A few weeks ago, mainstream film-goers discovered something that horror fans have known for decades: films featuring women kicking ass are pretty damn awesome.
Sure, it’s great—amazing, even—that Wonder Woman is currently showing Hollywood executives that female directors and lead actresses are every bit as talented and box office-busting as their male colleagues. But most horror fans I know—male and female—are somewhat frustrated with all the feminist praise this movie continues to receive.
Yes, we all love Wonder Woman. We adore that the film is packed with strong women who defeat any foe who comes their way—women, and especially little girls (who should probably steer clear of most the films I’m about to discuss until they are teens) need to see powerful ladies in action. And we’re giddy that the movie is directed by the incredibly talented Patty Jenkins.
But if all of y’all film lovers were really paying attention to the evolution of women in film, you would have noticed that strong female characters and directors have long been staples of the horror genre. And they deserve that feminist praise all the same.
When I was a teenager, I regularly walked to my local video store to check-out any and all horror movies with creepy VHS covers. I devoured cult classics like Microwave Massacre, Cheerleader Camp, and Tourist Trap, and horror essentials like Halloween I and II. But the movies that stuck with me—OK, haunted my dreams—were Texas Chainsaw Massacre and I Spit on Your Grave.
Although Sally in Texas Chainsaw wasn’t the first final girl, she certainly was the loudest and most realistic survivor who earned the last-woman-standing designation. She survived multiple attempts at her life, cannibals, and an Ed Gein-looking, chainsaw wielding, motherfucker. And at the end of those trials, she reacted like any of us would have: by screaming maniacally.
Although Sally’s character kind of horrified me at first, I started to better understand her sheer terror and pain as I grew up. Her character, while mostly in peril, exuded something I hadn’t seen in a female character before—the animalistic but all-too-human drive to survive.
Later, when I watched the brutal exploitation, rape-revenge film I Spit on Your Grave, I was absolutely captivated by Jennifer. As a teen, I had no real concept of what Jennifer had truly experienced in that film—I just knew that the trauma and pain she went through didn’t stop her from fucking shit up when she had the chance.
Later in my life, when I had experienced sexual assault and the everyday hate life throws at all of us, Jennifer and everything she stood for became truly important to me. Jennifer is all of us who have experienced trauma but have not allowed those experiences to trample our spirit. And although most survivors don’t get the chance to cut off our rapists’ genitalia, we are able to fight back by living the life these assholes tried to take away.
At least the horror industry gets it…
It almost goes without saying that since the 1970s—when Texas Chainsaw Massacre and I Spit on Your Grave were released—plenty of female-led and directed horror films have been made. But apparently, I have to say it—nay, yell it—because people still don’t give these female genre leaders their due.
Let’s just pick a female who has directed a few horror films with interesting female characters. I’m going to go with… Karyn K. Kusama.
Kusama’s Jennifer’s Body, a supremely campy romp with two stellar female leads, and her more recent The Invitation, a haunting take on loss, both feature complex female characters. And the traditional film industry and many mainstream moviegoers mostly just didn’t care.
Last year’s Neon Demon was panned, and some may say rightly so, but its cast, which is mostly female, was largely ignored by the mainstream.
Other great films with strong female leads or that are helmed by women directors have met a similar fate… Candyman, Raw, The Witch, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, You’re Next, American Psycho, The Descent, Alien… I could go on.
Granted, some of these films got recognition, but that praise mostly came from inside the industry and then filtered out into the world.
Although it’s frustrating that Hollywood and mainstream audiences largely ignore the talented women within the genre, it’s insanely cool that the horror industry continues to recognize these talented artists.
Jill Gevargizian, director and writer, says she and other female directors have received a lot of support from the horror industry and its fans. Gevargizian’s last short, The Stylist, was well received and won 20 awards on its festival run.
“It’s [successful women directors and leads] definitely been a huge topic in the scene and people seem to be reacting well,” Gevargizian says. “I am not sure the same can be said for the industry. Because as we can see, not many women are getting a chance to direct big films.”
Gevargizian also rightly points out that the genre has and continues to be rife with talented women. “Even women in the industry note that the [scene] itself is full of support, but outsiders just don’t seem to get it,” she says. “It’s probably the biggest genre for female-led films.”
In addition to receiving an insane amount of positive feedback on her work, Gevargizian has gotten a lot of support from other horror actresses and women directors, too.
“Jen and Sylvia Soska have helped me out tremendously,” she says.
“They gave me huge opportunities early in my career. I was their second-unit director on ‘ABCs OF DEATH 2’ and I directed segments the past three years on their ‘Massive Blood Drive PSA’. They’ve truly been there for me and given me advice when needed. They’ve been nothing but cheerleaders for me and my career—it’s quite humbling.”
So you see, Wonder Woman IS groundbreaking in the realm of superhero movies. But let’s not forget that strong female characters have been part of the horror genre since the beginning. Long before Wonder Woman, actresses like Hilligos, Curtis and Weaver inspired and helped change the game for women in film.
Horror’s wonder women must not go unrecognized by the mainstream.
