Themes of slasher horror films?

Randall_Oelerich

Randall_Oelerich

Veteran
What are some examples of theme present in specific slasher ('teen death') horror films? Do horror films have themes? If so, are there certain themes that seem to repeatedly occur in the slasher horror genre?

By 'theme' I mean its usage in the sense of 'a universal statement about how to better live one's life', in contrast to its other usage related more to leitmotifs/symbolism in films. "Theme is the universal statement the movie makes about the human condition. I tis the screenwriter's underlying prescription for how one should live one's life in order to be a more evolved, more fulfilled, more individuated, more moral person. It is the filmmaker's way of saying 'This is how to be a better human being.' Theme is universal, it applies to any individual in the audience." (Writing Screenplays that Sell 20th Anniversary Edition by Michael Hauge., page 82.)

E.g. What is the theme (if there is one) in: Halloween? Texas Chainsaw Massacre? I Know What You Did Last Summer? Final Destination? Scream? Friday the 13th?
 
Randall_Oelerich said:
What are some examples of theme present in specific slasher ('teen death') horror films? Do horror films have themes? If so, are there certain themes that seem to repeatedly occur in the slasher horror genre?
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The original 'Scream' movie effectively broke down and laid bare the recurring themes & tropes you are likely to find in teen slasher flicks. They often deal with promiscuity, sex, friendships, cliques, the transition to adulthood. A lone psycho just gets thrown into that mix to disassemble it.

If you are talking more about metaphors or analogies, then teen slasher flicks are more lacking in that department compared to other genres. Its all about the cheap thrill.
 
btw, for those who bothered to check out this thread, and who have any interest in analyzing horror as a genre in cinema, i just came across this whitepaper today that looks at the appeal of horror in cinema. I have not read it yet, but it looks interesting. Use or lose--

Understanding the Popular Appeal of Horror Cinema: An Integrated-Interactive Model
Online publication date: May 13, 2004.
Journal of Media Psychology, Volume 9, No. 2, Spring, 2004. Glenn D. Walters, Ph.D.
http://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/sfischo/horrormoviesRev2.htm
 
I should have done this before posting this thread-- I went back and listened again to William (Bill) Martell's audio CD on theme (80 minutes long, which for those of you who have listened to Bill know that means about two hours of anybody else talking, lol), most excellent, helped me immensely, and i was able today to come up with a specific central theme for the horror story i am currently writing, including a half dozen examples of that theme in my story, became so clear. Highly recommend that audio CD. Bill even discusses theme in horror films, was quite relevant to my needs at the moment.
 
The best analysis of the horror genre is Stephen King's Danse Macabre. One of the observations I took away from it is that the most effective horror films (and books) aren't about the fear of death, but the fear of damnation, being condemned to live out a horrible fate for all eternity.
 
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But I think the themes of 'Teen Slasher' flicks (the OP's original interest) is very different from the themes of other horror movies. The fear of damnation, being condemned to live out a horrible fate for all eternity, are not the theme of teen slasher flicks.

Directors like Cronenberg dwell in the 'body horror' realm, where the themes of old age and disease are manifest in the monsters and transformations that take place (The Fly was considered to be a metaphor for HIV when the film first came out for instance), but again none of this is relevant to the 'teen slasher' genre.

Teen slasher flicks seem to be the least thematic of all the horror genre, unless I'm missing something?
 
I don't believe every theme has to have an optimistic over/under. A slasher theme could be as simplistic as "it's a big bad world out there."

Or as subversively political as "poo poo the man."

Of course, with all the rehashings, reboots, remakes and reinvisionings, I'd say the themes are often closer to "a sucker's born every day" territory.
 
simonpwood said:
But I think the themes of 'Teen Slasher' flicks (the OP's original interest) is very different from the themes of other horror movies. The fear of damnation, being condemned to live out a horrible fate for all eternity, are not the theme of teen slasher flicks.
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This is somewhat true, and it's why I've always found teen slasher films to be poor horror films. But if you want to look at it one way there is usually one character who survives, often over multiple films, around whom the killing is focused. Think Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween. Watching your friends die over and over again and being hounded by a deranged madman is a form of living damnation. It doesn't have to be a religious damnation that takes place after death. People aren't afraid of death so much as enduring a drawn out, painful death. Another common thread that has been noted in many teen slasher films (and spoofed in Scream) is that the survivor is a virgin, while the victims are sexually promiscuous.
 
Nice. Just added Dance Macabre to my shopping cart. Unfortunately now I have to find another $18.20 of items to buy to get the free shipping, damn you Amazon for always making me buy more stuff!
 
Randall_Oelerich said:
Nice. Just added Dance Macabre to my shopping cart. Unfortunately now I have to find another $18.20 of items to buy to get the free shipping, damn you Amazon for always making me buy more stuff!
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It's a great read even apart from the analysis, and actually the sections on movies aren't as strong. But his analysis of horror from a story standpoint are as good as it gets.
 
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon is a good film to watch (it used to be on Netflix Instant Watch; not sure if it anymore). Hits on a couple of themes that are particularly prominent such as the rise of the virgin heroine who 'defeats' the villain with the phallic weapon ( baseball bat, golf club, etc)

It's a good watch - very reflective on the genre
 
Randall_Oelerich said:
btw, for those who bothered to check out this thread, and who have any interest in analyzing horror as a genre in cinema, i just came across this whitepaper today that looks at the appeal of horror in cinema. I have not read it yet, but it looks interesting. Use or lose--

Understanding the Popular Appeal of Horror Cinema: An Integrated-Interactive Model
Online publication date: May 13, 2004.
Journal of Media Psychology, Volume 9, No. 2, Spring, 2004. Glenn D. Walters, Ph.D.
http://www.calstatela.edu/faculty/sfischo/horrormoviesRev2.htm
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From your link above:

"The famous anthropologist, Joseph Campbell (1988) once remarked that the monster concept in fiction can be traced to a “feared adventure of the discovery of the self” (p. 8). Such a journey holds the potential for confrontation with feared selves but may also permit exploration of desired selves given the fact that horror movies are rich in social commentary."

There's your/an answer right there.

In horror, teens who have sex die. It's a warning not to move forward. Not to grow up. Not to grow. If you want to get all hero's journey with it, it's a warning not to procreate, not to become the parent/father.

Same as Wizard of Oz, where the witch warns you to "go back."

The monsters are metaphors for inhibitors to the new self. When you kill the monster, you transcend the limitations to the newer self.

But monsters are also supernatural aids, because they provoke the newer self.

Most horror is coming-of-age theme related. There are very powerful arguments suggesting that all stories are coming-of-age theme related.
 
In my opinion I believe that one of the main themes in slasher horror films is not engaging in recreational drug use or premarital sex. I just recently watched the original Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th. I greatly enjoyed watching Wes Craven's Nightmare on Elm Street. I thought it was a great idea a man who kills you in your dreams. (Spoiler) When Nancy follows her friend in the body bag in the school was so well done and creepy!
I refuse to watch any of the annoying million sequels and remakes though. I stick with the originals. I do want to watch Scream I heard Wes Craven did a great job that that as well.
 
KrickProductions said:
In my opinion I believe that one of the main themes in slasher horror films is not engaging in recreational drug use or premarital sex.
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Well, there you go... a new twist on the horror theme... teens having sex, keep the boogie man away... he can't enter the room, too much 'energy', but kills everyone else... and because the sexhaving teens survive, they are convicted of the murders, and so society's 'values' are reenforced.
 
j1clark@ucsd.edu said:
Well, there you go... a new twist on the horror theme... teens having sex, keep the boogie man away... he can't enter the room, too much 'energy', but kills everyone else... and because the sexhaving teens survive, they are convicted of the murders, and so society's 'values' are reenforced.
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Scream did kind of turn this on its head.

SPOILER



When the heroine has sex, she realizes her boyfriend is one of the murderers and eventually ends up killing him. She is empowered because of her sexual experience, not victimized by it.
 
I don't remember where I read this first but I think there is some truth here. There is a reason the killer attacks the kids having sex and doing drugs. These are issues the young audience have been lectured about by their parents and thus have strong emotions of guilt about. The scary things are much scarier if there is guilt. A scary movie targeting a more adult audience might trigger more suiting guilts. Such as child neglect or greed.
There is nothing scarier than being responsible for something horrifying. I believe this is why ideas like(if I can bring this up without an off topic, political flame war ensuing) manmade global warming get such huge following. Being hit by an asteroid might be scary but not as scary as the prospect that we are at fault, destroying our own world.
 
klas said:
There is a reason the killer attacks the kids having sex.
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It's a well known underlying theme. Watch Halloween.

And it's not an abstract concept. It can tell you how to write your story. You have different characters ranging from the virgin to the whore. It tells you who dies first (the whore)...etc.
 
klas said:
I don't remember where I read this first but I think there is some truth here. There is a reason the killer attacks the kids having sex and doing drugs. These are issues the young audience have been lectured about by their parents and thus have strong emotions of guilt about. The scary things are much scarier if there is guilt. A scary movie targeting a more adult audience might trigger more suiting guilts. Such as child neglect or greed.
There is nothing scarier than being responsible for something horrifying. I believe this is why ideas like(if I can bring this up without an off topic, political flame war ensuing) manmade global warming get such huge following. Being hit by an asteroid might be scary but not as scary as the prospect that we are at fault, destroying our own world.
Click to expand...

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=DHHKU4znvo8
[/URL]
 
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