I'm not sure I could consider films like the Terminator or Aliens "slasher" movies. When I think of a slasher movie I think of a character committing indiscriminate murders for no other reason then a joy or desire to kill. Usually in a gory and bloody style. I certainly can't relate to them. In films like Terminator or Aliens there is generally some underlying reason or motive for the killings that some greater plot line or story arc depend on. Maybe I misunderstand the definition of slasher being used. Anyway great podcast! Keep it up!
I can see an argument with "Alien" I suppose, but "The Terminator" definitely follows slasher tropes: The Final Girl, Hockey Mask and Chainsaw (or cyborg with gun in this case), Fanservice, Death by Sex, Not Quite Dead, Police Are Useless, Silent Antagonist, Red Shirts, Weapon of Choice, Villian-Based Franchise....
Plus the fact that Cameron explicitly cited "Halloween" as one of his inspirations for the film: "In Rome, Cameron grew ill and had a dream about a metallic torso dragging itself from an explosion while holding kitchen knives. 'My contemporaries were all doing slasher-horror movies,' Cameron said. 'John Carpenter was the guy I idolized the most. He made Halloween for $30,000 or something. That was everyone's break-in dream, to do a stylish horror movie. [Cameron's nightmare] was a very slasher film type image. And it really was the launching pad for the story.'"
I'm not sure I could consider films like the Terminator or Aliens "slasher" movies. When I think of a slasher movie I think of a character committing indiscriminate murders for no other reason then a joy or desire to kill. Usually in a gory and bloody style. I certainly can't relate to them. In films like Terminator or Aliens there is generally some underlying reason or motive for the killings that some greater plot line or story arc depend on. Maybe I misunderstand the definition of slasher being used. Anyway great podcast! Keep it up!
ReplyDeleteI can see an argument with "Alien" I suppose, but "The Terminator" definitely follows slasher tropes: The Final Girl, Hockey Mask and Chainsaw (or cyborg with gun in this case), Fanservice, Death by Sex, Not Quite Dead, Police Are Useless, Silent Antagonist, Red Shirts, Weapon of Choice, Villian-Based Franchise....
ReplyDeletehttp://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SlasherMovie
Plus the fact that Cameron explicitly cited "Halloween" as one of his inspirations for the film:
"In Rome, Cameron grew ill and had a dream about a metallic torso dragging itself from an explosion while holding kitchen knives. 'My contemporaries were all doing slasher-horror movies,' Cameron said. 'John Carpenter was the guy I idolized the most. He made Halloween for $30,000 or something. That was everyone's break-in dream, to do a stylish horror movie. [Cameron's nightmare] was a very slasher film type image. And it really was the launching pad for the story.'"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Terminator