It’s no mystery why filmmakers keep trying to revive the horror surrounding “Leatherface.” The real mystery is how the victims end up in his kill list. (Photo courtesy of Netflix)

By Juri Dagio | Staff Writer

Horror movies are renowned for featuring characters who make questionable decisions that result in their demise.

With Halloween only a few weeks away, here are 10 frustrating decisions in horror films that should serve as a reminder: do not walk toward the noise, take off for the front door and leave.

Teen Investigates Ruins After Earthquake – “Evil Dead Rise” (2023) 

After a powerful earthquake, the logical thing to do is to get out of the building as soon as possible. Don’t worry about creepy noises, let alone a strange book that is buried under a pile of debris. It is truly remarkable how Danny (played by Australian actor Morgan Davies) had the audacity to investigate the building’s ruins after the earthquake in “Evil Dead Rise.” Despite his sister Bridget’s (Gabrielle Echols) warnings not to go, Danny, seemingly scared, walked into the darkness and took home a collection of religious 1923 phonograph records, along with the infamous book of the “Evil Dead” film series.

Danny could have prevented his mother, Ellie (Alyssa Sutherland), from getting possessed and saved his whole family (and the entire apartment complex) from a soul-eating demonic spirit if he had only gone straight to their apartment empty-handed … or if he only brought home the boxes of pizza they bought for dinner.

Young Entrepreneurs Travel to an Abandoned Town – “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (2022)

Several groups of young adults travelled to an empty Texas town in order to auction off old properties to develop a high school-style, gentrified neighborhood. Travelling to an abandoned town is not only the face-palm inducing moments in this movie. The lead characters had to fight off an elderly woman named Ginny (Alice Krige), who claims to have legal documents proving that she owns the house despite the town being abandoned. As if that were not bad enough, they walked into her house in search of the papers after hearing a creaking noise in the basement.

Guy Watches “Entity” Die – “Smile” (2022)

The only one way “The Smile Entity” could get a new victim is by making an unaware victim watch another kill themselves.
Joel (Kyle Gallner), fully aware of the curse, watches ex-lover, Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon), burn and kill herself, all the while displaying a sinister smile as she was already possessed by the entity. Joel could still be in love, but what does that have to do with watching Rose burn to death? He probably wants the curse for himself.

Evelyn Gets Pregnant – “A Quiet Place” (2020)

As aliens invade the planet and use auditory cues to hunt, remaining silent is essential for survival. What made Evelyn (Emily Blunt) choose to have a baby during an alien invasion? No one knows. If contraception is unavailable, wouldn’t it make more sense to prioritize children’s safety instead of doing the “deed”?

Son Helps Wounded Stranger – “The Purge” (2013)

In order to ensure the safety of his family during the purge, James (Ethan Hawke) created a high-tech security system. Despite his best efforts to fully secure the house — which included the installation of pin-activated walls, windows, and doors — his son Charlie (Max Burkholder) managed to disable the entire system in order to provide refuge for an injured man within their home.

It’s a good act of compassion and a moral thing to do in difficult times, but who would do that in real life?

Doctor Cuts His Foot Off – “Saw” (2004)

Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) and his cellmate have figured that the only option left to stop Jigsaw’s (Tobin Bell) “game” is to contact their families on the phone. To reach the phone, however, Dr. Gordon has to chop his foot off with a saw. Wait … does he really have to?

Although the phone is evidently out of reach by hand, since he is chained to a post, Dr. Gordon did not have to chop his foot to get to the phone. All he had to do is to calmly rake the phone toward him with the hacksaw.

Splitting-Up – “Resident Evil: Apocalypse” (2004)

In zombie movies, it is a common occurrence for groups to “split up” when faced with intense situations, either to cover more ground or because they believe it would be more manageable to do so. In “Resident Evil: Apocalypse,” Jill (Milla Jovovich) has made the decision to divide the group in order to search for the missing daughter of a researcher from the Umbrella Corporation.

Logically, this plan would only work if all members of the team were trained combat professionals like her. However, Jill probably did not realize she was with a civilian and two other journalists, not with the “Avengers.” What happens next is much more ridiculous — Jill entrusts a journalist, who doesn’t know anything about guns, with a handgun and sends her off to find the daughter. She ultimately becomes a monster’s dinner table item.

Siblings Investigates Large Pipe – “Jeepers Creepers” (2001)

While driving home from college, Darry (Justin Long) and Trish (Gina Philips) see a suspicious truck driver dumping what looks like to be a dead body down a pipe. Rather than calling for help, the siblings stopped to see what’s going on. Surprisingly enough, Darry even crawled down the pipe.

Helen Stops to Check If Killer is Still After Her – “I Know What You Did Last Summer” (1997)

Helen (Sarah Gellar) has one of the craziest chase scenes in the movie; she jumped off a building into the alleyways, outrunning a killer. She saw a parade going by, but instead of running to safety, she paused for a moment to look behind her that resulted to — you already know what — her death.

Casey Mindlessly Answers Strange Calls – “Scream” (1996)

Ghostface (Roger L. Jackson) taught Casey (Drew Barrymore) not to say, “Who’s there?” as it indicates death wish in horror movies. But what he did not tell Casey was that she should not be talking to a creepy-voiced man or answer the phone after being threatened. How hard it is to drop a call and dial 9-1-1?