Hi - Thank you for all your comments here. I'm going to pick up on a few of them.

Firstly, I am fascinated to hear about your experience in a cult. My parents were also in a cult for the first seven years of my life (which obviously means by extension, so was I). They subsequently made the leap to evangelical Christianity which was a blessed relief in comparison but still had a plethora of problems, and I am still dealing with the after effects. I no longer "identify" (if you'll forgive my use of a much abused word) as evangelical, and no longer attend any church (though I know some people at a local C of E congregation, and have been there a few times). That isn't to say I don't believe in the community aspect of Christianity, but I believe there are far better ways of interacting/praying/worshipping with other believers than church on a Sunday morning or other organised religious setting.

I think you hated the ending of The Mist for exactly the same reason I loved it: because it was so shatteringly feel-bad. I entirely understand why you hated it though. It's certainly not a film for everyone. :)

Nothing but hearty agreement as far as The Babadook is concerned though - and yes, it is monumentally absurd to lump a film like that in with the likes of, say, The New York Ripper, or more recent torture porn flicks like the Hostel series. I don't personally care for that particular subgenre in horror, as it seems to be the thing that gives horror in general a bad name.

To pick up on what you said about Stephen King, I have much sympathy, because I also don't feel I have much of a choice but to write what the voices in my head dictate (horror or otherwise). And yes - I do agree that not all horror films need to have some deep or profound spiritual meaning. Some I enjoy purely for macabre thrills.

I also have zero interest in sport, by the way (football and golf are provoke many an eye-roll), so much sympathy on that front. :)

One final point: What you say about love stories interests me. I actually prefer my romance doomed (unless I'm reading/watching romantic comedy) and in such cases, I believe romantic weepies/horror are two sides of the same masochistic catharsis urge.

Thank you again for all your comments, and thank you for reading. :)