A Toast to the Creative Kill: Raise a Glass to Freaky

A shared experience for every horror fan is sitting in the theater for a new horror film that they already know how it’s going to end. Whether it be too much advertisement or the writer’s pitfalls, it can be a semi-disappointing viewing experience. The viewer doesn’t necessarily want a M. Night Shyamalan sized twist at the end to prove themselves wrong–they don’t really care if they’re right–but they would definitely appreciate some spice to keep the experience enjoyable. There is one technique that can be a saving grace for a horror film: a creative kill.

Horror will remain one of the more creative genres on the film spectrum. However, there is monotony that future creators are trying to dodge when releasing a new film out into the world. One of the genres that faces the most monotony is the slasher genre. With its never-ending sequels and reboots, it seems like all the kills of characters that you care less with each film never hit quite as hard as watching the original. Even A Nightmare on Elm Street with its dream realm lost its spark as the sequels seemed to go on and on, despite its open availability to do something new and out there.

Creative kills are a thing that horror creators do to engage its audience. It surprises them in moments rather than the whole plot. Sometimes it works better than trying to add a twist that people end up anticipating in the first place. I can save a film too. If a viewer remembers a certain death, even if they didn’t enjoy the film as a whole, that could be considered a win.

Warning: Spoilers past this point


BREAKING THE VIEWER’s TRUST

While a horror fan knows not to get too close to any characters in their favorite horror series, it happens anyways. They want the best for these characters ultimately. When it comes down to their brutal death, there is a powerful emotion that comes with it. Sometimes they don’t see it coming. Most of the time they do see it coming and convince themselves that the writers simply wouldn’t do that. This is what makes this technique the cruelest of the creative kill.

Fear Street: 1994

Creative Kills

These attachments are usually side characters that shine just as bright as the main character. A main example in recent times is Kate in Fear Street: 1994, which is one of the most unfair and creative deaths I’ve seen in the recent years. Kate is lovable. She and her best friend Simon have some hilarious, if chaotic, moments together that just makes the audience care and love them more.

As the film arrives at the final grocery store showdown and the Skull Face Killer locks her in a chokehold, the film convinces the viewers she isn’t going to die. She had escaped death too many times to count prior in the movie, she has to get out of this. He slams her down on the table and her head slides closer and closer to that bread slicer. The film convinces the viewers once more someone will save her since this team is always looking out for each other, and her screaming her head off has to attract one of them to help her. All that hope shatters into pieces as the audience gets a close up shot of her head becoming shredded by this once ordinary, now malicious machine.

Scream 2

Creative Kills

Another way to shock the audience is killing off what seems like a quintessential-to-the-plot character. In recent years, the fake-out death of Marty in The Cabin in the Woods is an example of this kind of kill. The one that has stuck with many horror fans however was the killing of Randy in Scream 2.

Lovable, adorkable Randy who was an easy target in the first film but delivered very necessary information on the tropes of a horror film that saved a lot of his friends’ asses. He, like us watching a horror film, knew what pleasant predictability felt like; the first Scream is chock full of pleasant predictability with its main but effective curve being there was a second killer and it was Stu. With its equally enjoyable sequel, we think we are just as self aware as Randy. Therefore, we together are not susceptible to the killer’s tricks.

All of those comforting feelings go out the window, or rather into the back of the van when Ghostface murders Randy in broad daylight with Gale and Dewey so close by. Upon each viewing, the kill is just as devastating as it is the first time. A die-hard horror fan relates the most to this character, and his death dismisses the belief that his knowledge and self awareness alone could keep him alive for another round.

The extreme: Torture porn versus arthouse

There are two genres that have the same level of brutality most of the time. They differ so heavily from each other. The genres are arthouse horror and a genre lovingly known as torture porn. Both feature disturbing images and scarring scenes, but a film that completely relies on tolerance to gore doesn’t mean it’s the most creative. The best horror movies are ones that non-horror fans can watch, in my opinion. It doesn’t mean that they won’t come out unscathed– some of the mentions on this list are disturbing–but it’s not watching people die in bloody, gruesome ways back-to-back.

Torture Horror

These types of films have their fanbases, and I am not invalidating their feelings towards these films. In regards to their accessibility , their grisly goriness earns them their praise rather than storyline. This does not mean that the kills in these films aren’t creative, they are overly creative. However, they lose their impact by having so many creative kills back to back. It allows a new kind of unpredictability that creates excitement for what bizarre thing will come next , which amps up fans of torture porn. This allows for some creative error, because while a lot of these films continue to have out of the box moments, the excitement with each sequel dims and dims as each sequel falls short.

An example of this last year is Spiral, the Saw reboot. While this film was sadly hindered due to movie theater closures due to COVID, there was an overall complaint about seeing things that have already been done before in the franchise. In a series full of traps that are made of the masses’ worst nightmares, it a risk to make so many movies which ultimately turn away a general crowd due to its brutality and turn away its cult following due to running out of ideas. You can see this same progression in many of Eli Roth and Rob Zombie films too, meaning that going to the extreme all the time can burn out the creative spark that make this gory flicks tick.

Arthouse Horror

Another genre of film that can be hit or miss but can teach the torture porn genre a thing or two about how frequently to use creative kills is the arthouse horror genre. The obvious recent examples are films such as Hereditary, Midsommar and The House That Jack Built. These films can exhibit as equally creative and disturbing scenes as the torture porn films, but these films use a one-and-done method. They’re films where it is okay if they’re not watched again, since they can be deeply disturbing, even for the most desensitized horror fan, but there is no hinderance in watching it again, as most of the time there is opportunity to understand and see more than one saw in the first viewing.

Comparison

While most arthouse horror have things that are odd and out of the usual, it is usually in a slow burn format rather than the fast-paced timing of torture porn movies, which allows for a break from the gore but also creates a foundation of dread to build upon during the film’s usually longer runtime. Much like the grisly films mentioned above, these films are not everybody’s cup of tea, but they are the films that are shaping the horror scene. More mainstream films follow the influence of arthouse horror, which includes the films from recent horror powerhouse Jordan Peele, who utilizes disturbing images and creative kills to his benefit in both of his films Get Out and Us–specifically the use of the giant scissors as well as the deer head stabbing.

Overall, both of these genres have changed what modern horror fans are looking for in horror films. Whether it be an out-there arthouse film or a grisly never-ending death hour, both genres hold heavy influence over the modern-day horror film, with viewers seeking out more and more creativity in the standard mainstream horror films that come out year after year.


Conclusion

It is undeniable that the use of creative kills defines what the horror genre. It also separates it from the similar thriller genre. When used correctly, an out-of-the-box kill can shake things up for a seemingly predictable movie. This can be used to the enjoyment of the general viewer and the horror fan, even if it involves some broken hearts along the way (I’m still not over Randy’s death). However, when used too often, it can alienate both the casual horror viewer as well as its cult follower. Nonetheless, it is an essential technique that is used by the best horror filmmakers out there and is a one stop shop to make a horror film memorable.

Anyways, thanks for spelunking this void with me. If you’re new to the Void of Celluloid, welcome. Feel free to spelunk some other voids while you’re here and follow me on other platforms by clicking the buttons below. We post regularly and stay up to date about what’s going on in horror today, reflect on what went on yesterday, and plan for a better, horror filled tomorrow. See ya next time.

creative kill creative kill creative kill creative kill creative kill..

Sissy: The Gen-Z Slasher You’ve Never Heard About

I’ll admit it. I’m lame and don’t venture out of the critical buzz bubble as much as I should. I do have a direct link to someone who does, however, and that is my lovely mother. So, when she summoned me to her house for a movie night and said that she found a horror comedy that ‘makes fun of Gen-Z,’ I was skeptical. As someone who resides in Gen-Z, there is good satire out there. Hello, Bodies, Bodies, Bodies. However, it usually leans towards cringy, out of touch humor ergo the ‘Gen-Z Hospital’ sketch from SNL.

Sissy Shows Us The Dark Side of Sisterhood | SXSW 2022

However, I put my expectations into a mental box, threw away the key and went in blindly. I ended up enthralled, laughing and wincing at the scathing burns. Someone watched my childhood and kept track of what happened to all of us between the ages of 20 and 25 when the internet flourished and put it into a slasher movie. This isn’t a cringy cyberbully-cautionary tale that I thought it was.

Social Media Addiction: THe Dopamine Response

“Well, your fucking phones are poisoning your minds, okay? So, when you develop a dissociative mental disorder in your late twenties, don’t come crawling back to me.”

– Bo Burnham, “30”
Sissy

Heard that, Bo. A lot of us grew up with our eyes glued to a screen of some sort. Tumblr and YouTube were my vice as I spent my days reading creepypasta, fanfiction and hyper-fixated on YouTubers. It would always feel good to write something and receive several notifications back that your words and content were recognized in some way. It still feels good, obviously. However, there’s the dependence and the defining nature that social media has contributed to most of our lives growing up in this era.

Sissy talks about filling the social void with social media rather than actual interaction and how the dopamine we get from social media is as addicting as any other drug. Therefore, it takes mental tolls that we might not even notice until it’s too late. The most obvious toll is the way we socialize with actual people. Sissy follows Cecelia, a wellness influencer that runs into her childhood friend and gets tied up in past childhood traumas.

A spoiler Free Review: Sissy

This review will not go into distinct detail about this movie, because everyone should go and immediately watch it. It twists, and it twists hard. Sissy is a brilliant modern horror that finally feels like it’s in the modern era rather than leaning into the stereotype of the younger generation. It is a film about childhood trauma and dealing with it in adulthood. Childhood trauma is way more severe than people make it out to be, there is a reason therapists inquire about it first and can track down our problems due to it.

Sissy (2022) - IMDb

Sissy follows Cecilia, who already doesn’t seem to practice what she preaches, as she is faced with everything that went wrong with her childhood all at once. The film overall acts as an effective yet extremely humorous commentary about influencers and how we should humanize them and also take them with a grain of salt. It also really plays into the female rage trend that we’ve seen in the past few years, which is always a plus for me personally.

Violent, brutal and brutally honest, it’s a horror-comedy that everyone has slept on last year and should move quickly to the top of your horror viewing list. Especially if you want a good laugh, it is very funny both in traditional comedy and an absurdist way. The main point to mention is Aisha Dee’s performance and how she should be everywhere. She is so convincing and sympathetic as Cecilia and has already solidified her status as an impressive horror actor with her Channel Zero performance. You can watch Sissy now on Shudder, which is a mandatory subscription as a horror fan.

Rating of Sissy

Sissy (2022) - IMDb

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

What’s Next

Coming up next on The Void of Celluloid, I’m going to take you through my top ten horror picks of 2022 now that the year feels fully behind us. There was a lot of consulting for these picks as this year presented quite a few titles and a lot of genre blending. TVOC just recently did a series on starter horror, which you can check out here. I am also posting daily content on the TVOC TikTok/Instagram/YouTube, so be sure to follow those and check out what’s going on over there.

Thanks for spelunking this void with me. If you’re new to the Void of Celluloid, welcome. Feel free to spelunk some other voids while you’re here and follow me on other platforms by clicking the buttons below. We post regularly and stay up to date about what’s going on in horror today, reflect on what went on yesterday, and plan for a better, horror filled tomorrow. See ya next time.

Starter Horror: Kicking it Up a Notch with PG-13 Horror

The transition from PG to PG-13 horror can seem like quite a leap if not done properly. There are some good PG-13 movies out there. Those ones will scare the pants off you and might cause someone to step away from the genre just as they were getting into it. Here at The Void of Celluloid, we want to level the playing field so that everyone can learn about and appreciate the genre. This is part two of our Starter Horror series, you can find part one here.

With the step to the greater beyond comes a jump in time as well. PG-13 didn’t exist until Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, which released in the mid-eighties. Funnily enough, the aforementioned Gremlins kind of led the charge on that one due to some traumatized kiddos. Have no fear though, there are some gems in the genre that are perfect for ramping up to the classics that we’ll discuss in the final part of the series. You can check out my commentary about PG-13 horror here.

Things to take note of: The big step

PG horror bans a lot of things so the transition may seem a little intense. PG-13 horror contains blood and more violence than eyes may be used to–hence the discretionary warning that comes with the genre. Therefore, please be advised that while you might want to make the horror loving buddy out of your eight-year-old kid, some of this content is too intense for them. Let your kid be a kid for a while longer–then you can expose them to the darkness and make them into cool young adults once they come of age.

The Sixth Sense: PG-13 Horror
The Sixth Sense is also a great pick for a PG-13 horror film.

As for the adult audience coming to this for guidance, PG-13 horror films are ripe for the taking when it comes to scary movie nights with friends or Halloween parties. Don’t go in alone if you think it might be too intense for you. Have a scream and a laugh with a buddy and note that these movies are meant to scare you. Don’t be embarrassed if one of them riles you up a bit too much. You’ll learn what subgenres you like and don’t like on this journey.

Horror COmedy anyone? Tremors

This is a prime example to introduce people to the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon. Tremors is one of those movies that many consider to be a comfort film. It’s funny, ridiculous and has an impressive monster that everyone should be familiar with: the Graboid. It is definitely funnier than it is scary, but there is quite a bit of blood, guts and carnage that edges this into this category. On top of some on screen kills that are pretty brutal, this film is a perfect mix of comedy and horror that will test the waters gently if one is ready for more intense films.

Tremors: PG-13 Horror

This film spawned several sequels, but we can ignore that if we don’t desire campiness–all of them don’t live up to this one. Therefore, this is a perfect film to show the potential of franchises and see how one feels about the cheesiness the genre can provide. Not all horror sequels are equal, though–we can get into that another time. This film has the constant intensity of a typical horror movie with bits of comic relief thrown in. A perfect soiree for a newcomer after they’ve taken their baby steps.

An Introduction to Atmospheric Horror: The Others

There are two paths a horror movie can take: short term scare or long term. The long-term scare is what usually garners horror films critical acclaim. Enter another modern classic, The Others starring Nicole Kidman. Atmospheric horror plays primarily in the suspense genre, much like the classic Hitchcock movies. When atmospheric horror is mild, it is the most accessible form of horror movies and deserves appreciation even from non-horror fans.

The Others (2001) - IMDb

The Others is simply a ghost story with killer twists and turns. It has its mild scares, but its atmosphere it creates and the pit of dread it plants in its viewers are what makes it a horror movie. Much like movies such as The Haunting (1960) or The Sixth Sense, the story is rich around the scares. If you prefer the slow build up to a major twist rather than the traditional horror movie rollercoaster, then make atmospheric horror movies your go to. Trust me, though, there are strictly atmospheric horror that are not for the faint of heart, so make sure you tread lightly and prepare yourself.

Insidious: The top Tier PG-13 Horror Movie

As I’ve stated before in previous articles, Insidious is the pinnacle of PG-13 horror. It will scare the daylights out of you. With little to no blood but effective jump scares, James Wan knocks it out of the park. This film sparked the PG-13 horror craze of the early 2010s. The ghosts in here are nightmarish. Also, there is something incredibly atmospheric about the Further. This purgatory-like dimension adds something to the film that makes it stand out amongst other films of its kind.

Insidious (2010) directed by James Wan • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

Insidious remains one of the more intense starter horror movies, but it is a sure sign that someone is ready for the next step if they genuinely enjoyed it and found the scares exciting rather than traumatizing. This film has sequels–the third one is a really solid prequel–and will have a new installment out this year, so if one wants to stay in the tamer category, go on with the franchise and support the new one in theaters when it comes out. Nothing beats a good theater experience, especially for a horror movie.


What’s next?

That wraps up my three picks for starter PG-13 horror movies. As I can’t stress it enough, horror should be respected and appreciated by all, but one does not need to indulge in it if they are not into the feeling of getting scared. Horror movies function off adrenaline rushes. Some people aren’t into that sort of thing. Others might want to take a stab at it but haven’t had the priming of becoming a horror appreciator: acknowledging that it is all fake and all in good fun. Much like roller coasters, horror induces a shock that should follow with a flabbergasted chuckle.

The final part will focus on three classics that are good for starters–not necessarily going to throw them in the deep end with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. That will be the final part of this series. I hope this is a good guide to those who are curious or to parents who aren’t sure how to introduce their kids. Nobody wants nightmares.

Thanks for spelunking this void with me. If you’re new to the Void of Celluloid, welcome. Feel free to spelunk some other voids while you’re here and follow me on other platforms by clicking the buttons below. We post regularly and stay up to date about what’s going on in horror today, reflect on what went on yesterday, and plan for a better, horror filled tomorrow. See ya next time.

31 Days of Horror ’22: Week Two

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We’re back this week with the next seven movies in this year’s 31 Days of Horror. This is the second iteration of the 31 Days of Horror; you can find the one chock full of classics here. As for this year, we have classics, newbies and deeper cuts peppered in here and there. You can check out the first week here if you see a movie you missed on the calendar below.

There will be two more posts after this one: Week 3 and The Final Ten Days. Now that that’s established, let’s go ahead with days 8-14.

October 8th: The Funhouse (1981)

The Funhouse (1981) [31 Days of Gore] – The Goug' Blog

There is something cheesy and fun about this next film. The Funhouse from Tobe Hooper has quite a cult following and holds up as a creepy, odd film from the 80s. This is the film that put Hooper more prominently on Spielberg’s radar for Poltergeist, so you know it has to be good. Creepy clown like figures, terrifying animatronics and one helluva monster makes this a romp that one won’t forget. This definitely a sleeper hit from the slasher surge.

Of course, we have to lean in on the circus theme. Clowns always scare me, so I had to have my liquid courage based around the freaky guys. Therefore, go with the Clown Car Cocktail or if you are brave enough, go with the non-alcoholic Cranberry Clown Mocktail. Now, everyone loves a good snack mix. This one is on theme and does contain some polarizing things, so make adjustments as necessary. This Circus Snack Mix has the cherished (or dreaded) Circus Peanuts and other fun bits and bobs. In order to make this an epic double feature, pair this film with the wacky Killer Klowns from Outer Space.

Rent The Funhouse here on Amazon Video or own it in its newly 4K remastered version here. I made a design for this one as well featuring the creature itself, which you can check out here on Redbubble.

October 9th: Hereditary (2018)

Review: In 'Hereditary,' the Horror Is Slow-Cooked and Homemade - The New  York Times

Yes, this movie. It’s a slow burn, but good god does it pay off. I am an Ari Aster fan here and have rewatched both this and Midsommar multiple times whenever I’m in a mood to get disturbed. Hereditary is an intense film that deals with possession in multiple versions. That’s about all I can say without giving anything away, because if you haven’t seen this film, it will impact you the best if you go in blind. It’s a slow burn but stick with it as the last 15 minutes are some of the most intense minutes in film history.

For this one, I have an interesting cocktail that is directly inspired by the film: the Hail Paimon Cocktail. If the mixture of pomegranate and peanut butter into a shooter doesn’t sound like your style, maybe just stick with the peanut butter with this non-alcoholic Peanut Butter Milkshake that you COULD make alcoholic by adding a bit of Skrewball. Now, to honor Charlie, make these Homemade Devil Cremes and make sure NOT to put nuts in them.

You can rent Hereditary on Amazon Video and you need to add it to your physical collection ASAP if you want some brownie points with the cool indie kids. Buy it here. As for the design? I leaned way more on the inside joke side as it is a heavy supplied topic on Redbubble–check it out here.

October 10th: Green Room (2015)

Green Room (2015) - IMDb

This film is fantastic and seems to be forgotten. Brutal as can be, Green Room leans more like a thriller than a horror if you subtract the gore and violence. A punk band have a gig at a bar in the middle-of-nowhere Oregon (my state!). Little did they realize that the bar is a Neo-Nazi bar and the band they’re opening for falls swiftly in that genre as well. Deciding to take the gig anyways–to quote Stephen Stills, “a gig is a gig is a gig is a gig,”–they end up having to fight for their lives as the crowd is deadly. It’s an intense one as well as another A24 film.

For the food, we have to go hardcore punk in solidarity for this poor band. Therefore, I’ve gone with the strong but tasty Ankle Breaker Cocktail. Not into the booze? That’s alright, you can still be punk rock with this Molotov Mocktail. To echo the wish of them playing at a normal dive bar rather than this hellhole, we paired it all with these White Castle Copycats–a crowd-pleaser and made to accompany alcohol. Now for this double feature, I’m going a little lighter as I want to honor the late Anton Yelchin that delivers in this role and going with Odd Thomas–a cute but creepy flick.

Rent Green Room on Amazon Video or add it to your now growing A24 physical collection here. I also designed a very simple but very reliable design for this one. Check it out here on Redbubble.

October 11th: Ganja and Hess (1973)

BLACK HISTORY MONTH – GANJA & HESS — Beyond The Void Horror Podcast

Ganja and Hess came to my attention with the release of Clipping’s album There Existed an Addiction to Blood and I’ve been hooked ever since. This film is one of the most famous blaxploitation horror films out there and was released a year after Blacula. Dr. Hess Green gets stabbed with an ancient dagger by his unstable assistant and becomes a vampire. After the assistant goes missing, his wife Ganja Meda goes looking for him and falls in love with Dr. Green–who turns her into a vampire as well. It is a fascinating film with beautiful imagery and luscious symbolism. It was also remade by Spike Lee as Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, but due to critical reception, you’re better off sticking with the classic.

Want a bloodthirst just as mighty as our vampire lovers? Check out this macabre Vampire Vodka with a Syringe of ‘Blood’ which has a fun interactive element that will win over guests in a heartbeat. If you don’t need the heat of alcohol with your blood, try out this Raspberry Mojito Mocktail with the syringe instead. In order to continue your feast of blood, try out this sweet and salty Bloody Popcorn. For a double feature, you’re going to want more Duane Jones in your life. Therefore, pair this with the original Night of the Living Dead.

You can rent Ganja and Hess on Amazon Video or have it adorned on your entertainment center by purchasing it here. Listen to Clipping’s There Existed an Addiction to Blood to get into the spooky mood with some experimental noise rap that has killer bars. I did do a design for this film as well, can’t stop, won’t stop.

October 12th: Jennifer’s Body (2009)

Horror

I know a lot of people who have a soft spot for this film, myself included. Jennifer’s Body is a good time. Filled to the brim with cringy noughties’ humor and a film that has earned some respect among the LGBTQ+ community, it has aged quite well in a modern scope–as long as you don’t take it too seriously. Jennifer comes back from a sacrifice gone wrong and seeks revenge to those who have done her dirty–men primarily. It’s a romp that needs to be revisited if you didn’t like it the first go around.

If Jennifer can, you too can go both ways with Cheese + Chocolate Fondue. In terms of drinks, I had to find the iconic and morbidly named 9/11 Tribute Shooter in which they drink pre sacrifice, so make sure you have one before and after she turns (or as many as you want you wild animal you). I also found a virgin version, but make sure it’s a virgin beforehand. My double feature pick for this film is Ginger Snaps to go back-to-back with sultry, violent femmes.

You can rent Jennifer’s Body here on Amazon Video or add it to your (now-growing, yes?) physical collection here. Check out the design I made on Redbubble for this one.

October 13th: The Birds (1963)

Horror

This film is responsible for most peoples’ irrational fears of birds. One of Hitchcock’s tried and true classics adapted from a Daphne Du Maurier novella. It focuses on Melanie and her small town as they try and survive once the avian species in the area turn murderous. With iconic shots and terrifying tension, don’t sleep on The Birds as it is one of the best horror films of all time. One thing I will mention with this film is to watch it with consideration of what Hitchcock did to Tippi Hedren, more of which you can read about in my article all about Hitchcock.

I had to keep with the ‘bird’ theme when choosing these drinks. Therefore, I went with a Kentucky Bird, which is a variation of the classic tiki cocktail, the “Jungle Bird.” Due to it being a booze forward drink, my mocktail consists of one of the ingredients–pineapple juice. Therefore, indulge in this Pineapple Mocktail if you’re not into the strong stuff. In regards of food, I kept it very retro chic and looked for recipes around the 1960s. There, I came across one of my favorite snacky recipes: Bacon Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes. It’s delicious and bite sized that you’ll think you’re eating like a bird.

Rent The Birds on Amazon Video or flex your classic horror movie muscles by having it adorn your shelf, which you can get here. I made a very chic, very classic design for this film on Redbubble.

October 14th: Don’t Look Now (1973)

Horror

Speaking of Daphne Du Maurier, this film is a must watch if you haven’t seen it yet. A surreal horror nightmare, Don’t Look Now addresses some of the bleakest topics there is out there. Not only that, but it is also a visual masterpiece. Starring Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie, Don’t Look Now reigns as a surreal psychological thriller that stood the test of time gracefully. There’s not much more I can say as going into this film with little information has a huge payoff.

This film will pair nicely with a Little Red Jacket Cocktail, both in feeling and in the literal sense of the red jacket seen several times in the film. As that cocktail contains Jägermeister, I wanted to see if there could be a mocktail that has same spiced taste. Considering Jaeger has 56 herbs and spices, I had to narrow it down to a delicious tasting mocktail that has no name relation to the content of the film: Don’s Virgin Sacrifice. Now, we’re ending the week fairly classic, so why not take it to the 70s with this Classic Cheeseball, perfect for spreading and stress eating the dread away.

You can rent Don’t Look Now on Amazon Video or own it physically by following the link here. Due to the film’s harrowing subject matter, I mashed up two films for the design to poke fun at a trope rather than referencing the movie itself. Check that design out here.

Coming Up Next

So, there’s the second week of the 31 Days of Horror here on The Void of Celluloid. Hopefully this spawned some ideas on what to make for any upcoming Halloween celebrations. For those that like to go hard and celebrate every day like me, go for it–I have given you the tools. We had Week 1, coming up next is Week 3 and The Final Ten Days which will be linked respectively once published.

Anyways, thanks for spelunking this void with me. If you’re new to the Void of Celluloid, welcome. Feel free to spelunk some other voids while you’re here and follow me on other platforms by clicking the buttons below. We post regularly and stay up to date about what’s going on in horror today, reflect on what went on yesterday, and plan for a better, horror filled tomorrow. See ya next time.

The Final Girl: How Wes Craven Saves the Day

Horror movies had quite a rocky start in depicting women. Early horror and the age of monster movies depicted women as damsels in distress rather than the final girl archetype we see today. They were always preyed upon and scared into submission. Most of the time, they were helpless. We see from the start of horror all the way to the 1960s with Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. Marion Crane isn’t really moving while she stabbed in the shower, which contradicts the ballsy moves she makes in the beginning of the film. She flails and she screams, but without the effort to do something, she dies naked, cold and humiliated.

Psycho Crane Sisters: Ancestors to the Final Girl - Ghoulish Media

It is important to remember that Marion Crane is not what horror fans know as the “final girl,” but rather her sister Lila that solves the mystery and escapes near death at the end of the film. Psycho did present a shift in the female protagonist, but Hitchcock is not the one to turn to for female empowerment. His following film The Birds is infamous for the mistreatment of actress Tippi Hedren. Instead, we are going to focus on the transition of the female protagonist in horror starting in the 1970s, and how the trope of the final girl went from empowering to demeaning. It remained that way throughout the years until the 1990s with the release of Scream, which destroys and rebuilds the trope once more.

1974: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was groundbreaking at its time of release. It determined what the slasher genre would be in the next few years. It was the next major exploitation horror film after Wes Craven’s release of The Last House on the Left, which is notorious for its brutality towards the two women. That film continued to push the narrative of damsels in distress–in high distress in this case–as they were put into a completely helpless situation. Yes, there is revenge as we see a mother and father rain hellfire on the rapist-murderers, but we don’t see the wronged women get justice themselves.

Marilyn Burns, Texas Chain Saw Massacre actress, dies aged 65 - BBC News

One of the first appearances of the trope that defines the slasher genre is Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. This film is the standard of low budget grindhouse, and has the bare bones of what a final girl would look and be like in future films. Sally Hardesty is the last one left alive, and she does get out of the terrifying situation she finds herself in towards the film’s climax. She has good instinct too, but honestly, she gets out of there due to pure luck. She also drags that poor semi truck driver into the situation during the final scene. He is the one to deal the blow that saves both of them. That doesn’t dismiss her as a final girl, but instead of the typical showdown the final girl has with the killer, Sally takes the flight method rather than the fight method.

1974: Black Christmas

Released the same year as the previous film, Black Christmas is an underrated slasher pioneer. It released the same weekend as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but carries a different tone. While both are gruesome, Black Christmas takes a different approach with its characters. Many tropes trace back to this movie, and considering this movie inspired John Carpenter to make Halloween, I say that Jess Bradford is the pioneer of the final girls. For more comparisons between Black Christmas and Halloween, check out The Ringer’s article ‘Black Christmas’ Was the First ‘Halloween’.

What sets Jess apart from Sally is that Jess seems to have a functioning brain and does not shriek at anything and everything in sight. That is a real insensitve take, I know that the traumatizing situations justify Sally’s reactions, but it isn’t the usual image of a final girl. Instead a final girl does what she needs to do, which involves being sneaky and keeping quiet. It also involves a headstrong attitude. Jess exhibits both in the action of the film as well as the other plot points, most poignantly the discussion she has with her boyfriend in regards to her plans for an abortion.

FINAL GIRL PROFILE: Jess Bradford, Black Christmas (1974) - The Black  Museum: Lurid Lectures for the Morbidly Curious

There is something deeply unsettling about the fate of this final girl, as the ending is ambiguous and it leans more towards killing off the final girl, since she receives the damning phone call. This is why I claim this movie and Texas Chainsaw pioneering films. The main reason being that their final girls do not fit the modern day image of the final girl. However, I give it Black Christmas to kick off this trope, as there are similarities between Jess and our next final girl Laurie Strode.

1978: Halloween

Laurie Strode is always the first to come to mind when I think about final girls. John Carpenter set the groundwork for the strong female protagonist with his 1978 film Halloween. She is a quiet, reserved teenager responsible for babysitting a kid Halloween night. She is on edge throughout the beginning of the movie as she sees Michael Meyers lurking in the shadows. Therefore, in the beginning and by the constant harassment of her friends, we as the audience are meant to view her as “lame”. That’s not it at all though. She is self aware of herself and her actions, which is why she kicks it into gear when she realizes Michael picked off her friends one by one.

In Praise of the Shy Girl: Halloween's Laurie Strode (Women In Horror  Series) | by Kelcie Mattson | Applaudience | Medium

With Laurie being the stay-at-home-and-study type in contrast with her somewhat reckless friends, it is sometimes read that Laurie’s survival is like a reward for her purity. This is a stripped down, male gazey version of Laurie Strode and the Final Girl as a whole. Whether we like it or not, the standard for women is lowkey pedophiliac its focus–more like obssession–on virginity. This aspect supposed to be admired about the final girl. This is the wrong way of looking at it. Rather than glamorize the idea of virginity, it should praise not succumbing to peer pressure and holding standards for yourself. Her friends tell her to loosen up multiple times in the film’s beginning. Laurie stands her ground and continues to be herself, all the way up to the end of the film. Tragically, the first train of thought is what the horror industry ran with.

1980: Friday the 13th

The next big slasher is what gave us the so-called “rules” of the genre: Friday the 13th. This has a big plot point of punishing the act of sex, as that is the reasoning Mrs. Voorhees attaches to her son’s death, and rightfully so, as neglect to watch over the swimmers led to him drowning. But they push that punishment to the extreme, with Mrs. Voorhees striking during or right after the act. It’s mindless revenge as none of the counselors were around Camp Crystal Lake during Jason’s death. Therefore it comes off more as a senile woman punishing the act of sex rather than getting revenge for her son.

Friday the 13th: Why Alice was Killed for part II – Mack's Musings

Alice Hardy is our final girl in this film. The film exhibits her prudishness with the strip poker scene and her childlike crush on Bill, therefore it establishes the assumption that she is a virgin. What makes her the standard for the final girl is her epic showdown and kill of the villain. The seemingly innocent Alice is fed up and lops Pamela Voorhees’ head off, which according to her character we saw in the rest of the film, it is fairly unexpected and has us cheering for her. While Laurie Strode served as influence for Alice Hardy, the ideal final girl is Alice when the trope is analyzed by itself.

1984: A Nightmare on Elm Street

This implication of slashers punishing the youngsters for sex and drugs carried itself on a box office pedestal throughout the 1980s as several knockoffs and sequels planted their roots in the home video-palooza of the 80s. Though some had their twists and turns, the final girls became more and more washed out. It was almost like the final girl was becoming a hollow shell of herself and they were hitting copy-paste with each new release. Wes Craven took on a different kind of final girl in A Nightmare on Elm Street by giving Freddy a different motive than the motiveless voiceless killers of the early 80s, but even then Freddy painted himself as a godlike figure doing punishing.

Why A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET'S Nancy Is Horror's Greatest Final Girl -  Nerdist

Nancy Thompson is smart and has a good head on her shoulders. She is feminine, which was forgotten in the 80s, with the purposeful masculinization of the final girls to make them seem tougher. However, due to the nature of the killer and her surroundings, she comes off as helpless quite a few times throughout the film. Another ambiguous ending confirms this helplessness in which it implies Nancy actually never made it out alive.

Instead of going in that direction, the rest of the films of the 1980s almost had a carbon copy of Alice as their final girl. We would continue to see this regurgitation for the whole decade, until Craven finally said enough is enough.

1996: Scream

Scream is brilliant, and I mean that in both adoration and critically. This film blends humor, horror and badasses, especially from the main protagonist Sidney Prescott. When I think of my ideal final girl, it goes to Sidney all the way. Despite her trauma and her poor taste in men, she doesn’t skip a beat to kick ass and defend herself and her posse. Her posse in both the original and its sequels also feature some badass women, with Gale Weathers being a secondary final girl and Tatum Riley, who scores some awesome hits on Billy before her unfortunate run in with the garage door.

Scream 5: Neve Campbell in talks to return as Sidney Prescott | GamesRadar+

Sidney destroys the final girl archetype as she breaks most of the “rules” Randy reminds of us nearing the climax of the film. She is not a virgin by the final showdown and she is not a innocent delicate flower. She is actively dealing with her mother’s murder and testified against Cotton Weary so effectively that she put him in jail on a life sentence. Sidney is a breath of fresh air and restores the internal workings of a woman into the final girl. Therefore she rises to the top of the hierarchy side by side with Laurie Strode.

Wes Craven did make an instant classic, which engraved Ghostface in the history of horror among the classic slasher villains. He also made Sidney Prescott a posterchild for aspiring young women. His writing of Sidney is almost like a true apology in regards to how he wrote women characters before. A lot of Craven’s previous work brutalized women quite a bit and put them in hopeless situations consistently. Therefore, to have Sidney Prescott persevere through all of this, I can forgive Craven’s depravity.

What now? Modern Day Final Girls

In modern horror, the final girl is still alive and kicking, but rather in the model of Sidney Prescott rather than Alice Hardy. Some key examples is Grace from Ready or Not, Rocky in the first Don’t Breathe, and Dana in The Cabin in the Woods–who plays a trope in but transcends it much like Sidney did. There hasn’t been much regression, and while sequel fever has sparked back up in the recent years, more paranormal based films are the ones to pick up sequels, which prevents the final girl becoming hollow again.

THE FINAL GIRLS (2015) • Frame Rated

A brilliant horror comedy that has come out in the past decade is The Final Girls. It truly is a romp and will become a cult classic as the years go by, but the way that this movie plays with the rules that the 1980s horror flicks set is creative and hilarious. This film is a feature in my 31 Days of Horror coming up, so check it out. Overall, I don’t think the horror community will allow this trope to return back to where it was, and when it does, it usually is in homage to something and likes to challenge the original ideas that caused such a prudish final girl. Final verdict: thanks to Scream, you can drink, do drugs and have sex and you can still survive a horror film. Just don’t say you’ll be right back, because you won’t be. Easy enough, right?