Thursday, September 3, 2009
Horror movies: mixing sex with violence
8 comments
This is a trailer for a new horror movie called "Sorority Row."
Try to count how many times you see a sorority girl in her underwear or a bikini.
It's no coincidence that this film centers around sorority girls. This is what horror movies love to do. They often picture sexy women in skimpy outfits drinking, having sex, showering... all to turn young male viewers on. While they are turned on, a killer shows up and slashes her to bits. Male horror movie directors (not surprisingly, "Sorority Row" has been written and directed by only men) are experts at mixing sex with violence.
The original "Scary Movie" parodied this in an opening scene featuring Carmen Electra, where she is running away from a killer and yet still has time to remove her clothes and frolic in the sprinklers (ignore the terrible part in which he stabs her breast implant):
I love horror movies, but it is a struggle to find ones that don't feature women as sex objects or airheads who deserve to die. Perhaps the original "Psycho" is to blame, as its most famous scene features the attractive female lead being stabbed to death while in the shower. Or maybe our society just loves abusing women.
How do more people not realize how dangerous this is? With instances of violence against women happening at appalling rates, why are male filmmakers continuing to put out movies that show killing in a sexy way? Intentionally killing women - killing anyone really - is a heinous act, yet these movies are portraying murder as something one can shrug off, because they always kill the female characters who seem to lack brains and ensure that the victim has already been naked at least once during the movie, so who cares if she dies because I already got to see her tits.
I'm stoked to see Diablo Cody's new movie, "Jennifer's Body." It centers around a possessed high school student, played by Megan Fox, who kills off her male classmates. While I don't condone killing men... isn't it in a way refreshing to finally see a movie that doesn't feature men killing women? And I guarantee the men in this movie won't be running around in skimpy clothing and table-dancing at parties before their deaths.
Try to count how many times you see a sorority girl in her underwear or a bikini.
It's no coincidence that this film centers around sorority girls. This is what horror movies love to do. They often picture sexy women in skimpy outfits drinking, having sex, showering... all to turn young male viewers on. While they are turned on, a killer shows up and slashes her to bits. Male horror movie directors (not surprisingly, "Sorority Row" has been written and directed by only men) are experts at mixing sex with violence.
The original "Scary Movie" parodied this in an opening scene featuring Carmen Electra, where she is running away from a killer and yet still has time to remove her clothes and frolic in the sprinklers (ignore the terrible part in which he stabs her breast implant):
I love horror movies, but it is a struggle to find ones that don't feature women as sex objects or airheads who deserve to die. Perhaps the original "Psycho" is to blame, as its most famous scene features the attractive female lead being stabbed to death while in the shower. Or maybe our society just loves abusing women.
How do more people not realize how dangerous this is? With instances of violence against women happening at appalling rates, why are male filmmakers continuing to put out movies that show killing in a sexy way? Intentionally killing women - killing anyone really - is a heinous act, yet these movies are portraying murder as something one can shrug off, because they always kill the female characters who seem to lack brains and ensure that the victim has already been naked at least once during the movie, so who cares if she dies because I already got to see her tits.
I'm stoked to see Diablo Cody's new movie, "Jennifer's Body." It centers around a possessed high school student, played by Megan Fox, who kills off her male classmates. While I don't condone killing men... isn't it in a way refreshing to finally see a movie that doesn't feature men killing women? And I guarantee the men in this movie won't be running around in skimpy clothing and table-dancing at parties before their deaths.
Posts
September 11, 2009 at 6:44 AM
i happen to completely agree with you and im not even a radical feminist, infact im a guy. but i once has a girlfriend who was raped and as such "sexy butchering of women" kinda annoys me. because it deliberately sexualizes and glamourizes something that is very real, and very un-sexy. i hope your not advocating cencorship though.
January 30, 2010 at 6:23 PM
I've always found the mixture for men of "torture porn" to be repulsive and what does that say about men that this is what they enjoy? After you boink a girl, stab her in the back and hang her to dry? One thing I dont get though is you wanting to see Jennifer's Body. I guess you're a big Diablo fan but come on, Megan Fox is a terrible actress and it relies on selling her body and a bunch of cliche innuendos to try and sell the movie. Pass!
March 22, 2010 at 11:35 PM
I hate the stereotypes promoted in these types of horror movies, and also the objectification in them. If the sexualization is such a large part in selling the movie and promoting it what is the real message? And furthermore, movies should have a good enough plot that they don't have to rely on sexual innuendos and sexual objectification to sell the films. The media these days really needs to get its act together and set better standards for movies and actresses.
April 10, 2010 at 1:02 PM
I think it's sick that horror movies have taken such a sexual turn. Horror movies are scary by themselves, but when rape and molestation and other horrible things are added in to the mix, I can't even watch. It's not sexy, and it's not the same kind of horror. It's repulsive.
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September 6, 2012 at 3:07 PM
This was quite the funny movie. And all the ones that followed after it.
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