A Girl and Her Horror Obsession
Somebody asked me why I like horror and I wrote the following essay. Now if only I could remember who asked and why! I stumbled across this and thought it relevant to Retro Slashers, so here goes! Enjoy!
I have wondered for many years now what it is that draws me to horror films, and what is it that makes me stay. I guess the easy answer is that I flat out like being scared. Not ‘for real’ scared, like if I was being mugged or something, but the kind of scared one gets when sitting in the comfort of a darkened theater or their home. There’s something really gratifying about the release of that terror. Maybe I am exercising the fear a woman has just dealing with day to day activities. After all, we are the gender that seems to be the target of most of the violence in this world. But that answer always sounded kind of pretentious to me. I think in the end it goes back to my first response, I just like being scared.
I’ve always liked the darker side of things, and a lot of that can be credited to my parents. Both of them worked in a mental institution and my father was an avid true crime reader, while my mom dove into mysteries. My siblings all ended up working in hospitals and prisons but my skin was never as thick as theirs. I think they could handle the dark much better than I could, and strangely, none of them are fans of horror movies… Maybe because they live in horror every day.
Being the rabid fan of 80s slashers that I am, I know part of the reason I really like those movies is pure nostalgia. Feathered hair, stone-wash jeans, lots of beer and some metal tunes always guaranteed a great time, and I still feel the same way. If any genre, other than the teen sex comedy, captured this little period of time, it was horror films.
And let’s face it, I’m not a very demanding filmgoer. Just give me some blood, some T&A and a scary madman, and you have my attention.
This brings me to the most common question that I get when I tell people how much I love horror movies. Do I find them misogynistic? Not in the least. In fact, I often wondered where that idea came from. Far before Carol Clover made it apparent in her awesome book “Men, Women and Chainsaws”, I always felt that for the most part, the women were really strong in horror films. I’m talking slasher films from the 70s and 80s in particular. In reality, the death ratio from men to woman isn’t that far off. For every movie like Maniac (one of my favorites), where it is women being killed exclusively, there’s a Friday the 13th, where both sexes are fair game. And as per usual for the genre, the term Final Girl obviously means that the female usually reigns supreme. It is the woman who survives the bad man and lives to tell the story. I’ve always liked that. And in the history of slashers, the Final Girls are usually quite likeable. Laurie Strode from Halloween was an everyman’s woman and we all loved Jamie Lee Curtis for it. Of note, I once saw an interview with Ms. Curtis where she mentioned that she didn’t have to do any nudity until she left horror and started making more mainstream films. Co-inky-dink?
So that brings me to the next question, do I mind all of the nudity? Hell, no! This is something else I never understood. They’re boobs! That’s all it is. Why someone, especially of the female kind, would get all bent out of shape because of a little bit of T&A I will never understand. Somehow sex and violence became the same thing in some people’s minds. But I don’t think horror films really sexualize violence. I think they are clearly two different things and each serves their purpose. I can’t imagine someone watching I Spit on Your Grave and think that anyone was condoning rape. OK, I Spit on Your Grave is an abhorrent movie, but still… I never thought there was some kind of sinister subliminal message underneath it. It’s exploitation cinema. It’s there to exploit, and it does it well! Another prime example of this is Ruggero Deodato’s House on the Edge of the Park. It’s almost a comedy about rape! I can’t believe that anyone would seriously watch that movie and think that it you’re supposed to come out of it thinking rape is good or something!
I’d like to think that the audience is smarter than that. Maybe I’m wrong, but most people who go into horror films know that these movies might be a reflection of the world around them, but they certainly don’t say “hey, have you raped someone today?” Silly film critics…
In the end, it’s all about the emotion a horror film brings out of you. A great film sticks with you and that feeling of dread takes days to go away.
July 30, 2008 @ 2:28 am
What a fantastic article. You sum up my thoughts on the genre completely. It’s refreshing to see someone who can dissect the genre, but still enjoy it for face value. I consider myself a “serious horror fan who is anything but serious”. As a woman, I always found horror weirdly empowering. Your bit about the name “Final Girl” captured my feelings exactly. Bravo for all of this! Horror is fun again. <3
July 30, 2008 @ 3:21 am
Hi Erin!
Your sweet comment made my day. I always love to see other women who enjoy horror as much as I do and, as you said so astutely (sp?), take it at face value.
Glad to know you! And thanks so much for posting your thoughts. It really did make my day!
July 30, 2008 @ 4:23 am
Amanda, I have to say that was a fun read. You summed up in words what I can never quite say to people when they ask me that question. We enjoy these films because we like to be scared and are interested in the dark and unknown. These movies let us dive into that world without having to be subjected to it in reality. It is a release from every day life. I’ve noticed that most rabid horror fans I have met are some of the nicest, most sincere people around. They are not ax murderers and usually abhor real violence. I just enjoy horror because it is fun interests me. I thank you for great essay.
July 30, 2008 @ 4:33 am
Oh and nice choice using the cover for Killer Party as a header. I still say that movie doesn’t get nearly the love it deserves. We need to start up a campaign for a DVD release now.
July 30, 2008 @ 7:02 am
Hey Amanda, nice essay. Love to hear about another horror fan’s reasons for the obsession!
Im not really scared of horror films, never really have been except for a few instances when i was a kid. Ive always just thought they were cool, i always just wanted to know how they were made and collect action figures and memorabilia of them.
Also a big fan of Killer Party! nice pick!
July 30, 2008 @ 2:09 pm
When I read a blog or opinion piece and then leave a comment, I try not to address the person that wrote it by name, because it kind of obligates the writer to comment on your comment, which is pretty lame. But . . .
Amanda,
“They’re boobs! That’s all it is.”-Quote of the year.
I really like the points referred to in the article. I agree with enjoying safely being scared, 80s nostalgia, acknowledging the dark side of life/things/brick-a-brack, the glorification of women (whole heartedly agree), etc.
The response that I usually give to people when they ask why I am a horror fan, to avoid having to cover all the ground you just did is, “fuck off. I don’t have your cat.” They usually wander off, frightened.
Seriously, I break it down like this, “If you watch a comedy that you don’t find funny and don’t laugh at the jokes, you’ve wasted your time. If you watch a drama and don’t connect with the characters, it’s frustrating. If you watch a horror movie and get scared, you get your $$$’s worth. But if you don’t find it scary, it breaks down into a comedy.” I might be alone in feeling that way, but that is how I usually answer that question.
Oh, and, no, I haven’t raped anyone today. But it is still early.
July 30, 2008 @ 8:15 pm
Who knew I was so brilliant!!! 😉
Thanks all for reading (and especially for enjoying!!!)… And to 2ndsuitor… It’s getting late in the day… how’s the raping? 😉 I agree with you on several points and what you said about a bad horror movie becoming a comedy is quite true. In fact, it’s one of the many things I like about horror. There are movies that are bad, but there are a lot of so-bad-they’re-good horror films. Mostly because in that particular era, a lot of people who shouldn’t be making horror movie were but they also had their heart in it. And that’s why they are so enduring. You can’t set out to make a so-bad-it’s-good movie or it just ends up bad!
And yeah, tits are cool. 😉
And to everyone who is backing me on the Killer Party Brigade… glad to have you aboard!!! It’s one of my all time favorites!!!
July 30, 2008 @ 9:33 pm
hi amanduh wuld u like to see my slashur list?
July 30, 2008 @ 9:35 pm
if u wuld like to see my slashur list email me i have killur party for sale/trade
July 31, 2008 @ 7:55 am
Great article, Amanda. And I agree. Some of us just like to be scared. That’s the answer I usually give. It’s surely the easiest one. But then the real question is…”Why do you like being scared?” And that’s a bit tough to answer. I think a part of it is just to feel any sort of emotional release. Whether I’m crying, laughing or hiding under the covers with fear….it’s all good. And I think we all need to feel that release or we’d all go crazy. And being scared is the strongest emotion you can have, I guess, so it’s the best way to get that release.
I think maybe another reason for people liking scary horror movies, which still fits in with the whole emotional release thing, is their fear of death. That sounds kind of stupid, but I think it’s true. It’s like letting out your frustration for that inevitable end. And then sometimes horror movies can just make you feel good about death by making it seem fun, like watching a Friday the 13th film or something of that nature. Of course, I don’t mean that killing people is fun…but you know what I mean.
And then sometimes the annoyingly unsatisfied people ask “But what about those other horror movies you watch that don’t scare you OR make you laugh? Why are you watching THOSE???” And I guess that just comes down to the nostalgia factor, like you mentioned, and at what age you were first subjected to the genre, which I think is the real reason for most horror fans. I started watching them at an extremely young age, sometime around my pre-school days (thanks to a kooky, horror crazed grandfather), and I guess it just sort of “brainwashed” me at my most impressionable. 70’s and 80’s horror movies are great time capsules for those decades’ fashions and fads, and even though I wasn’t born till the late-mid 80’s (Hedwig joke…anyone catch that? No? Nevermind), I feel like those decades were a big part of my childhood and I feel the whole nostalgia factor kick in whenever I watch those kinds of movies. And then I also agree with The2ndSuitor. A direct-to-video comedy probably isn’t going to work for anyone, but a direct-to-video horror will surely work for tons of people. They’re just always entertaining in one way or another, no matter how bad they are.
August 1, 2008 @ 1:29 pm
I have a lot of reasons for liking horror, strangely though getting scared isn’t one of them. I like slashers for their replay value. The 3 or 4 horror movies that actually do scare me, I tend to confine away to the shelf besides very rare special occasions. Maybe there’s just way too much fear in real life for me to indulge in the same emotion via movies. I don’t know.
August 2, 2008 @ 9:20 pm
Great thoughtful post.
As far as KILLER PARTY goes, is there any better song then “These are the best times of our lives.” ???
It’s like a long lost Bananarama track!
August 2, 2008 @ 10:45 pm
I have the theme song to Killer Party on CD! I also have the song by White Sister. Someone taped it directly off their TV so it’s got the woman being burned screaming over it! It’s AWESOME.
Again, thanks all for reading and posting your thoughts. I’m pleased so many people enjoyed this kind of free flow essay.
August 5, 2008 @ 3:22 am
Great article, Amanda. It was an enjoyable read. Alot of your reasons are why I like horror so much as well…..although, I don’t get scared by them anymore, lol.
Love the Killer Party poster! It’s definitely a very underrated slasher. I’d say it’s a hidden gem.
You Can’t Keep a Good Slasher Down
May 26, 2010 @ 7:45 pm
[…] thought this made a neat companion piece with something I wrote for RS some time ago called A Girl and Her Horror Obesession. There I am, changing one mind at a time (OK, another exaggeration, but the let the girl dream, […]
May 27, 2010 @ 6:20 pm
late post.
I was never convinced by the argument that slasher films were anymore misogynist than any other horror films or even films in general.
I think they have that rep because feminists’ legitimate debate about the depiction of women in the media gave a veneer of legitimacy to a moral panic about the arrival of video. Slashers were in the first wave of films that people could watch at home. Repeated viewing seemed sick or like gloating to some people.
Also the first wave of baby-boomers were hitting middle age and were viewing new youth culture from the often disapproving perspective of the hippie era counter-culture.
The 80s had loads of moral panics. Punk, hardcore punk, metal, gender-bending,rap and explicit song lyrics were being thrown at a cold war mind-set that was still, basically, worried about possible subversive elements influencing youngsters. Anyway, thats what I think.
July 20, 2012 @ 3:35 am
That was awesome, Amanda!~ I’m just 2 years late.