Antichrist is a good counterexample of what kind of horror works best on me. The atmosphere is there, the imagery and implications are all shocking, but I’m unmoved because I never establish a connection and empathize with the characters. It’s all fictional regardless, but identifying with fear is the only way I can feel it myself. When the humanity’s too obfuscated it becomes artificial and even the goriest scenes don’t affect me much. The buildup with Willem Dafoe’s psychotherapy gets repetitive and slows down the increasing dread.