John Carpenter's 1978 film //Halloween// is widely considered to be the first modern slasher film. Directed and scored by Carpenter himself, and co-written by producer Debra Hill, //Halloween// is undoubtably one of, if not the most, influental horror movies of of all time.
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The film begins with a young six year old Michael Myers stabbing his 15 year old sister to death on Halloween night. Fifteen years later, he escapes from Smith's Grove Sanitarium to terrorize his hometown of Haddonfield, IL on the anneversary of his first murder. Jamie Lee Curtis' debuting role is as the good girl protagonist and Myers' nemesis, Laurie Strode. While on his murder spree, Myers is pursued by his psychiatrist, Dr. Samuel Loomis, played by the film's one big name star, Donald Pleasence.
A number of different factors went into the success of //Halloween//. [[The cultural contexts of late 1970s America->Cultural Context]], which was still coming down from its faux utopian image perpetuated by the media (see TV shows like //The Brady Bunch// or //Leave It To Beaver// for example), and how //Halloween// challenged that imagery was one such factor. Carpenter's combination of other [[previous horror movies he'd been influenced by->Influences]] also contributed to its success and creation of tropes.
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After the release of //Halloween//, slasher films would [[dominate the 1980s->Legacy]]. //Halloween// had created a plethora of tropes that are still in use today that have defined not only the horror genre but the slasher subgenre of horror. According to the popular, non-profit organization //Film Independent//, //The Independent//’s (unrelated to //Film Independent//) sister paper, //inews//, and many others, //Halloween// is the first modern slasher film. John Carpenter himself has said that his biggest influences and inspirations for //Halloween// were //Psycho//(1960), //Texas Chainsaw Massacre//(1974), and //Black Christmas//(1974).
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Halloween’s most direct homage to //Psycho// is Michael Myers' psychologist, Sam Loomis, which is the same name as that of the boyfriend of the woman who Norman Bates kills in the shower in //Psycho//. This has led to speculation from fans across the web that Dr. Sam Loomis from //Halloween// is actually the same man from //Psycho//, who, after his love's death at the hands of someone mentally unstable, dedicated his life to helping the mentally ill in an attempt to stop anything like that from happening again ([[Horton->Sources]]). //Psycho//’s influence on Carpenter is prevalent through this small homage, and [[the existence of these fan theories demonstrates the long lasting resonance of Carpenter’s films on movie fans->Legacy]].
One of the tropes //Halloween// invented was a subversion of its influences' "Final Girl" trope. The Final Girl trope is when in a horror movie, out of all the characters introduced aside from the killer, only one survives, and said survivor is a young girl (usually teenage or early 20s) who is shown to be pure and innocent in comparison to her peers, who have all been slaughtered. While //Texas Chainsaw Massacre// and //Black Christmas// did in fact have a Final Girl, she wasn't the innocent virgin character contrasted by her wild friends. Sally from //Texas Chainsaw Massacre// didn't really have anything notable about her character, Jess from //Black Christmas// wasn't a virgin-- in fact one of the subplots of the movie is about her wanting to get an abortion. There's nothing wrong with not being the innocent girl, but //Halloween// set the stage for all slasher movies to come to star the pure protagonist surviving over her friends who partake in sex, drugs, and rock n' roll. However, both John Carpenter and Debra Hill have stated that this was not their intention; Carpenter has stated that Laurie was not the survivor because she was pure and innocent, but because she was perceptive and not busy with boyfriends and relationships like her friends were ([[Konow->Sources]]).
John Carpenter himself has said that one of the things that inspired him to make //Halloween// was that he wondered what it would be like if he made something like a sequel to //Black Christmas//, but with a different holiday. Of course, he picked Halloween. Halloween, the holiday, comes from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain ([[History.com->Sources]]). Celts began their new year on the first of November, and the festival of Samhain was to mark the end of the summer, and the beginning of winter. Winter was often associated with death, and Samhain was an event to ward off spirits of the dead from coming for their crops and loved ones in the coming winter, as well as offer sacrifices to the deities via burning crops and animals. Unlike most other holidays in America, Halloween has origins based around darker themes such as death, making it [[the perfect holiday for //Halloween//'s subversion of suburban American life.->Cultural Context]]
//Halloween// created multiple classic horror/slasher tropes, most notably the [[innocent, virginal Final Girl->Influences]] and the "silent masked killer".
The "silent masked killer" was a missing component of //Psycho//, //Texas Chainsaw Massacre//, and //Black Christmas//. The silent masked killer plays on the innate human fear of the unknown. Taking away the humanity of the killer strikes fear into us on a primal level. The killer with no motive is far scarier than the killer with one. It can't be reasoned with, it can't be understood, it can't be predicted. And if can't be reasoned with, understood, or predicted, it can't be stopped, prevented, or escaped. [[This can also be reflective of the logic behind the Vietnam War->Cultural Context]]
The silent masked killer trope has been copied successfully by a number of subsequent slasher films, standalone and franchises alike. Jason from //Friday the 13th//(1980), Harry Warden from //My Bloody Valentine//(1981), Ghostface from //Scream//(1996), and all the killers from lesser known films such as //The Prowler//(1981), //Prom Night//(1980), and //You're Next//(2011).These killers don't talk, but unlike Michael Myers, they often have a reason for killing, usually revenge. Jason wants to avenge his mom, Harry Warden wants to avenge his father, Ghostface wants to avenge his mother, and so on. Michael Myers kills just because. That makes him more terrifying than any killer with a motive. Carpenter himself has stated that Michael Myers was intentionally written to be the absence of character, "...part person, part supernatural force" ([[Yamato->Sources]]). Carpenter has also said that he feels the sequels tryinng to explain Michael's motivations are unnecessary because he intended for Michael to have no motivation. Disregarding all the sequels and focusing solely on the original film, there appears to be no discernable reason for Michael's murder spree.
//Halloween// came out in 1978. Dominant American film and television was still trying to push the image of the utopian American suburban life, despite harsh realities coming to light such as the Vietnam War and political scandals. //Halloween// depicts an almost satirical interpretation of the concept. It tells the story of an average American neighborhood [[that's plagued by an evil force out of nowhere->Legacy]], and how no one is safe anywhere, not even teenagers minding their own business in their quaint little Illinois town.
As technology advanced, filming real life became easier to do, resulting in a break in the American government's propaganda machine. As video cameras were more accessable and portable, anyone with a camera could potentially capture live footage, which made the U.S. government lose control on what could be made accessable by the general public. In particular, the Vietnam War was able to be filmed and shown to the public in many people's first real glimpse into the reality of war. During World War II, the American government was able to push this pro-war initiative because only the soldiers would see what battle was really like. In addition, live news within the country itself was also more easily gathered. People could see live protests as they happened on television now that news stations had more portable equipment. All of this accumulated in the U.S. government's facade of an American utopia to crumble in the face of reality ([[Elwes->Sources]]). Carpenter represents this phenomenon with his story telling in //Halloween//. Much like the larger U.S. as a whole, Haddonfield, IL. begins to realize that the world is more dangerous than they had initially thought, and the danger can come without warning or reason. In Haddonfield, it comes in the form of Michael Myers, who comes out of nowhere to kill. In the larger scope of the entire United States, it came in the form of the Vietnam War.
As co-writer and feminist, Debra Hill was not willing to have a damsel in distress as her protagonist. She made the conscious decision to make Laurie able to save both herself and the children put into her care. The late 1970s was right in the middle of the women's liberation movement, otherwise known as Second Wave Feminism, where women were asserting their rights with inequality and discrimination ([[Konow->Sources]]).
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Part of the broader cultural landscape were a string of murder sprees taking place across the country in the 1970s. Now infamous serial killers such as Ted Bundy in 1975, Son of Sam in 1977, the Zodiac in the late 60s, the Manson family in 1971, the Hillside Stranglers in early 1978, the Railway killer also in early 1978, and potentially many more ran rampant throughout the U.S., sparking a never before seen fear of strangers. Before the rise of the number of serial killers, many people within the U.S. were much more likely to trust complete strangers. When killers like Bundy, who used that trust to kidnap victims, were exposed, the general public became more cautious.Draba-Mann, Joel. “How John Carpenter's Halloween Created the Modern Slasher Movie.” Inews, JPMedia Publications, 18 Oct. 2018, https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/halloween-slasher-john-carpenter-506160.
Elwes, Catherine “Disrupting the Content: Feminism” Video Art: A Guided Tour, London, I.B. Tauris & Co Ltd, 2005
History.com Editors. “Halloween 2019.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 18 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/topics/halloween/history-of-halloween
Horton, H. Perry. “Fan Theory Friday: Is Dr. Sam Loomis from 'Halloween' Sam Loomis from 'Psycho?'.” Film School Rejects, Reject Media, 9 May 2017, https://filmschoolrejects.com/fan-theory-loomis-a24bb877ca8b/.
Konow, David. “The Making of John Carpenter's Halloween.” Consequence of Sound, Consequence of Sound, 25 Oct. 2018, https://consequenceofsound.net/2018/10/the-making-of-john-carpenters-halloween/
Nyx Reviews “HALLOWEEN & The Suburban Nightmare.” YouTube, YouTube, 29 Sept. 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwv3FsFj3_M.
Placa, Kaia. “How 1978's 'Halloween' Invented the Modern Slasher Movie.” Film Independent, Film Independent, 30 Oct. 2018, www.filmindependent.org/blog/how-the-original-halloween-invented-the-modern-slasher-movie/.
Saporito, Jeff. “What Tropes and Themes Did ‘Halloween’ Help Introduce to the Horror Genre.” ScreenPrism, ScreenPrism, 30 Oct. 2015, http://screenprism.com/insights/article/what-tropes-and-themes-did-halloween-help-introduce-to-the-horror-genre.
Yamato, Jen. “John Carpenter Q&A: Why ‘Halloween’ Didn’t Need Sequels & What Scares The Master Of Horror” Deadline, Penske Business Media, 31 Oct. 2014, https://deadline.com/2014/10/john-carpenter-qa-halloween-sequels-michael-myers-861942/