Yuppie Horror

the happy family with a tear/slash between them is the perfect visual for yuppie horror stories!

Yuppie Harra

This name for this category of horror is taken from the horror movie podcast, "With Gourley and Rust", which I've been enjoying lately. I'm not sure if Gourley and Rust came up with the term - I'd never heard the phrase "Yuppie Horror". I love it though!

Even though it was a new phrase for me, I had a sense of what it meant as soon as I heard it. "Yuppies" was a term for, I guess, professionals who are upper middle class. Not sure if the term is still used. So the main characters in Yuppy Horror are in that group. The lead character(s) usually make some kind of mistake, and end up with a terrifying threat to their comfortable lives. There are a mountain of movies with this kind of framework.

These are not usually supernatural threats - although they could be I guess. These are horror/thriller stories where the main character makes some kind of thoughtless/selfish mistake and end up having their world infiltrated by a dangerous psychopath. They're not slasher stories; they're not home invasion stories - though there can be elements of those kinds of stories in there for sure. These characters are financially comfortable and face the threat of losing everything.



We're talking about "Fatal Attraction", maybe the ruler of this genre, where a Yuppy cheats on his wife and faces terrifying consequences for it. Or "Pacific Heights", where a couple buys a big house and rents part of it to a tenant who makes them wish they'd checked a few references after all. Or movies like "The Good Son" and "Orphan" where it's the adopted child who is the evil threat. I remember "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" with the psychotic nanny/babysitter Rebecca DeMornay. There's also "First Born" and "The Stepfather" where it's an evil step-parent.

What's scary about these stories is that the evildoer is not just going to stab you or kill you; they're going to take apart everything that makes your life what it is: your job, your family and friends, your reputation, and your financial security.

I haven't seen one of these in a long time but I think I want to look up a few of them this Halloween season! I think a favorite of mine was "Sleeping With the Enemy". It's scary and exciting but also a bit cheesy and over the top, in a good way! Always enjoyed that one.

You know, in pondering this, Sleeping With the Enemy may not quite fit into the usual mold for these stories. It's got more of a slasher vibe to it (but, y'know…sort of a CLASSY slasher?). I suppose that tells me that I don't really gravitate to Yuppy Horror movies overall, since I chose a favorite that doesn't quite fit the usual form.

But I DO enjoy them somewhat. Maybe you like them more?

These were big in the 80's and 90's I think.

What do you think? You fancy a Yuppie Horror Story? What's your favorite?

See you next time!

Banes