The darker side of horror movies
There’s something exhilarating about watching a suspenseful scene from the comfort of a couch, momentarily escaping from reality. I became hooked after watching “The Exorcist” as a child, despite having nightmares for days. And some films have caused long-lasting effects.
Thanks to the first “Halloween,” I never get into a car without checking the back seat, and after seeing “Psycho” at least a dozen times, I always feel compelled to peek behind a closed shower curtain.
Nonetheless, there’s nothing like a good, shivery onscreen scare.
But there’s a common element present in many horror films that I find disconcerting: violence against women.
Misogyny and mutilation are hardly new. From the “Friday the 13th” films to newer releases such as “Saw” and “Prom Night,” nubile young women have been depicted being graphically murdered. Yes, men are murdered in such “slasher films” too, but it’s not as gratuitous.
Typically, women are shown in more passive roles during the killings: pressed against walls or lying in beds, while the men are busy chasing after the killer or brandishing a weapon.
Often, there’s a sexual aspect to the killings too. A common film plot portrays a teenage couple undressing each other in a dark room, only to be slain.
Sometimes, the scenes are even more explicit. In the recent film “Planet Terror,” a pole dancer gets her leg ripped off before a zombie soldier called Rapist Number One holds a gun to her head and threatens her with rape. (Incidentally, Rapist Number One action figures are available online.)
So what is the effect of such portrayals? I doubt viewers will become killers after watching a horror movie. But I do believe the repercussions are more subtle.
Such misogynist scenes are permissible because violence against women is prevalent in our culture. And these images perpetuate a climate in which women are objectified and therefore more easily victimized.
Two to four million U.S. women are victims of violence each year. One out of six women is a victim of sexual violence. The cultural connections are clear, and they are reflected on the big screen — and the small screens within our homes.
As Halloween approaches, video stores and services such as Netflix will be bombarded with requests for horror films. Some people will request favorites such as “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” while others will seek out modern thrillers such as “The Devil’s Rejects.” Both of these films are disproportionately misogynist.
This week, gratuitous violence against women will be a common vision on millions of television sets across the country. That’s why I think I’ll stick to one of my favorites, “The Amityville Horror.” No matter how many times I see the film, it still makes me jump. But it doesn’t disturb me the way some of the slasher films do.
After all, misogyny is truly horrific.
Source: http://www.stargazette.com/article/20081027/COLUMNIST06/810270327
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