When it comes to horror movies I’m definitely not someone you’d called a “Horror Movie Fanatic.” I’ve watched maybe a total of 5 horror movies and each time there quite a few times I’m covering my eyes. But what makes these movies so terrifying and is the reaction I’m giving off the reaction that horror movies are trying to get? Through this post, we are going to be exploring the horror film Halloween 1978 to gain a better understanding of horror.
Halloween was a pivotal point in the horror film industry, many say the true beginning of industry. However, before Halloween, there were many more historical pieces that made the genre grow. For example, Frankenstein, a book written in 1817. Although Frankenstein was written so long ago it shares many resemblances to Halloween. For instance, in the novel, the being created is only referred to as the creature or the monster. In the movie many of the times Michael is just referred to as he or it. This strategy used in horror makes the villain an outsider to our society which adds in a feeling of the unfamiliar. Both the movie and the novel deal with a similar fight to the question of what is humanity. In Frankenstein it’s the constant fight for the monster to feel belonging, Mary Shelly makes the creature have human-like characteristics which throughout the book challenges the idea of what it means to be human. In Halloween, the topic of humanity is also tackled through Michael’s lack of childhood. After killing his sister he is admitted to Smith’s Grove Sanitarium, where he is locked up until he escapes years later.
The films also differ in a variety of ways, one of which is the pace of the story. During the time that Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein the idea of bringing the dead back to life through electricity was thought to be a plausible idea. To make the book a horror story the story messed with your morals, in the way that the reader begins to feel bad for the creature who is not being accepted into society even though he is killing people. It’s weird how empathy builds towards the side of the story that is not the good side. Our braIns have been numbed to horror through being able to see horrific real-life horrific photos of what’s happening during wars or in other countries. This lead to the continual increase in how terrifying horror movies are today. If a novel following the same exact story of the Frankenstein book were to come out today instead of 2 hundred years ago the book would not be considered horror because of where our society is today.
So what makes horror horrifying? And in specific, what makes Halloween a horror film? Well throughout the film the “Elements of Aversion” come into play. The feeling as a viewer that you have a lack of power is defiantly one aspect the production team was trying to go for. During the movie, our lens on what is happening is greater than those of the actors. We are able to see Micheal lurking around, stalking the characters in the movie. This makes the audience uncomfortable watching as there is always a feeling of no control. Specifically, when Michael begins to target people there is a sense of helplessness as the audience can grasp what might happen before the characters in the film would realize it.
Another element that creates fear is the unstoppability of the antagonist, Michael. As soon as he chose victims and stuck with them throughout the movie. Any sense of control the viewers might feel towards the movie is taken away very quickly. One of the shots used in the filming was a first-person point of view shot. This was a crucial part of setting the tone of the film, starting off with a swaying camera as if it’s someone walking. Then using the most effective perspective, in my opinion, the camera angle through the mask which adds a completely different perspective into the film.
During the film, many of the shot angles were from the back of Michael’s head while the people he was stocking in the shot unknowingly continued with their life. These camera angles were an aspect of the filming that really stood out while watching Halloween for the first time. The camera angles were also a huge part of making the movie so effective to the viewers. Another thing that caught my attention was how the production team of the film through sound effects, lighting and filming angles was able to make a quaint little town into a location with a creepy feeling.
The film starts with a scene in which a boy named Micheal kills his sister in his own home on Halloween night. This begins the entire set up of the film with a sense of vulnerability as we don’t know the reason behind the killings. The remainder of the film stays murky towards why Michael Myers chooses his victims as we never get a glimpse into the mind of the antagonist. Specifically, the few times we see the movie from Michael’s perspective we never really get to see his facial expressions which makes it even harder to read his character and mental state. However when looking at the connections between the first murder and the following ones in the film. The girls murdered were all similar ages and from his home town of Haddonfield. This shows something about the emotional connection that Michael might have to the town he grew up in.
We don’t know why he targeted young females however during the time period. However this action within the movie has a direct reflection on society during the 1970s. The 1970s were a time of change, standing up for whats write and what we believe in. One of the biggest movements during the time was the Women’s Rights Movement. Early on int he movie we can see the influence that this time period had on the movie. Specifically but very subtlely during the classroom scene, we see Laurie’s education-driven mind. However, we also see many stereotypes present to women at the time like the girl who talked about cheerleading and so forth. on top of portraying idealized characters during the time period, the killings within the movies also had a reflection on reality vs society expectations. In The New York Times Final Reviews of a horror classic, it states that the movie is “a moralistic streak”. The girls who have sex were killed and the ones who were virgins survived.
Laurie, the main character is a key part of the development of the story. In my opinion, the way the director decided to portray this character sets the story up throughout the rising action. We see Laurie as a girl who is well-spoken yet exhibits a sense of innocence. Throughout the film Laurie has an awareness of Michael, seeing glimpses of him for split second. After Michael murders both of her friends Laurie remains the sole survivor of the group. Laurie’s character is known as a symbol of the feminist movement. The movie was the first huge role for Jamie Lee Curtis, the actress who played Laurie. The video below explains more about Jamie and her experiences with the movie.
When watching this movie as a student looking for answers towards the historical content and connections of the film It puts an entirely new perspective on movie-watching specifically within the horror genre. Before becoming educated on what makes horror terrifying, watching a horror movie didn’t really seem like a good idea to me. However, now that I have a better understanding of horror I have a greater appreciation for its impact and reflection on society.
Work Cited
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/509838/20-things-look-while-watching-john-carpenter’s-halloween