Women in the Horror Genre

“All they want to see is demented madmen running around in ski masks hacking up young virgins.” - Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall), ‘Fright Night’

In Cinema, the Horror is one of the least respected Genres; However the particular genre represents much of todays culture and values within it's context. The Horror Genre presents heavy symbolism, especially the portrayal of women and femininity which are depicted through sexual images, fear and the strength of the women. Most horror films present the woman as an object rather than a being. The slasher film exploits women as over sexed, damsel in distresses who inevetably are killed in opening sequences due to their stereotypical characters; this is shown in iconic slashers such as Friday the 13th and Halloween . However women in horror are also portrayed as the antagonist which is a result of mens fear of women and their power. Such films which include non-exploitive "Final Girls" are Laurie Strode in Halloween 1978, Alice in Friday the 13th and Nancy in A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Horror Film still exploits women as a sex object with Remakes of Halloween (2007) and Friday the 13th (2009) where every girl who is killed is shown topless at some stage in the film.

Positive female characters are shown in critically and public aproved Horrors such as The Descent and A Nightmare on Elm Street where the women are seen defeating the male resulting in them transforming from victim to hero.

Once percieved as a sexual object, women are starting to become stronger in the genre where they are proving themselves to be equally as tough as the men. This contrasts strongly with earlier films like Dracula and frankenstein where the women are only seen as an object to be saved by a male, usually from a sexually strong villain.

Portraying women as the naked, hypersexualised being takes away from any sympathy the viewer feels for them as they seem less valuable in society. Many classic slasher films show a link between sex and death as though the murder is a symbolic punishment for the act of any immoral intercourse.

Women as villains in Horror Films is shown through The Exorcist, her demonic possession transforms her from a young girl into womanhood. The movie gives the idea that because Regain (the young girl) has had no male influecnce in her life, this has happened to her and only a male can save her. The story is dominated by male influence as even Regains demon is male. Her life is in the hands of a male. It signifies the male sexually control over women in society and how through fear, women will gain power.

Ripley in Alien is seen as the strong female character as oppsosed to her male counterparts. In contrast to the male captain and his team who make mistakes and cannot defend themselves; Ripley is able to survive what is trying to kill her and be triumphant in the film. She is seen as the active and powerful character who defeats the alien and outlives all, including the men. Mulvey therefore says, the 'representation of the more perfect, more complete, more powerful ideal ego of the male hero stands in stark opposition to the distorted image of the passive and powerless female character.' (Mulvey, 1975/1989, pg. 354). It is seen throughout the film as the roles of the male and female characters are clearly reversed. Alien as a more modern horror film focuses largely on the dominant female character being superior to the males in the movie.

Humphries Argues that The adolescent boys indentification with the final girl is indicative of a "properly Utopian refusal to the socially and culturally determined stereoptyping of active, decision making males and passive, submissive females" Humphries (2002:151)

Steve Biodrowski of Cinefantiqueonline talks about how a female character in the film Mirrors is shown as only an object not a character- "To them [the audience], Angela is not a real person, not even an imaginary one; she is simply a beautiful body to rent asunder for the sake of a cheap gross out" The viewer feels no sympathy for the female victims; the audience want to see the young women die, it shows how they only percieve them as an image of sex and have no relation to the actual character.