Horror movies aren’t often thought of as overly romantic. But upon closer inspection, some of them actually are. The couples that can be seen in genre pictures vary from surprisingly devoted to completely toxic. For the purposes of this list we’ll be looking at a little of both. Some of these couples actually work and in their own twisted way are surprisingly sweet. Other horror film paramours go to a more sinister place and the relationships are as unhealthy as you could imagine. Below are five horror movie couples that will make you happy to be single this Valentine’s Day!
Dracula and Mina – Bram Stoker’s Dracula
Despite being hailed as one of the most romantic vampire films of all time, Bram Stoker’s Dracula doesn’t provide a healthy template for a relationship. First of all, Dracula believes Mina to be the reincarnation of his long-lost wife and even if she was, that’s not necessarily who she is now and he is holding her to the image of a very different—and long-dead—person. On top of that, he imprisoned her fiancé in a distant country for months while he went to England to court her and in that time also murdered her best friend. While it’s a strong movie with great performances, this relationship is not a healthy one. Even if Oldman excels at playing that kind of tortured, humanistic monster, he’s still not the good guy by any means.
It might not be a proper horror movie, but Natural Born Killers is horrific nonetheless. Mickey and Mallory are devoted to each other despite their psychotic nature, but their relationship is somewhat undercut by the fact that Mallory was a potential victim that Mickey simply abducted. Her devotion to him is a form of Stockholm Syndrome, no matter how genuinely it’s depicted onscreen. While their relationship nonetheless has a kind of charm to it, it’s ultimately destructive and shallow.
Chucky and Tiffany – Bride of Chucky
Bride of Chucky is essentially Natural Born Killers, but with dolls. It has the same themes of media satire and the same dynamic between the two killers.The only major difference is that Tiffany is a very willing participant, which actually makes it better. Still, Chucky and Tiffany shouldn’t work. Chucky is a serial killer, a doll, and overall one of the most famous movie monsters in history. Where Bride succeeds is in showing that Tiffany is and has been an active serial killer ever since Chucky’s supposed death in 1988. In that time she has remained hopelessly devoted to his memory, so much so that she obtains the actual doll and performs a resurrection spell not even knowing if it’s going to work. Their relationship may end in bloodshed, which is one of many reasons they are not exactly looked upon as the definition of a healthy relationship. But there is still a strong sense of devotion between the two. The last half-hour of the film, which consists mainly of the two slashing each other to pieces, will make you very happy that this relationship is not yours.
Frank and Julia – Hellraiser
Julia Cotton is the true antagonist of Clive Barker’s Hellraiser, resorting to murder to try and bring her lover—and her husband’s brother—Frank back to fully restored flesh and bone. Julia is hesitant at first, but she takes to bloodshed very quickly. Julia’s actions are incredibly violent and disturbing. Relationships like the one between Julia and Frank are the kind that make you happy you are single. Her love life with her husband, Larry, is bland and because Frank was the best sex she ever had in her life, she is willing to kill to get that sense of pleasure back. She might love Frank, but the feeling is not returned. Frank is only using her for the purposes of getting his skin back, and once that’s done he pretty much views Julia as disposable. It works in the film, given that they are the villains, but it’s a very brutal and self-serving relationship.
Curt and Julie – Return of the Living Dead 3
It might not be the highest-budgeted or most well-known horror movie, but Return of the Living Dead 3 features a unique relationship and well written characters. Curt is willing to give up everything for Julie, but he loses her too soon and in his mindset of total loss, it’s natural for him to want to bring her back to life, especially if he already knows it’s going to work. Of course, Julie’s resurrection as a zombie does not immediately fix their lives and she resorts to eating flesh and extreme body modification to keep her hunger at bay. Curt tries to be there for her but is unwilling to acknowledge that Julie might not be the same as she was before. The moment that Julie is dead, she’s really dead, and from that point forward he’s holding on to a memory and trying his best not to acknowledge the changes that she’s going through. It’s a doomed romance, it’s a tragic and emotionally exhaustive relationship and even if it is somehow disturbingly sweet, it will make glad not to be in a relationship on Valentine’s Day.
