Oh, the horror! (and why I love it)

I can’t remember how old I was when I saw my first horror film, but probably eight or nine. Yes, I know – far younger than their “R” rated age recommendation, but I had older sisters so whatever they watched, I wanted to see, too. Ever since that tender age, I’ve been a fan of horror flicks, especially paranormal ones. In fact, I can trace my love of all things paranormal back to horror movies. With added supernatural elements, horror movies can take the mystery, drama, romance, action, and even humor of other genres to a whole new level – and who doesn’t wonder if there’s more lurking in the darkness than what modern science would have us believe?

Anyone who’s read my books can see influences of horror movies in them (and my early addiction to romance novels as well . But there’s another aspect of horror movies that influenced me from an early age and shows up today in my writing – the kick ass heroine.    

Most of us have heard of Buffy and know she kicked lots of butt, but Joss Whedon’s creation was far from the first heroine to take action against a paranormal villain.

I’m not saying horror movies are a synonym for feminism. Many had/have cringing females waiting for the hero to save them instead of taking matters into their own hands, plus gratuitous nude scenes coupled with an underlying message of “it’s the easy girls the killer goes for first!” But I still tip my hat to the horror genre for putting women in the role of ass-kicking avenger much earlier than films in other genres (in my opinion).

Take, for example, the first Halloween movie that came out in 1978. Jamie Leigh Curtis played Laurie, a timid high school student who channeled her inner bad ass and would not be taken down no matter how many times she was cornered by the evil masked killer. When Laurie couldn’t outrun or keep evading boogeyman Michael Meyers, she took him on with nothing more than knitting needles and a twisted hanger, saving herself (twice) and the two young children she was babysitting. Eventually Dr. Loomis showed up to empty his gun into Michael, but being a paranormal villain, Michael couldn’t be killed no matter how many times he was shot, stabbed, burned, thrown off a building, etc.  

Then in 1979 Sigourney Weaver came on the scene in Alien. Her character Ripley used her wits and plain old courage to become the sole survivor of a terrifying creature’s attack on her space ship. In the second film (1986) Aliens, Sigourney’s Ripley showed off her physical prowess as well as her smarts. Who can forget Ripley’s famous snarl of “Get away from her, you bitch!” to the alien queen before Ripley beat the creature with a futuristic fork loader? You go, girl!

In 1980 came the first Friday the 13^th movie that showcased both good and bad girl power. None of the male counselors at Camp Crystal Lake survive a killer’s vicious attack, but a young girl ended up defeating the killer, who turned out to be the matriarchal-maniacal Mrs. Voorhees. Then in Friday the 13^th, Part 2 (1981)  it’s camp counselor Ginny who figures out resurrected killer’s Jason Voohees’s past enough to manipulate him and save her own life while also – almost – ending his ( Jason was another paranormal villain who couldn’t be killed, so he didn’t stay “dead” but that was through no fault of the heroine’s *wink*)

And the last horror movie I want to mention was 1984’s Nightmare on Elm Street. It kept me – and a few other moviegoers – from sleeping easy due to Freddy Krueger’s ability to murder people in their dreams. Nightmare had a lot of campiness, too, but there’s something extra creepy about the idea of being attacked in your sleep (readers of my novel, Destined for an Early Grave, can see my homage to Freddy in my villain Gregor). But it was heroine Nancy who finally figured out how to turn the tables on Freddy, rescuing herself and ultimately her friends – temporarily . “Nightmare” became another horror franchise with a paranormal killer who couldn’t die, but still, the showcasing of feminine brains and bravery as being more than a match for the twisted Freddy was a theme I loved.

So for all its flaws, I’m still a fan of the horror genre today thanks in large part to these take-charge chicks who battled incredible odds (and paranormal villains!) to prove that heroines are just as brave and capable as their male counterparts. The kick-ass paranormal heroine may be common today, but some of them might have found their roots in horror and its heroines who turned the archetype of the “helpless female” right on its pretty little head.

Again, you go, girls!