I know this is one that many of you have been waiting for, so here it is!
On this week’s edition of ‘How To Start Getting Into Horror‘, we’re gonna dive into the world of slashers. After all, many of us got our start in horror with this genre, be it Halloween, one of the great many Friday The 13th entries, or perhaps we visited dreamland with Freddy in A Nightmare On Elm Street.
Any one of these could’ve been our start, each of them offering a very solid foundation upon which we built our love of the genre. But for someone who is getting into horror and hasn’t yet placed their feet upon solid ground, something else needs to be presented.
And that’s why I think the best place to start is by going back to the beginning, to the place where it all started. That’s right, we’re going to Alfred Hitchcock’s groundbreaking film Psycho.
This is, hands down, one of the greatest films in the horror genre. To this day, it’s still rather terrifying and was, in my opinion, way ahead of its time upon release. After all, it’s credited as being the first real slasher, even though it doesn’t have that high of a body count. But the number of corpses doesn’t matter because it’s really all about the content. Let’s take a deeper look into this film, shall we?
First, it lays the groundwork for understanding how a slasher works. People go to a seemingly innocent location, even though we the audience know that it’s sinister, and then they start getting picked off one by one by a killer that isn’t revealed until the end. Once you understand the “rules”, you can go forth and watch any slasher understanding what to expect, which offers a sense of security.
Second, it’s a fascinating trip into the mind of someone who simply isn’t all there. The story of Norman Bates and his sick obsession with his mother is riveting, especially with Perkins’ stellar performance. While this may be the grandfather of slashers, this is also going to be a great way to get someone interested in the idea of delving into psychological horror films.
Third, the music. By god, the music! Composer Bernard Herrmann was limited to using only strings for the score due to a lowered budget and he made the best of that situation, to put it mildly. If ever there is a moment in horror film history where the score perfectly mirrors the actions on screen, just watch the infamous “shower” clip. Every musical cue is a representation of Janet Leigh and the pain and horror she is experiencing. It’s a masterpiece of all aspects of the film working together to create something astounding.
Fourth, it’s an introduction into the works of Alfred Hitchcock, which is an amazing journey in and of itself. His films are the reason why many horror films exist today, so it’s only fair to devote some time to his offerings.
After watching Psycho, you can absolutely head into the films that I mentioned earlier in this piece. After all, they’re classics in their own right. In fact, you can even think about going straight from this into Scream, which only helps you explain the “rules” as well as set a foundation for how darkly humorous slashers can be. But never forget to pay respect to the original slasher, where it’s absolutely due.
Check out the rest of our How To Start Getting Into Horror series.
