This Halloween, Princess Cinemas and the Horror Show Collective invited viewers to screen the “scariest movie ever” for a chance to win $200, but they didn’t know the title of the film going into the screening.
While patrons were expecting gore and horror in the form of Michael Meyers or Jason, what they got was animal slaughter documentary called Earthlings.
This event seemed like real-life clickbait. The event was marketed to a very specific type of movie-goer. Instead of a thriller, they got a documentary. The two genres are not interchangeable, but the organizations that partnered with the Horror Show Collective left an ambiguous sway.
They purposely mislead viewers. Though they claim the event was a success, they likely turned just as many people away from their cause as they encouraged to become vegan or animal activists.
Having this event on Halloween weekend also reinforced the idea that it was going to be a thriller. Thrill-seekers were excited for this event and it could have been a really amazing event.
It was a smart, though manipulative, way to get their views out. They hit a lot of people that normally wouldn’t view this type of documentary.
Facebook advertising doesn’t seem to have the same standards as other types of advertisement, so they got away with the ambiguity of their campaign.
The end, we believe, does not justify the means.
Implying a horror film and enticing viewers with this ideal is wrong. It’s pushing an agenda — one that the audience may not subscribe to.
Forcing people to discuss political ideas when they don’t want to, especially if they’re not expecting it, is never okay. Consent is always golden.