The Genre of Horror - Coursework Example

Film Genres: The Horror Film Introduction The horror film is an unsettling genre that portrays the worst of people’s fears and nightmares with the sole purpose of eliciting a sense of fear, panic, alarm or dread while still amusing and enchanting them in a cathartic experience at the same time (Dozier 2010). The horror film often delves into the darkest sides of life, the forbidden, terrifying or the shocking events that people would rather not confront in real life. The horror film genre successfully addresses people’s most primal nature as well as its fears, that is, individual’s nightmares, vulnerability, fear of the unknown, and other hideous traits that both repel and attract them at the same time. The horror film has existed for as long as the films have been around, for about 100 years now, since humans have been fascinated with ghostly or shadowy visions and imaginations since the introduction of films themselves. The horror film allows viewers to connect with, and to experience the unknown and to fear the implausible; in that case, the whole idea of watching a horror film is to experience the thrill of being in a scary world without really being in danger. The plot of a horror film usually revolves around an invasion or arrival of an evil force, person or event that is shocking or terrifying and its characters are often mythological beings such as flickers, monsters, and zombies; the horror film is often ridden with viciousness and bloodletting. Horror as reactionary genre The horror film is often referred to as a reactionary genre because it is solely about human fears and the human search for normalcy in a bizarre world; the irrational forces of chaos or horror that pervades the genre must be defeated for the state of normalcy to be restored (Hutchings 2013). This explains why a vast majority of the horror films invariably end with the traditional return to normalcy script, when the shocking or terrifying monster has been dealt with and defeated completely. Prior to the development of the horror film genre, folktales were ridden with devil characters, and other stories of witchcraft, ghosts, as well as myths and fables were told around fires at night in most communities. The earliest horror films were cast in the gothic style (Gilbert 2008), thus, they were set in scary old mansions or castles and in shadowy locations; the characters in these films were the unknown, odd creatures such as vampires and ghosts, among other monstrous creatures. Since time immemorial, people have always used their imaginations to visualize ghostly forms and to feel the looming presence of unknown creatures in the dark, as a way of connecting with the unknown dark world (Dozier 2010). In that respect, it is clear that the horror film is a reactionary genre since it provides an easy access into the unknown and scary world in which viewers are able to experience fear without really being in any danger themselves. Precisely, the horror film is reactionary because it relies on the fear of the unknown, people’s most dreaded nightmares and its primary goal is to defeat the irrational and destructive forces in people’s chaotic world. The fear, panic, worry, among other emotional reactions elicited by the horror film are its intended outcomes and driving force; in the end, the horror film allows its viewers to return to a state of normalcy feeling victorious over the invasion of monsters. The combination of sci-fi and visual special effects in the 1980s redefined the horror film as a reactionary genre, with the gruesome imaginations of viewers and filmmakers producing compounded effects owing to the greater possibilities of depicting the improbable. Within the 1980’s social context of materialistic attitude and material progress as a measure of societal value, the horror film came out strongly to address the issue of gender representations, portraying male monsters as well as the fears and anxieties of men while contrasting males with strong independent women (Dozier 2010). In that respect, the 1980’s horror film emerged as a reactionary genre, particularly by echoing the reaction against women emasculation and the emergence of the feminist movement. The horror films in this period portray strong women within the context of a restrictive patriarchal society, in contrast to the stereotyped emotional women; the dissenting womenfolk take on traditional patriarchal roles and responsibilities. The 1980’s horror film also portrays many other oppositional social movements, apart from the age long gender conflict; generally, this period’s horror films address manipulation, violence, graphic horror as well as the dangers of youth. Precisely, the horror films in this period present tales of unfriendly killers keen on revenging various misdeeds pursuing their sexual pervasions (Buxton 2009); in that respect, the 1980’s horror film is a reactionary genre because of its vengeful monsters. Up to date, as in many cases of the 1980’s horror films, the monsters in horror films represent alter egos or superego characters that seek to avenge the progressive sexual liberation or freedom of the females in society. Horror and gender As an unsettling film genre, the horror film seeks to upset its viewers by undermining the universal ideas and notions of real life, including societal norms to with gender and sexuality (Wright 2010); horror’s threat to normalcy and the inclination to assault conventional gender roles and morals are directly linked to the monster. The horror film has delved into the feminist rhetoric more than other film genres partly because the horror genre is generally interested in the injustices of society. Nonetheless, the feminist rhetoric has also rendered itself amenable to adaptation in the horror film because it is ridden with a sense of anger, moral outrage as well as a grim tone. The horror film presents a vast variety of gender offenders including violent women, who may be victims of femininity, possessed by demons or heroic figures that overcome patriarchal repression. The horror film’s image of violent women that can express their anger while at the same time defending their bodies and assaulting masculinity has interested theorists and activists all over the world. Horror films often portray strong women defeating shocking male villains thereby showing women’s strength and heroism and downplaying the conventional female-victim narrative. The earlier horror film had a great propensity to terrorize women characters while at the same time depicting violence meted against females in a sexualized way (Trencansky 2001). Precisely, the 1970’s horror films uncovered the traditionally repressed women’s sexuality thereby granting them great power to explore and exploit their gender. In that respect, the 1970’s horror film present the women’s body as a mysterious source of fear in a seditious manner; the horror film greatly capitalized on the use of women’s sexuality subversively. Horror films often feature women in exploitative positions; helpless and frightened women running away from masked monsters and killers and falling right into the arms of men that eventually save them have been a commonplace in the horror genre. The portrayal of that which society is afraid of through images of fear of castration, sexual pleasure as well as strength of women and femininity that is rampant in the horror film demonstrates the many ways in which the female gender is exploited in the horror genre (Welsh 2010). The 1970’s generally represent a period in which society’s gradual moral decadence was counterpoised with the coming of age of the horror genre. In other words, horror films progressively became good with the emergence of numerous sexual and cultural revolution movements; modern horror films are steering off the objectified image of women’s bodies. The horror film has also questioned the conventional notion of dominant masculinity thereby lending support to the emerging ideas of alternative male behavior (Wright 2010); in that case, women in horror films can be as strong as their pursuers, the shocking male villains. The American horror film has lately positioned women both as survivors and as victims, by depicting the last standing character to be a lone woman, after the horrendous assault of all the female characters by the male villain (Dozier 2010). The “final girl” concept has been explored largely in horror movies, to present the sole female survivor of the villainous assault, the one that is screams while being chased but manages to evade the killer until she is saved. The final girl is portrayed to have a masculine side, unlike other women, which makes her a double for the male character; the gender fluidity of the final girl makes her appealing to the male-dominated audiences (Robards 1997). The audience often recognizes and sympathizes with the final girl because she progressively transforms from the victim to the heroin of the story at the end of the film. The source of entertainment in the horror film therefore becomes the dread of an impending attack rather than the male villain’s gratification in attacking the unsuspecting female victims. Case Studies: Amy Holden Jones’ Slumber Party Massacre (1982) & Steve Miner’s Friday the 13th Part II (1981) Slumber Party Massacre (1982) revolves around a group of high school girls that get together for a slumber party away from the watchful eyes of their parents; unknown to the girls, a mentally ill killer is on the loose roaming about. The girls encounter the killer with his portable drill, a humongous two-handed industrial machinery that is capable of causing nothing short of gruesome havoc. The movie’s terrifying killer does not wear any mask and unlike most killers, he does not stay hidden in the shadows; his intense eyes and the bloody drill make for a scary pair that keeps audiences on the edge of their chairs. The movie has considerable nudity portrayed through prolonged shots of naked, soapy bodies as in the shower scene; the final girl role in the movie is played by a strong woman, who unwittingly falls victim of the drill as she comes in to rescue the girls. The final girl in the movie (the girls’ basketball coach) demonstrates her survival will, unlike the other girls, by fighting and surviving the ordeal of the drill at the hands of the villainous male attacker. The film clearly steers off the idea of sexual assault by presenting a symbolic rape instead; penetration of the half-naked women’s bodies by the overly phallic power drill is undoubtedly represents rape. At the end of the film, the final girl symbolically castrates the male villain by chopping off his drill to pieces before finally stabbing him. Steve Miner’s Friday the 13th Part II (1981) presents a killer that targets camp counsellors at a training camp in his neighborhood; the movie is undoubtedly a sexist motion picture that follows in the footpath of the Slasher horror subgenre. The movie portrays women as hyper-sexual victims of a male villain, and their thoughtfulness coupled by their misdeeds leads to their death in the early minutes; the film presents both men and women as victims only that women are murdered on the screen through prolonged scenes of torture and suspense. This film echoes the idea of the criticism of the perceived fatal suffering and horror of women at the hands of the villainous male characters that is prevalent in most horror films; in that case, the murder weapon is a symbol of the male sexuality and aggression. The film demonstrates women’s strong will to survive male sexuality and aggression through the final girl character, who exploits her expertise in child psychology to persuade the killer that she was her mother and finally escapes. Summary The horror film is the ultimate unsettling genre because it thrives on the worst of people’s fears and nightmares thereby provoking a sense of fear, panic, alarm or dread in the audience; the horror film remains attractive and entertaining to the audiences in a cathartic experience. The horror film is a reactionary genre because its monsters represent masculine alter egos or superego characters that seek to avenge the continuous sexual liberation or freedom of women. As an unsettling film genre, the horror film seeks to upset its viewers by undermining the universal ideas and notions of real life, including societal norms to with gender and sexuality. The horror film presents a vast variety of gender offenders including violent women, who may be victims of femininity, possessed by demons or heroic figures that overcome patriarchal repression. The American horror film has lately positioned women both as survivors and as victims, by depicting the last standing character to be a lone woman, after the horrendous assault of all the female characters by the male villain. Amy Holden Jones’ Slumber Party Massacre (1982) and Steve Miner’s Friday the 13th Part II (1981) both exemplify the women’s strong will to survive male sexuality and aggression through the final girl character. References Welsh, A. 2010. On the perils of living dangerously in the slasher horror film: Gender differences in the association between sexual activity and survival. Sex Roles, 62(11-12), 762-773.  Robards, B. 1997. Attack of the leading ladies: Gender, sexuality, and spectatorship in classic horror cinema. Journal of Popular Film & Television, 25(2), 92-93.  Hutchings, P. 2013. The Horror Film. New York: Routledge. Dozier, B. 2010. The relationship between horror and women’s sexuality with specific reference to the 1970s. [online] Available from http://barbradozier.wordpress.com/2010/03/04/the-relationship-between-horror-and-women%E2%80%99s-sexuality-with-specific-reference-to-the-1970s/ Buxton, R. A. 2009. The Horror Film: An Introduction. Journal of Film and Video, 61(2), 70-71. Trencansky, S. 2001. Final girls and terrible youth: Transgression in 1980s Slasher horror. Journal of Popular Film & Television, 29(2), 63-73.  Wright, E. 2010. Carnage and Carnality: Gender and Corporeality in the Modern Horror Film. Retrieved from: http://www.unomaha.edu/wmst/nolimits/carnageandcarnality.pdf Gilbert, J.M. 2008. "The Horror, the Horror": The origins of a genre in late Victorian and Edwardian Britain, 1880—1914. New Brunswick: UMI. “Slumber Party Massacre” (1982), United States: New World Pictures, Amy Holden Jones, 77 minutes. “Friday the 13th Part II” (1981) United States: Paramount Pictures, Steve Miner, 87 Minutes. Read More