6. Never Let Your Characters Be Safe
This is what it all comes down to. We are afraid of being hurt, and there are a lot of things that can hurt us mere mortals. Our limitations make us vulnerable, and our vulnerabilities elicit fear so that we know what to avoid to stay healthy and alive. We fear heights because we don't have wings, we fear the darkness because we don't have owl eyes, and we fear zombies because no matter how much ass we kick, the individual will eventually lose to the crowd. So when's the last time you saw a scary movie and actually felt a sense of danger? When did a chill penetrate the fourth wall, and make you realize how truly helpless you are to your environment? Something is going to get you. You will be mugged, get in a car accident, have your limbs snapped in a game, or be diagnosed with some crippling disease. Maybe not you. Maybe the person you love the most, and you have to watch while death cackles and waits for you next. That is unsettling, creepy fear., anxiety that a movie hasn't given us in a long long time.
Movies That Got It Right: Night of the Living Dead A Nightmare on Elm Street 28 Days Later