T w e n t y S i d e d

With the recognition that horror movies broadly, and slasher movies explicitly, had to be made within the context of an audience and cast that knew how horror movies functioned, the tropes that made the original franchises work were…sort of…put to rest. At least they were retired as “high-concept” ideas. Really they already had been to a degree. “Escaped mental patient kills babysitters with no motive” was a great idea in the late 1970’s. But despite John Carpenter’s intentions the series couldn’t escape from the trend of “just doing the same thing over again.” As good as I would argue Halloween 4 is, you wouldn’t be wrong to point out it’s just a different take on the original, using information developed in the second film. From the beginning Friday the 13th was designed as a cash-in on Halloween and other early slashers. It proved to be a repeatable hit thanks to extremely low budgets. That it occasionally even did something interesting was just a bonus. A Nightmare on Elm Street arguably had the loftiest goals and cleverest idea. But even though New Line pulled the rug out from under Craven, the second film has subtext that didn’t reach a wider audience until years later and the Dream Warriors era that dominated the sequels successfully re-imagined the franchise in a new way. So thoroughly, in fact; that Craven was able to revisit his original idea through commentary to try to remind everyone what the point was (or points were, depending on your argument.) Horror movies hadn’t been doing as well at the box office since the late 1980’s, but even as the latter half of the 1990’s saw a resurgence in interest, the major slasher franchises would produce future installments as remakes, re-imaginings, reboots, or even just simple genre films.

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Horror Slasher Evolution: Final Villain”

Paige Francis He/him

Meta, or self-aware horror, is typically said to have begun with 1996’s Scream. But as any pedant will gleefully point out Wes Craven’s New Nightmare incorporates the fundamental conventions of meta-horror in 1994. Wait! Kevin Williamson wrote the first concept of Scream in 1994! Yeah. Probably about the same time Wes Craven’s New Nightmare was being made. Except the concept for Wes Craven’s New Nightmare was at least eight years old. The basic plot was pitched by Wes Craven originally when he signed on to write the third Nightmare movie; a project that would become 1987’s The Dream Warriors. It became The Dream Warriors because New Line Cinema didn’t like Craven’s story, mainly the entire “meta” idea. But none of that matters anyway, because There’s Nothing Out There was made in 1990 for less than the cost of most houses in the United States.

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Horror Slasher Evolution: Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road?”

Paige Francis He/him

I woke up thinking about the “rock” band The Eagles of Death Metal (“rock” is quoted because they are a multi-genre group). I don’t dislike them, to be clear; but I’m not a particular fan. In fact I had never heard of them before they appeared on Kesha’s album Rainbow in 2017. The band name is conspicuous and the typical explanation is that the founders, inspired by some incident, wondered what a cross of The Eagles with Death Metal would sound like. But as can be seen in the details of the varied stories, there is a more dismissive point of view behind the idea: The Eagles of Death Metal play about as much Death Metal as The Eagles play rock music. AND TO BE CRYSTAL CLEAR: I don’t mean this as an insult to either group. If you like The Eagles or The Eagles of Death Metal, THAT’S GREAT. Listen to who you want to listen to. Have your own opinions about it. IN MY OWN OPINION, The Eagles occasionally “flirt” with playing a rock song. Some of their early work is very borderline. But their big hits, the things they’re known for, are easy listening. Pop music of the era of their popularity. Important songs, some arguably deep songs…certainly *influential* songs. But still, The Eagles aren’t the platonic ideal of rock music, they are possibly the preeminent example of baseline watered down rock music of the times. I think The Eagles of Death Metal used the song as a humorous reference, not as a position statement. If a band is The Eagles of Death Metal (as a metaphor) are they even *playing* Death Metal? Is their product even *metal music*?

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Horror Slasher Evolution: The Eagles of Slasher Movies”

Paige Francis He/him