Girl Power in Horror Movies
There's a rising star in the horror hall of fame in the form of newcomer director Lucky McKee.
His films, still relatively unknown to the general public, are quickly catching interest within the horror community. For good reason.
A host of ghouls, witches, twisted monsters and things go bump in the night fuel the movies. Sure that's nothing new when you've gone through a huge portion of the horror genre. But stripped down, to the bare minimal, his films are about women. And their struggle to survive womanhood in their younger years. Finding their voice and inner beauty.
His women characters are often very strong, interesting, and the stories revolve around their everyday life struggles. It's a good theme being reworked in three of his films including a TV episode meant for the Masters of Horror series on Showtime.
But his films are much better.
The most recent film The Woods has a checkered history. Released for the American audiences on Oct. 3 after being shelved away in the vaults, its theatrical exposure remains very limited. if nothing at all. But now, thankfully with the DVD treatment, The Woods will find broader audiences who may find this buried treasure. It's too bad The Woods never got a release it deserved. But better late than never.
Set in 1965, this period film involves a young woman Heather played (played to perfection by Agnes Bruckner) and she is sent to an all-girl boarding school cradled in the middle of woods, casting shadows, often glaring with dread. And a legend of witches is abound.
There's a certain mystique about Heather's flowing red hair and almost bland features. Yet she conveys a powerful sexual aura about herself.
But it's the relationship between the younger women that remains the focus. In several scenes reminding one of Carrie, with a horde of high school pressures, Heather must fend off a group of snooty girls, a strange and powerful headmistress and the feelings of loneliness as the heroine is boxed into a dreadful world surrounded by the gnarly, fierce woods. The trees come to life.
Heather learns about an inner plot being devised by the school staff using the girls in a witch cult scenario. The sense of atmosphere grows like a shroud of blackness as Heather digs deeper to find out the true meaning for her arrival at the boarding school.
It's nice to see a film not go for the shock value. But an enjoyable horror fest crowded with mounting dread, a good performance by Patricia Clarkson as the headmistress, an inspired casting of Evil Dead veteran Bruce Campbell, and a mystery that unfolds in a blackened abyss. Campbell throws in a fun factor with his perfectly chiseled jaw looks.
There is the other film worthy of note is simply called May. It's McKee's first film. Like The Woods, it's about a woman dealing with her problems and loneliness. And it's really a sad story more than anything else.
Her growing up with her parents did nothing to help her build bridges with other people. She's become a social misfit. Again we see the sexual awakening in the main woman character. She's an odd duck. But there's a beauty trapped beneath that fractured shell of shyness.
May's inability to deal with having a boyfriend and working with blind children at the local nursery shows her growing loneliness. She's not a bad person. Not in the strictest sense. She's obviously unable to function in the world. Her dementia becomes a reality as she sinks deeper into a prison of feelings. A helplessness.
Even his TV episode "Sick Girl" involves a lesbian relationship-and does a good job portraying the girls without turning them into stereotypes.
It's recommended to see these films. Especially for straight-forward, peeping-tom look into the woman's personality. The horror genre has always been something for men. But McKee is changing that. He's making horror movies for women.
His films, still relatively unknown to the general public, are quickly catching interest within the horror community. For good reason.
A host of ghouls, witches, twisted monsters and things go bump in the night fuel the movies. Sure that's nothing new when you've gone through a huge portion of the horror genre. But stripped down, to the bare minimal, his films are about women. And their struggle to survive womanhood in their younger years. Finding their voice and inner beauty.
His women characters are often very strong, interesting, and the stories revolve around their everyday life struggles. It's a good theme being reworked in three of his films including a TV episode meant for the Masters of Horror series on Showtime.
But his films are much better.
The most recent film The Woods has a checkered history. Released for the American audiences on Oct. 3 after being shelved away in the vaults, its theatrical exposure remains very limited. if nothing at all. But now, thankfully with the DVD treatment, The Woods will find broader audiences who may find this buried treasure. It's too bad The Woods never got a release it deserved. But better late than never.
Set in 1965, this period film involves a young woman Heather played (played to perfection by Agnes Bruckner) and she is sent to an all-girl boarding school cradled in the middle of woods, casting shadows, often glaring with dread. And a legend of witches is abound.
There's a certain mystique about Heather's flowing red hair and almost bland features. Yet she conveys a powerful sexual aura about herself.
But it's the relationship between the younger women that remains the focus. In several scenes reminding one of Carrie, with a horde of high school pressures, Heather must fend off a group of snooty girls, a strange and powerful headmistress and the feelings of loneliness as the heroine is boxed into a dreadful world surrounded by the gnarly, fierce woods. The trees come to life.
Heather learns about an inner plot being devised by the school staff using the girls in a witch cult scenario. The sense of atmosphere grows like a shroud of blackness as Heather digs deeper to find out the true meaning for her arrival at the boarding school.
It's nice to see a film not go for the shock value. But an enjoyable horror fest crowded with mounting dread, a good performance by Patricia Clarkson as the headmistress, an inspired casting of Evil Dead veteran Bruce Campbell, and a mystery that unfolds in a blackened abyss. Campbell throws in a fun factor with his perfectly chiseled jaw looks.
There is the other film worthy of note is simply called May. It's McKee's first film. Like The Woods, it's about a woman dealing with her problems and loneliness. And it's really a sad story more than anything else.
Her growing up with her parents did nothing to help her build bridges with other people. She's become a social misfit. Again we see the sexual awakening in the main woman character. She's an odd duck. But there's a beauty trapped beneath that fractured shell of shyness.
May's inability to deal with having a boyfriend and working with blind children at the local nursery shows her growing loneliness. She's not a bad person. Not in the strictest sense. She's obviously unable to function in the world. Her dementia becomes a reality as she sinks deeper into a prison of feelings. A helplessness.
Even his TV episode "Sick Girl" involves a lesbian relationship-and does a good job portraying the girls without turning them into stereotypes.
It's recommended to see these films. Especially for straight-forward, peeping-tom look into the woman's personality. The horror genre has always been something for men. But McKee is changing that. He's making horror movies for women.
posted by K.M. Paters at 1:54 PM
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