Course: Popular Culture
University: University of Wolverhampton
Academic Year: 2015
Description: This essay explores the enduring popularity of slasher films among teenage audiences, focusing on the dual allure of visceral thrills and the feeling of being represented in media tailored specifically for them. It examines how iconic films like Halloween resonate with young viewers' disillusionment with authority and family structures, as highlighted by Valerie Wee's analysis. The essay delves into the inherent misogyny within the slasher genre, from the objectifying language and costumes to the promotional materials that reduce women to tools of titillation. Carol Clover's insights into the depiction of female victims in films like Psycho and Halloween underscore how women's deaths are often portrayed with graphic detail and sexual overtones, in stark contrast to the swift, off-screen deaths of male characters. By analysing these gendered portrayals, the essay argues that the recurring popularity of slasher films reflects and perpetuates deep-seated misogynistic attitudes in contemporary society. It critiques the uncritical consumption of these films, which normalises and perpetuates gender biases, as evidenced by Alfred Hitchcock's notorious approach to female suffering in The Birds. Ultimately, this essay seeks to unmask the misogynistic underpinnings of the slasher film genre, urging readers to recognise and question the problematic aspects of these popular cultural products.
Academic Essay:
By Naomi-Natalie Brown
Why do teenagers flock to 'slasher' films to watch their peers being gruesomely murdered by older men? It’s not just about the gore or the thrill; it’s about feeling seen and valued as a demographic. Movies like these are made for them, tapping into their need to feel part of something bigger.
Take the movie Halloween for example. Released in the late seventies, it resonated deeply with teenagers and young adults who felt disillusioned with family, parents, and the adult world. As Valerie Wee (2006) highlights in her article, “Halloween and the other slasher films that followed appear to suggest that ‘the horror derives from the family and from the troubling ordeal of being a late-twentieth-century teenager.’”
It’s easy to see the misogyny in the slasher genre. From degrading language and objectifying costumes to promotional materials, women are often reduced to mere tools for titillation. Carol Clover (1987) points out in her article that a classic publicity poster for Psycho shows Janet Leigh in a bra and half-slip, with the image emphasising her breasts. This focus on her body supposedly encapsulates the essence of the film.
Consider the scene in Halloween where Bob and Lynda are murdered. Bob’s death is swift and silent, occurring offscreen. In contrast, Lynda’s death is prolonged, filmed in graphic detail, and ends with her gasping erotically as she’s strangled. Clover (1987) notes that “even in films in which males and females are killed in roughly even numbers, the lingering images are inevitably female. The death of a male is always swift; […] the murders of women, on the other hand, are filmed at closer range, in more graphic detail, and at greater length.”
The recurring popularity of slasher films reflects a deep-seated misogyny in popular culture and contemporary society. By consuming these films without questioning their problematic aspects, we perpetuate this bias. Women in these films are often killed simply for being female, portrayed as the perfect victims. As Alfred Hitchcock famously said during the filming of The Birds, “I always believe in following the advice of the playwright Sardou. He said 'Torture the women!' The trouble today is that we don't torture women enough.” (Clover, 1987).
References:
Psycho (1961) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock [Film]. USA: Paramount Pictures.
Halloween (1978) Directed by John Carpenter [Film]. USA: Compass International Pictures.
Clover, C. J. (1987) ‘Her Body, Himself: Gender in the Slasher Film’, Representations, (20), pp. 187–228. doi: 10.2307/2928507.
Wee, V. (2006) ‘Resurrecting and Updating the Teen Slasher: The Case of Scream’, Journal of Popular Film and Television, 34(2), pp. 50–61. doi: 10.3200/jpft.34.2.50-61.