Behind The Clasher Film Genre

Since the inception of the horror genre, films have been made to reflect the fears of society, and Hollywood directors are able to realize these fears in a range of different ways. The paranoia, increasing rates of violence, and economic turmoil of the 1970’s meant horror films shifted to take place at home, with burgeoning criticisms of the social and political landscape. Consequently, the sub-genre of the slasher film was born, inspired by directors depictions of American youth “sacrificed by old, paternal, reactionary forces full of resentment, sadism, and pure hatred” (Riegler, YEAR). The inspiration behind the slasher genre is clear. However, the underlying messages in Hollywood films are often contradictory, which promote conflicting

The most obvious morality tale is exemplified through the “Death by Sex” trope: individuals - especially women- who engage in acts of sexual promiscuity are usually murdered just before, during, or soon after. The slasher genre clarifies the dichotomy between “good” and “bad” female characters particularly well. These classic slasher films kill the “sexually active ‘bad girls,’ allowing only the nonsexual ‘good girls’ to survive” (Williams, YEAR,151). This narrative device is found in many of the classic slasher films like Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). The “promiscuous” character, Tina, is murdered directly after having sex with her boyfriend, while Nancy refuses to have sex with hers. Consequently, Nancy survives the events of the

Williams concludes that many teen horror films rely on a “temporal structure” which is based the experiences of the teenagers coming “too early!” (155). Again, this could be used to discuss their encounters with the monsters of their respective films, or it could relate directly to the experiences many of the young people in the film participate in: drinking, drug use, and sex. Slashers utilize a covert morality narrative which promotes the idea that if one participates in these “bad” activities, dire consequences are