[Editorial] Editor’s Note: We want sex! We want sex! We want sex!

Monstrous Musings

The words are on everyone’s lips in the horror world, and what we’re shouting is “We want sex!”

Does that feel provocative and controversial to say? Because it shouldn’t. But there has been a lot of discourse around the fact that more and more films are becoming sexless. Removing all reference to sexual intercourse and advocating that showing sex or any sexual intimacy seems to be a new norm, but is this a regressive approach to filmmaking? Many have argued this is  an influence from Gen Z, but it’s hard to say exactly where it’s stemmed from. 

What we do seem to be saying though, is that we want more sex on screen. Horror and sex have always been closely copulated, and although not always in the most positive light, there are a lot of connections between the tropes we see in horror and their relation to sex. As a lover of extreme films, I’m often subjected to viewing heavy sexual violence on screen, and the removal of this would simply steer away from one of the main reasons films of this nature are so controversial and gain their notorious status’.

That doesn’t mean that sex in horror needs to be violent, it can in fact add to the narrative or just provide us with a horny little film that is fun to watch. Xan Cassavete’s Kiss of the Damned (2012) features some steamy sex scenes, including one that felt pretty graphic (Milo Ventimiglia’s character Paolo nearly has his finger in his girlfriend Djuna’s butthole at one point), but there is nothing perverted or uncomfortable about the inclusion. It’s consensual sex between two adults, and in all honesty, super fucking hot to watch. 

Vampires are a great example of why horror and sex go hand-in-hand – can you really imagine immortal blood sucking creatures that didn’t engage in some casual fucking? You’re on Earth for eternity, of course you’re going to sleep around a bit. Cannibal films are another metaphor for sexuality, with a film like Julia Ducournau’s Raw (2016) poetically and problematically displaying the animalistic lust humans have for one another, regardless of gender or orientation. 

So taking away sex from horror feels wrong. It feels like we would be stripping down a genre that, from time to time, relies on the inclusion of passion and desire to either drive narratives or communicate why we engage in sexual activities, and find the experience of pleasure from them. 

What we really want is more sex, more horny as hell films and more horror movies that aren’t afraid to push the boundaries of prudes and give us more ominous orgies, bloodsoaked blowjobs, and sex that feels downright dirty and depraved.

What’s happening at Ghouls 

Enough sex, time for some serious stuff. We’ve got a lot going on at Ghouls HQ at the moment and this year is really ramping up to be our biggest yet!

In February we looked at the topic of Romance for our podcast which led us down some interesting paths. On the podcast I got to chat to Liz Bishop about Australian horror, The Loved Ones. Warning we talk about incest and daddies a lot… Take that as you will. Then Ariel Powers-Schaub had a hangout with Ariel Baska, Caitlyn Downs and Liz Bishop to chat about all the horror films and shows they’ve recently caught. Finally, for members only, I got to subject Rebecca McCallum to watching and talking about my favourite extreme film, Nekromantik. Please someone go hug Rebecca for the horrible things I put her through.

We also launched our first ever Horror Film Club Night! That’s right, we are doing in person events, showing some fun horror films. I’ve been chatting to Pete from Lost Souls Pizza and True Romance Pizza Bar for some time, and I knew it would just be the perfect collaboration for us. So we got to show The Loved Ones (2012) to a crowd of horror lovers whilst eating delicious pizza, sipping good cocktails and singing along to ‘AM I PRETTY ENOUGH?’ which was just wonderful. We’ll be back on a monthly basis at True Romance in Camden, London to show more horror films. 

The next event will be on Wednesday 8th March, and because it’s International Women’s Day we’re watching some BADASS babes on screen with Taratino’s Death Proof (2007). Pete has also thrown in a bottle chartreuse to shot with throughout the film – so it’s gonna get trashy. Our movie nights are super chill; it’s free to attend, rock up with pals and you can giggle and chat through the film. We have our events planned out and you can check the calendar for them all here.

This March we have a lot of exciting articles and podcasts lined up for members too. 

• Ariel Powers-Schaub and Liz Bishop podcast about Unusual Good For Her Recommendations 

• I chatted to Rebecca and Lakkaya Palmer about What We’ve Been Watching

• For your exclusive member podcast, the wonderful Mary Wild joined me to talk about some of our favourite Psychotic Women in Horror

• Ariel Powers-Schaub wrote about why we love Beth from Hostel 2

• I indulged my passion for female villains by looking at 9 of the most ferocious ones

• And Melissa Cox is writing a regular monthly list on short horror films, so this month it’s Good For her short horrors you can watch

As always, we love hearing from you – feedback, ideas or even just complaining that we write too much about men getting their penis’ severed (this is a true story). So do get in touch with us if you want: editor@ghoulsmagazine.com

Every month we’re now taking on new writers and new pitches, so if you or someone you know would like to write for Ghouls Magazine, feel free to fill out this form. 

And finally, a big thank you to all of our members who are supporting Ghouls Magazine – we can keep bringing fresh horror content because of you. So thank you to:

Mick Brooks, Elizabeth Ruby, Ali Taylor, John C, Rhiann Pask, Vineeth Pratheepan, Alex Pagliuca, Graham Blunt, Jasmine Denney, Lisa Scholes, Vannah Taylor, Scott Hielkema, Bel Morrigan, Quincy Struss, Candy Allison and Nicola Peters.

Now I’m off to indulge in something sexy, bloody and a little bit dirty. 

Love & guts,

Zoë xx

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