Editorials
No More Clowning Around: A History of Scary Clowns in Cinema
We all have that one friend who is mind-numbingly afraid of clowns—if you Clockwork Orange’d them in a chair and screened IT for them against their will, they’d probably unfriend you on Facebook and in real life. While coulrophobia (aka the fear of clowns) isn’t recognized by any psychological manual, horror fans get it. Clowns are unnerving, with their excessively wide, painted grins and their oversized, freaky getups (and don’t get me started on the shoes). But when did these jester-types start stalking children on bicycles and turning fun houses into haunted houses? How were these joyous buffoons subverted into waking nightmares?
Sure, Tim Curry and Stephen King’s Pennywise gets a lot of cred’ (understandably so), but let’s take this back. Clowns can be traced back to Ancient Egypt and China, but clowns as we know them formed around the 16th century. Jester-types popped up in the works of Shakespeare and also Greek and Roman theatres. One step further, the modern day circus clown originated in the 19th century, thanks to Joseph Grimaldi, who Smithsonian calls the “first recognizable ancestor of the modern clown.” Grimaldi’s pantomime career led him down a tragic path of alcoholism and depression, something a young Charles Dickens would capitalize on for The Pickwick Papers, which depicted its clown character as drunk and ghastly, a character who would literally destroy himself for his audience’s benefit. Some even credit Dickens for planting the seeds of the evil clown motif that would go on to haunt future plays, films, and audiences.
As the century progressed, clown attire morphed from servants’ rags to the whole shebang: white face paint, oversized clothes, and shoes, red noses, etc. As the outfits became bolder, the characters grew darker. In the 1892 Italian opera Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo, an actor-clown kills his cheating wife while performing on stage. French author Catuelle Mendès’ 1887 play La Femme de Tabarin saw a similar plotline (and one Mendès’ would later sue his successor over). Clowns became tainted with morbidity; the imagery of men living and killing behind a veil of makeup and costumes became a tangible terror for audiences worldwide.
History had done a fine job of subverting the clown persona, and writers and filmmakers exploited that, watering the seeds so finely planted by the playwrights and authors before them. Sinister clowns in film can be traced as far back as 1924’s silent picture He Who Gets Slapped. Lon Chaney stars as Paul Beaumont, a man who gets a circus gig where dozens of clowns beat the hell out of him every single night in a circus ring. Flash forward to today, the hype over this year’s IT remake proves that the threat of evil clowns in horror is going nowhere fast. While Tim Curry’s performance is beyond iconic, Pennywise isn’t the only nightmare-inducing clown deserving screams.
While clowns’ reputations rebounded somewhat in the ‘50s and ‘60s (thanks in part to Howdy Doody’s Clarabell the Clown, Bozo the Clown, and Ronald McDonald), this return to innocence was short lived thanks to one of America’s most vicious serial killers. John Wayne Gacy was a registered clown who entertained under the name Pogo, and between 1972 and 1978, he sexually assaulted and murdered more than 35 men in the Chicago area. While he reportedly never killed in costume, the media picked up the story of Gacy’s clowning and ran with it. Headlines would continue to deconstruct the clown concept and terrorize the public. (Gacy’s life would later be depicted in 2003’s Gacy.) His brutality made it irrefutable: clowns were mischievous, mysterious beings that were not to be trusted, and in the most extreme cases, they were disturbed and murderous.
In 1982, no child saw Poltergeist and walked away unscathed. When Robbie Freeling is attacked by his clown doll in his bedroom thanks to a demonic presence, it made everyone sink low in their seats. Poltergeist might even be the sole cause of many adults’ still-lingering revulsion of clowns. (I can only imagine that anyone with a similar doll placed theirs at the bottom of a garbage can that year.)
Killer Klowns from Outer Space put another unique spin on the sub-genre, using over-the-top, cartoony, alien versions as a world-endangering threat. What’s comical now was beyond frightening as a child, and those who were kids in 1988 have the Chiodo Brothers to thank/blame. The film was alternative and culty, yet still entirely demented.
If demonic possession and Killer Klowns didn’t rattle your cage, certainly Sig Haig’s turn as Captain Spaulding in House of 1,000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects raised the hairs on your neck. Say what you will about Rob Zombie’s movies, but Haig staked his claim in the clown hall of fame as one of the craziest and most brutal psychopaths to ever hit the screen.
Clowns pop up in almost every sub-genre of horror, from zombie films (Zombieland) to torture porn (the Saw franchise), to even campy fare like Krampus (not to mention the endless list of B- and C-level indie fare). Clowns are a scare that storytellers have leaned on for hundreds of years, a tried-and-true plot element that always turns the crazy up to batshit levels. While they may have had innocent beginnings, the perversion of clowns and the dread they induce will never die.
– Nick Caruso (http://thelittlestwinslow.com/, @LittlestWinslow)
Editorials
‘Immaculate’ – A Companion Watch Guide to the Religious Horror Movie and Its Cinematic Influences
The religious horror movie Immaculate, starring Sydney Sweeney and directed by Michael Mohan, wears its horror influences on its sleeves. NEON’s new horror movie is now available on Digital and PVOD, making it easier to catch up with the buzzy title. If you’ve already seen Immaculate, this companion watch guide highlights horror movies to pair with it.
Sweeney stars in Immaculate as Cecilia, a woman of devout faith who is offered a fulfilling new role at an illustrious Italian convent. Cecilia’s warm welcome to the picture-perfect Italian countryside gets derailed soon enough when she discovers she’s become pregnant and realizes the convent harbors disturbing secrets.
From Will Bates’ gothic score to the filming locations and even shot compositions, Immaculate owes a lot to its cinematic influences. Mohan pulls from more than just religious horror, though. While Immaculate pays tribute to the classics, the horror movie surprises for the way it leans so heavily into Italian horror and New French Extremity. Let’s dig into many of the film’s most prominent horror influences with a companion watch guide.
Warning: Immaculate spoilers ahead.
Rosemary’s Baby
!['Rosemary's Baby' - Is Paramount's 'Apartment 7A' a Secret Remake?! [Exclusive]](https://i0.wp.com/bloody-disgusting.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Rosemarys-Baby.jpeg?resize=740%2C416&ssl=1)
The mother of all pregnancy horror movies introduces Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow), an eager-to-please housewife who’s supportive of her husband, Guy, and thrilled he landed them a spot in the coveted Bramford apartment building. Guy proposes a romantic evening, which gives way to a hallucinogenic nightmare scenario that leaves Rosemary confused and pregnant. Rosemary’s suspicions and paranoia mount as she’s gaslit by everyone around her, all attempting to distract her from her deeply abnormal pregnancy. While Cecilia follows a similar emotional journey to Rosemary, from the confusion over her baby’s conception to being gaslit by those who claim to have her best interests in mind, Immaculate inverts the iconic final frame of Rosemary’s Baby to great effect.
The Exorcist
William Friedkin’s horror classic shook audiences to their core upon release in the ’70s, largely for its shocking imagery. A grim battle over faith is waged between demon Pazuzu and priests Damien Karras (Jason Miller) and Lankester Merrin (Max von Sydow). The battleground happens to be a 12-year-old, Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), whose possessed form commits blasphemy often, including violently masturbating with a crucifix. Yet Friedkin captures the horrifying events with stunning cinematography; the emotional complexity and shot composition lend elegance to a film that counterbalances the horror. That balance between transgressive imagery and artful form permeates Immaculate as well.
Suspiria
Jessica Harper stars as Suzy Bannion, an American newcomer at a prestigious dance academy in Germany who uncovers a supernatural conspiracy amid a series of grisly murders. It’s a dance academy so disciplined in its art form that its students and faculty live their full time, spending nearly every waking hour there, including built-in meals and scheduled bedtimes. Like Suzy Bannion, Cecilia is a novitiate committed to learning her chosen trade, so much so that she travels to a foreign country to continue her training. Also, like Suzy, Cecilia quickly realizes the pristine façade of her new setting belies sinister secrets that mean her harm.
What Have You Done to Solange?
This 1972 Italian horror film follows a college professor who gets embroiled in a bizarre series of murders when his mistress, a student, witnesses one taking place. The professor starts his own investigation to discover what happened to the young woman, Solange. Sex, murder, and religion course through this Giallo’s veins, which features I Spit on Your Grave’s Camille Keaton as Solange. Immaculate director Michael Mohan revealed to The Wrap that he emulated director Massimo Dallamano’s techniques, particularly in a key scene that sees Cecilia alone in a crowded room of male superiors, all interrogating her on her immaculate status.
The Red Queen Kills Seven Times
In this Giallo, two sisters inherit their family’s castle that’s also cursed. When a dark-haired, red-robed woman begins killing people around them, the sisters begin to wonder if the castle’s mysterious curse has resurfaced. Director Emilio Miraglia infuses his Giallo with vibrant style, with the titular Red Queen instantly eye-catching in design. While the killer’s design and use of red no doubt played an influential role in some of Immaculate’s nightmare imagery, its biggest inspiration in Mohan’s film is its score. Immaculate pays tribute to The Red Queen Kills Seven Times through specific music cues.
The Vanishing
Rex’s life is irrevocably changed when the love of his life is abducted from a rest stop. Three years later, he begins receiving letters from his girlfriend’s abductor. Director George Sluizer infuses his simple premise with bone-chilling dread and psychological terror as the kidnapper toys with Red. It builds to a harrowing finale you won’t forget; and neither did Mohan, who cited The Vanishing as an influence on Immaculate. Likely for its surprise closing moments, but mostly for the way Sluizer filmed from inside a coffin.
The Other Hell
This nunsploitation film begins where Immaculate ends: in the catacombs of a convent that leads to an underground laboratory. The Other Hell sees a priest investigating the seemingly paranormal activity surrounding the convent as possessed nuns get violent toward others. But is this a case of the Devil or simply nuns run amok? Immaculate opts to ground its horrors in reality, where The Other Hell leans into the supernatural, but the surprise lab setting beneath the holy grounds evokes the same sense of blasphemous shock.
Inside
During Immaculate‘s freakout climax, Cecilia sets the underground lab on fire with Father Sal Tedeschi (Álvaro Morte) locked inside. He manages to escape, though badly burned, and chases Cecilia through the catacombs. When Father Tedeschi catches Cecilia, he attempts to cut her baby out of her womb, and the stark imagery instantly calls Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s seminal French horror movie to mind. Like Tedeschi, Inside’s La Femme (Béatrice Dalle) will stop at nothing to get the baby, badly burned and all.
Burial Ground
At first glance, this Italian zombie movie bears little resemblance to Immaculate. The plot sees an eclectic group forced to band together against a wave of undead, offering no shortage of zombie gore and wild character quirks. What connects them is the setting; both employed the Villa Parisi as a filming location. The Villa Parisi happens to be a prominent filming spot for Italian horror; also pair the new horror movie with Mario Bava’s A Bay of Blood or Blood for Dracula for additional boundary-pushing horror titles shot at the Villa Parisi.
The Devils
The Devils was always intended to be incendiary. Horror, at its most depraved and sadistic, tends to make casual viewers uncomfortable. Ken Russell’s 1971 epic takes it to a whole new squeamish level with its nightmarish visuals steeped in some historical accuracy. There are the horror classics, like The Exorcist, and there are definitive transgressive horror cult classics. The Devils falls squarely in the latter, and Russell’s fearlessness in exploring taboos and wielding unholy imagery inspired Mohan’s approach to the escalating horror in Immaculate.
Dev Patel’s ‘Monkey Man’ Is Now Available to Watch at Home!
Five Underseen Vampire Horror Movies to Stream This Week
Looking for New Episodes of “Chucky” on Peacock? Here’s What Changed
‘Stream’ – Horror Movie from the Team Behind ‘Terrifier’ Sets August Theatrical Release
‘The Blair Witch Project’ – Original Stars Release a Statement Asking Lionsgate for Residuals & Recognition
You must be logged in to post a comment.