself to be more than just a horror director. I believe the hotel suite explosion scene in
Red Eye
is probably the closest we'll ever get to see him make an
Die Hard
-esque action movie.
And speaking of
Deadly Friend
, check out this petition that I had found long ago: https://www.change.org/p/warner-bros-home-entertainment-release-deadly-friend-director-s-cut-on-blu-ray-dvd
Please check it out, and maybe sign it for Wes.
So one more time,
Rest in Peace, Wes Craven
. I love your movies, been a fan since 3/4 yrs old.