Imagine that tonight is movie night. The popcorn is made, the lights are low, everyone else is ready and the classic horror film Scream (Wes Craven 96) plays. The combination of horror and humor similar to the modern The Cabin in the woods (Drew Goddard 2012) has their unique message and some elements of a slasher film. In her essay “Her Body, Himself,” Clover writes a general description of a slasher film, “At the bottom of the horror heap lies the slasher (or splatter or shocker or stalker) film: the immensely generative story of a psychokiller who slashes to death a string of mostly female victims” (22). While in Scream these definitions may be obvious, Cabin in the Woods both critiques these traits while challenging them. By using Clover’s …show more content…
description of a slasher film “the genre by component category; killer, locale, weapons, victims, and shock effects” (26), and, “the immensely generative story of a psycho killer who slashes to death a string of mostly female victim, one by one, until he is subdued or killed, usually by the one girl who has survived;” both Scream and The Cabin in the Woods meet these criteria of a slasher film.
One of the first components of a slasher film and arguably the most important is the killer. Clover defines the killer as, “the psychotic product of a sick family, but still recognizable human” (30). In Scream the Killers are Billy (Skeet Ulrich) and Stu (Matthew Lillard) Billy comes from a broken home after abandonment of his mother and his hard working father wasn’t able to be there much for him. You see Billy’s dysfunction with his father in the scene where Billy and his father are questioned by the police. His father didn’t notice that Billy left that night to go to Cindy’s house, when he was presumably watching TV. It’s fair to assume that the only TV in the house was in the living because in the 90’s that is how most households had one main TV, because of this it would be safe to assume that his father wasn’t home at the time or else he would of noticed Billy’s absence or reappearance. Stu’s story wasn’t told much in Scream but one line he gives near the end gives
hint as to his dysfunction his parents, “my parents will think Im a disappointment. He has already killed multiple people and yet only with the threat of being caught his first worry isn’t jail or any other possible ramification but his parents, implying some issue with his parents. However, in The Cabin in the Woods the killer isn’t as black and white. It would be easy to say that the killer is the Buckner Family (Dan Payne, Jodelle Ferland, Dan Shea, Maya Massar) the “zombie redneck torture family” as described in the movie. This family began worshipping pain and started to maim themselves and others, Patience Buckner (Jodelle) has found a way to immortalize her family with a Latin indication; when repeated it summons the family again from the dead as done by Dana (Kristen Connolly). As easy as it is to label the Buckner family as the killers, they are the puppets with Sitterson (Richard Jenkings) and Hadley (Bradley Whitford) pulling the strings as the ultimate puppet master. Although they have not killed anyone directly by them being bound to the ‘rules of the ancient ones’ they have set up the situation to lead the teens to their death. Both in Scream and The Cabin in the Woods had two aspects to the killer; in Scream both aspects of the killer was a person, so there was two killers; Cabin in the woods had 2 different groups, Sitterson and Hadley, the duo that has manipulated ultimate control over the cabin, and the Buckner family, a group of “pain-worshipping backwoods idiots” as described by Hadley in the movie. Each movie has a clear an example of a killer of a slasher film. Clover defines the terrible place as “most often a house or tunnel, in which victims sooner or later find themselves is a venerable element of horror” (30). In Scream the final terrible place is Stu’s house during the party. Here Tatum (Rose McGowan), Cindy’s best friend dies after a struggle with the killer, and Cindy reveals the killer as Billy and Stu working together. This is where the greatest horror of Scream is revealed, Cindy’s father is revealed to be framed for the murders and the killers are plotting on getting away with their second murder. In Cabin in the Woods the terrible place is a cabin that is in the woods. The cabin is created as a focal point of the movie and the idea that the horror, the killer and the victim can be interchangeable but the terror place for which it is named. Both movies have a clear example of a terrible place which is another example that each of these movies is slasher films. Cabin in the woods details in their ritual of killer the order of the victims and the likely victimology. Although there is some leeway on the selection the victims are usually young and die in a certain pattern, the whore, athlete, scholar, fool, and the virgin. They must die in this order every time. The only except is that the virgin is allowed to survive and become the final girl. Both movies follow this pattern, in Scream the whore, or the first girl who dies, is Casey (Drew Barrymore). You see her as the whore when she tries to invite her boyfriend to ‘watch a movie’ while home alone with no parents. Her boyfriend Steve (Kevin Patrick Walls) dies next. Although it seems like Steve died first he was still alive in the reveal scene showing his intestines, the news report explains that Casey died first and then Steve. Principal Himbry dies next in place of the scholar. His death defies the usual victimology because he lacks the most important aspect of youth, so that leaves Tatum to die as the scholar. The last death in the hands of the killer is Kenny (W Early Brown) the cameraman. He is seen as the comic relief with the treatment from Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox). The last person who was nearly the victim is Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) but she manages to survive the onslaught and becomes Scream’s final girl. At the same time Cabin in the Woods follows this same victimology even if they have to create it themselves. Drew Goddard makes this clear in the explanation in a few scenes as well as an obvious personality change. Jules (Anna Hutchison) does as the blonde whore, but before any manipulation she was the brunette scholar. Her boyfriend Curt (Chris Hemsworth) was sociology major became a jock and died as the athlete. Holden (Jesse Williams) seemed to not need as much manipulation because he was always the scholar. The next person who was supposed to die and whom we thought was originally dead, but manages to survive and screws up the whole ritual is Marty (Fran Kranz). He is the stoner who in the start of the movie rolls up in his car followed by a Snoop Dogg sized cloud of reefer. His survival coupled with Dana (Kristen Connolly) who was the virgin and the final girl, unleashes the horror back onto the complex. The weapon that Dana and Marty use is the horrors that the complex has used against countless victims to destroy the complex and unleash the ancient gods on earth. This is the last aspect of the victims is the final girl. Clover defines the final girl as “the one who encounters the mutilated bodies of her friends and perceived the full extent of the preceding horror and of her own peril; who is chased, cornered, wounded; whom we see scream, stagger, fall, rise, and scream again” (35). Both Dana and Sidney are the final girl. The killer targets both of them and both has suffered. For Sidney the killer target her form the start as the original plan and then the big chase scene was done throughout the movie but primary in the school or in Stu’s home. Dana suffers as well which Hadley says is key for the ritual. Dana suffers mainly on the dock where Juda Buckner is in the process of killing and torturing her. And she suffers more internally in the complex where she is given the task of killing Marty to save the world. We see her rise as she unleashes the horrors in the complex and we see her fall in the pit of the ancient ones. Both Scream and Cabin in the Woods meet Clovers criteria of a slasher film with the elements of the killer, the terrible place, the victims and the final girl. Scream has a clear killer that has two aspects which is Billy and Stu, and Cabin in the Woods has two aspects of the killer as well, The Buckner family the actually killers and slasher of the film as well as the complex ran by Hadley and Sitterson whom set up the scenario for the victims. Each movie has their own terrible place and it is strikingly simple to find the terrible place in the Cabin in the Woods. Both movies follow a set algorithm of victims and the final girl ends up defeating the killer in both films. Each movie has its own unique critique of horror or slasher films and in the process has become the very thing the movies critique. Each is a clear example a slasher film each movie has its own unique element that makes them different and memorable.
The only real way to truly understand a story is to understand all aspects of a story and their meanings. The same goes for movies, as they are all just stories being acted out. In Thomas Foster's book, “How to Read Literature Like a Professor”, Foster explains in detail the numerous ingredients of a story. He discusses almost everything that can be found in any given piece of literature. The devices discussed in Foster's book can be found in most movies as well, including in Quentin Tarantino’s cult classic, “Pulp Fiction”. This movie is a complicated tale that follows numerous characters involved in intertwining stories. Tarantino utilizes many devices to make “Pulp Fiction” into an excellent film. In this essay, I will demonstrate how several literary devices described in Foster's book are put to use in Tarantino’s film, “Pulp Fiction”, including quests, archetypes, food, and violence.
Too many horror films provide scares and screams throughout their respective cinemas. Not many viewers follow what kind of model the films follow to appease their viewers. However, after reading film theorist Carol Clover’s novel, watching one of the films she associates in the novel “Halloween”, and also watching the movie “Nightmare on Elm Street” I say almost every “slasher” or horror film follows a model similar to Clover’s. The model is a female is featured as a primary character and that females tend to always overcome a situation at some point throughout the film.
Clover, Carol J. Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film. Princeton: Princeton Publishing, 1992.
Slowly she asked "Is anyone there?" as she walked down the dark deserted road. When she heard a loud sound she turned abruptly trying again "Hello?" Met with only silence she picked up here pace almost running down the dirt road. Her nerves had just began to calm when she heard "WRRRREEENNNNNRRRRRRR" as a chainsaw started behind her. Running she started looking behind her hoping that whoever it was, wouldn’t catch her. With her lack of concentration she tripped over her high heels and face plants into the dirt, giving the murderer a chance to catch up. Slowly he lowered the chainsaw and began cutting --CUT -- This is a common plot used in horror movies today. Movies have changed over the years. They were different five years ago, fifty years ago, and even a almost a century ago. Technologies have unthinkable things possible. They have allowed us to re-sink "the unsinkable ship." They have allowed us to see dinosaurs in all their brutal glory. We have seen imaginary creatures, only ever mentioned in stories brought to life. Movies have moved so far from the 1920's and 1930's. They have developed ideals, rules and even standards; but where did they begin? Did movies just fall out of the sky? Did they just come into being? No they began slowly, silently moving towards a new era, the era we today call "Pre-code Hollywood"
Horror genre conventions are evident in both films and the way they are directed has given me obvious indications on the effect the horror conventions can have on a film when used well, and the adverse effect when not used well. Both Japanese and American society are evident in these films, and the style of the films are similar to the nationality of the two directors. Horror conventions are used in both films, but the way they are used are quite different, and these contrasting styles are key in how effective the two films are to their audience.
Misery, trauma, and isolation all have connections to the war time settings in “The Thing in the Forest.” In the short story, A.S. Byatt depicts elements captured from both fairy tale and horror genres in war times. During World War II, the two young girls Penny and Primrose endure the 1940s Blitz together but in different psychological ways. In their childhood, they learn how to use gas masks and carry their belongings in oversized suitcases. Both Penny and Primrose suffer psychologically effects by being isolated from their families’ before and after the war. Byatt depicts haunting effects in her short story by placing graphic details on the girls’ childhood experiences. Maria Margaronis, an author of a critical essay entitled “Where the Wild Things Are,” states that “Byatt’s tales of the supernatural depend on an almost hallucinatory precision for their haunting effects.” The hallucinatory details Byatt displays in her story have an almost unbelievable psychological reality for the girls. Penny and Primrose endure the psychological consequences and horrifying times during the Blitz along with the magical ideas they encounter as children. As adults they must return to the forest of their childhood and as individuals and take separate paths to confront the Thing, acknowledge its significance in their childhoods, and release themselves from the grip of the psychological trauma of war.
To begin with, some people would say they enjoy a horror movie that gets them scared out of their wits. They go see these movies once a month on average, for fun, each time choosing a newer sequel like “Final Destination” or “The evil Dead”. King says “When we pay our four or five bucks and seat ourselves at tenth-row center in a theater showing a horror movie we are daring the nightmare” (405). As a writer of best-sel...
The genre of horror films is one that is vast and continually growing. So many different elements have been known to appear in horror films that it is often times difficult to define what is explicitly a horror film and what is not. Due to this ambiguous definition of horror the genre is often times divided into subgenres. Each subgenre of horror has a more readily identifiable list of classifications that make it easier to cast a film to a subgenre, rather than the entire horror genre. One such subgenre that is particularly interesting is that of the stalker film. The stalker film can be categorized as a member of the horror genre in two ways. First, the stalker film can be identified within the horror genre due to its connection with the easily recognizable subgenre of horror, the slasher film. Though many elements of the stalker film differ from those of the slasher film, the use of non-mechanical weapons and obvious sexual plot points can be used to categorize the stalker film as a subgenre of the slasher film. Secondly, the stalker film can be considered a member of the horror genre using Robin Wood’s discussion regarding horror as that which society represses. The films Fatal Attraction, The Fan, and The Crush will be discussed in support of this argument. (Need some connector sentence here to finish out the intro)
In society there is a longing for a story to have a nice and neat happy ending. Broadway and the theater originally would give this to their audience, especially in America. Give the audience what the want! They want happy endings that mirror their own values and interpretations of how the world should be and at the end of it should be, “and they all lived happily ever after.” The fairy tale ending is something society hopes, dreams, and strives for since we could listen to our parents read us fairy tales with these sweet stories of finding true love and having to fight the odds to be the Prince or Princess you deserve to be. With Into the Woods, Lapine and Sondheim sought out to explore what could go wrong with “happily ever after.” Effectively leaving the audience with the adage, “be careful what you ask for…”
Film scholars around the world agree that all genres of film are part of the “genre cycle”. This cycle contains four different stages that a specific genre goes through. These stages are: primitive, classic, revisionist, and parody. Each stage that the genre goes through brings something different to that genre’s meaning and what the audience expects. I believe that looking at the horror genre will be the most beneficial since it has clearly gone through each stage.
“I was raised to be charming, not sincere.” This is a famous line from the play and movie Into The Woods. The production follows a baker and his wife, and the characters from Cinderella, Rapunzel, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Little Red Riding Hood. The play Into The Woods was much better than the movie. The play was done by Stephen Sondheim. The new movie of Into The Woods is a Disney production. There is a more extensive plot, better casting, and better costumes in the play.
How the Opening Sequence of Halloween Captures the Attention of the Audience ' 'Halloween' was made in 1978 and is a good example of the 'Slasher' movies from that time and this is an interesting piece of cinema as it can be related to the German expressionism of the late 1920's which used jerky camera shots and high contrast lighting to enthrall the viewer .In this essay I will discuss how the opening to Halloween captures the audiences attention and how codes and conventions create suspense and tension for the audience.
People flock to horror movies each year. Usually to be scared. Another is to solve the question of Who done it? Unfortunately, a lot of these horror movies fail to scare people or make the killer so obvious the audience gets bored. Occasionally, there are a few horror movies that stick out. Scream, directed by Wes Craven, is one of them. Wes Craven is always toying with the viewer's fears. Always finding ways to scare the audience at every turn. He also plays with the viewer's head, and has them second guessing themselves. How does he do it? Well, as one of the characters in the movie exclaims, "There's a formula to it. A very simple formula. Everybody's a suspect!" This paper will discuss how Craven uses sound, camera shots, and mise en scene
The Horror Movie in Late Modern Society’ that labelling films such as these as postmodern may be an overreach. He argues that the hybridity of the genre as seen in horror-comedies such as ‘The Cabin in the Woods’ and ‘Scream’ are nothing ‘new’ and that comedy has always played a prevalent role in the horror genre. He goes on to state that, “much of the comic fun to be had (in contemporary horror-comedies) derives from the excess of gory detail. The other aspect, in this case more a development characteristic of the 1990s than the 1980s, is the tendency to reflexively generate humour by openly appealing to a knowing audience’s familiarity with the genre conventions.” This view suggests that Tudor views the emergence of a more comedic element to horror movies as more of an evolutionary step in horror, than a deliberately postmodern outlook. He cements this as his view as he uses the example of ‘Scream’ and the films made in its wake (such as ‘Scary Movie’ (2000)), Tudor claims “It is films such as these that have so often attracted the designation ‘postmodern’, if only superficially, because of their studied self-consciousness and their use of pastiche.” (Tudor, p.107) Tudor’s view is that films such as these bear only surface-level post-modernism that the term is used too liberally and the films would be better suited towards the term parody than a post-modernism. Tudor argues that their “studied self-consciousness” disqualifies them from being labelled as postmodern, however it can be argued that parody and self-consciousness elements of these films are what make them postmodern at
Modern day horror films are very different from the first horror films which date back to the late nineteenth century, but the goal of shocking the audience is still the same. Over the course of its existence, the horror industry has had to innovate new ways to keep its viewers on the edge of their seats. Horror films are frightening films created solely to ignite anxiety and panic within the viewers. Dread and alarm summon deep fears by captivating the audience with a shocking, terrifying, and unpredictable finale that leaves the viewer stunned. (Horror Films)