Welcome back to Day 13 of Spooky Season!! Today, I’m giving you part 2 of the most memorable “I can’t help you” moments in horror films. This series showcases the devastating moments in horror films where a character is forced to watch someone they care about die, and they couldn’t do anything to stop it. I hope you enjoy and let me know which moments should be included in this series!! (MAJOR SPOILERS!!!)
When The Other Patients Couldn’t Help Phillip – A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
Phillip Anderson (Bradley Gregg) was a young kid committed to Westin Hills Psychiatric Hospital with a small group of kids from his town. They were all connected by having the same nightmares of a sinister man named Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund). Freddy was a sadistic spirit who invaded the dreams of the kids whose vigilante parents killed him years ago. As Phillip fell asleep one night, Freddy decided he was next on the chopping block. He cut deep into his arms and legs and used his veins to pull him out of his room. He guided Phillip to the top of the building. His friends all screamed at him, begging him not to jump, but it was out of everyone’s control, even Phillip’s. No one could get to him in time and they were all forced to watch as he was pulled to the edge and fell to his death.
When Helen Couldn’t Help Barry – I Know What You Did Last Summer
Helen Shivers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Barry Cox (Ryan Phillippe) were the popular high school couple who celebrated their Fourth Of July at the beach with their best friends, Ray (Freddie Prinze Jr.) and Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt). On the dark drive home, they accidentally ran over a man named Ben Willis (Muse Watson). Instead of going to the cops, they decided to dump Ben’s body in another location and pretend it never happened. However, Ben never died, and a year after the incident, he decided to execute his revenge. While Helen had to sit on stage for that year’s Croaker Beauty Pageant, Barry stood on the balcony above to keep an eye on her in case Ben showed up. Sure enough, he did… but not for Helen. Through all the lights, Helen saw Ben attacking Barry and she tried to get to him, but the audience overcrowded her. Since she was too far away, she could only watch as Barry was stabbed with Ben’s hook repeatedly.
When Bobby Couldn’t Help Nik – Joy Ride 2: Dead Ahead
Bobby (Nick Zano), Melissa (Nicki Aycox), Kayla (Laura Jordan), and Nik (Kyle Schmid) were heading to Las Vegas to celebrate Bobby and Melissa’s bachelor/bachelorette party. After their car broke down, they had to trek through the desert to find help. On their way, they came across a house that looked abandoned. When they checked the garage, they found a sweet car in working condition, and Nik convinced them to borrow it. They left their information at the house, not knowing it belonged to a psychopathic truck driver known as Rusty Nail (Mark Gibbon). Rusty ended up kidnapping Bobby and playing horrible games of revenge with the other three. During one of his “games”, he took Nik as well and brought the duo back to his shed for one last game. He forced one person to roll a pair of dice to choose how he tortured the other. After a few rolls and a lot of pain, Bobby rolled snake eyes, which was apparently the death roll. Rusty Nail came up from behind Nik and shoved a poll through his head. Now, he and Bobby weren’t best friends, but they were in this situation together, so I still count it.
When Katie Couldn’t Help Jayson – I Spit On Your Grave 2
Katie Carter (Jemma Dallender) was an aspiring model who lived in a cruddy apartment building. Jayson (Michael Dixon) was the building’s superintendent and Katie’s good friend who lived below her. When Katie found a photography company that offered free modeling photos, she believed she finally caught a break. However, the brothers running the business turned out to be sleazy, so she left and thought that was the end of it. When one of the brothers, Georgy (Yavor Baharov) followed her home and snuck into the apartment, she tried to run out with no success. The fighting woke Jayson up and he went upstairs to check on her. Georgy had severely hit her head and tied her up by the time Jayson made it there. Jayson struggling to get the door gave Georgy enough time to hide. When Jayson finally made it in, he was distracted by Katie tied on the floor and Georgy ambushed him. He stabbed him repeatedly and Georgy raped Katie as Jayson was dying in front of her. These two were forced to watch each other suffer.
When Tara Couldn’t Help Dawn – Terrifier
Tara (Jenna Kannell) and Dawn (Catherine Corcoran) were best friends who did a little too much partying on Halloween night. Wanting to sober up before driving home, they went to a nearby pizza place, where a strange man in a clown costume, Art (David Howard Thornton) stared at Tara menacingly the entire time. Dawn found it all amusing, but Tara was justifiably uncomfortable. When they went back to their car, they found one of their tires was flat. They now had to wait for Tara’s sister to pick them up, so Tara went into a nearby building to use the bathroom. While she was there, Art nabbed Dawn and brought her into the building, where they were now trapped. After a lengthy chase, Art knocked Tara out and she woke up duct-taped to a chair. Since she was unable to move or speak, Art forced her to watch as he hung Dawn upside down and sawed her in half. She couldn’t save her best friend from suffering such a horrible death.
