''I WAS A TEENAGE SERIAL KILLER''
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[[“I don’t have to be a dame!”->sources]] Mary, (Kristin Calabrese) the teenage serial killer laments holding a broken bottle to a heckler’s face. In this final scene of I Was A Teenage Serial Killer, Mary explains that she’s killed 19 men, one for each year of her life. She’s expressing an anger that has no place in society. A true rebel without a cause, yet, she isn’t even allowed to have that. “You can have your fucking James Dean image and be a hero to society, and I have just as much pain if not more and no one can even look me in the eyes and say I’m sorry.” Stripped of the campy music, stripped of the fake blood and humorous tone, Mary stands in a very real space among the many women before her. As she steps back from the man, dejected but still undefeated Mary explains [[“whether you wanna ignore me, or invalidate my story, I’m going to tell them anyways, you can’t keep me quiet.”->sources]] I Was A Teenage Serial Killer takes joy in the killing of misogynist men yet understands that killing simply killing men won’t change anything. Over the course of the movie, we see the different expressions of feminist ideas, concepts, and troubles that plague women constantly.
[[Legacy]]
[[Similar Movies]]"THE HORROR COMEDY GENRE"
I Was A Teenage Serial Killer at its core is an act of rebellion. A form of creative activism that takes the horror comedy genre to a new level. As we’re seeing with contemporary movies like Get Out (Dir. Jordan Peele) or Parasite, (Dir. Bong Joon-ho) the horror stems from reality and the killings and suspense only emphasize that. As with I Was A Teenage Serial Killer, the horror stems from the lack of representation and respect that hangs over all women. The horror is the patriarchal society and all it’s heteronormativity and hierarchy. Furthermore, the actual depictions of murder serve almost as comedic relief. During these, we’re cheering on Mary as she strangles a man for taking the condom off during sex or pushing a guy into oncoming traffic for catcalling. These actions feel justified as an act of expression yet taboo as things women have always wanted to but never could. These killings evoke a history of radical feminism as well as post structural feminism from Judith Butler to Valerie Solanas.
[[influences]]
"RIOT GRRRL"
The Riot Grrrl zine, or Riot Grrrl Era was a feminist punk underground movement based in Olympia. Many zines featured DIY guides and focused on the sharing and supporting of female punk bands associated with Riot Grrrl while also tackling issues such as empowerment, rape, anarchism and classism. Often Riot Grrrl was associated with third wave feminism which core tenants were supporting “groups and individuals working towards gender, racial, economic, and social justice”([[Brunell & Burkett, Feminism->sources]]).
Sarah Jacobson is often regarded as the DIY queen for having filmed, produced, and distributed I was a Teenage Serial Killer all by herself. Born in Minneapolis, Jacobson was a major creative within the Riot Grrrl Scene, which also had roots in Washington D.C.. Heavens to Betsy, Bratmobile serve as the soundtrack for the movie. Both bands are featured numerously in the Riot Grrrl zines.
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I Was A Teenage Serial Killer takes on many budding themes and concepts that would go on to not only influence Jacobson’s later work “Mary Jane's Not a Virgin Anymore" but also help shape women’s culture as a whole. What Jacobson and Riot Grrrl began continued a long line of feminist activism and brought the individual to the forefront of the conversation when it comes to womanhood.
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"RADICAL AND POST STRUCTURALIST FEMINISM"
Judith Butler and Valerie Solanas were both feminist writers, although known for vastly different things. Solanas, born in 1936, published her most known work, the S.C.U.M. manifesto. She is mostly known for the shooting of Andy Warhol.
Judith Butler, born in 1956, is a post structuralist philosopher and gender theorist her works have influenced gender politics, as well as shaped third wave feminism.
The theme of I Was A Teenage Serial Killer most similarly resembles the S.C.U.M. manifesto. Which claims that men have ruined the world, and that the only way for liberation is to kill them off. “What will liberate women, therefore, from male control is the total elimination of the money-work system, not the attainment of economic equality with men within it.” ([[Solanas, S.C.U.M. Manifesto->sources]]). While this can be seen as Mary’s primary ideology throughout the film, within the final act it changes to a more post structuralist one. “You’re not the enemy, I don’t have to kill you. I don’t have to kill anyone anymore. My story exists whether anyone’s going to listen to me or not.”([[I Was a Teenage Serial Killer->sources]]) Hinting to the performed acts of male gender identity and the repeated history of gender identity as the main reason. This becomes an empowering scene as Mary not only reaffirms her identity and experience, but reveals the lack of agency the men within the film have.
Judith Butler during this time had just started gaining recognition for her seminal work “Gender Trouble”. In which Butler critiques the ahistorical nature of women within feminist movements particularly the need to define what a woman is as opposed to the history each individual woman brings. “Rather, one is a woman because one has the right history: one has undergone the ubiquitous ontogenetic process of gender socialization” ([[Mikkola, Feminist Perspectives on Sex and Gender->sources]]). This idea of uniting under the shared history and socialization of being a woman can be seen as a defining feature of the Riot grrrl era.
[[zines]]
[[Legacy]]
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[[Legacy]]
[<link:<google.com>]Mikkola, Mari, "Feminist Perspectives on Sex and Gender", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2019 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2019/entries/feminism-gender/>.
Jacobson, Sarah. "I Was A Teenage Serial Killer". Performance by Kristin Calabrese and Zach Kadish, 1993. Tubitv, https://tubitv.com/movies/499940/i_was_a_teenage_serial_killer?utm_source=google-feed&tracking=google-feed.
Butler, Judith. "Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity". Routledge, 2015.
Solanas, Valerie. "SCUM Manifesto". Verso, 2016.
Maclay, Willow. “My Secret: I Was a Teenage Serial Killer.” My Secret: I Was a Teenage Serial Killer, Cléo Journal, 18 Aug. 2017, cleojournal.com/2017/08/18/my-secret-i-was-a-teenage-serial-killer/.
Solanas, Valerie. “The S.C.U.M. Manifesto: by Valerie Solanas (1967).” The S.C.U.M. Manifesto | by Valerie Solanas (1967), www.historyisaweapon.com/defcon1/scummanifestosolanas.html.
Maya Deren, 1st and 2nd wave feminism: How Feminism shaped surrealism
What's also important to note is it's tackling similar themes of domestic life interactions within the real world patriarchy. There are themes from real life, expressed through a female director's perspective, and turned into their own versions of art. Although the subjects may diverge, it's not only eye opening to see how such negative experiences can be used to create art that is also empowering and inspirational for other women.
(link:'Meshes of the Afternoon')[(goto-url:'https://homi.neocities.org/2019/t/Meshes_of_the_Afternoon.html')]
Strong female leads/Feminist Icons
Like I Was A Teenage Serial Killer, Daises challenges the Patriarchal and classist hold on society. Unlike I was A Teenage Serial Killer, Daises critique is for the communist ruling class. Although many see communism as an alternative to capitalism it's important to note that neither form of government will really work as long as they keep women in subordination to men within society.
(link:'Daises')[(goto-url:'https://homi.neocities.org/2019/t/Daisies_Alim_Swan.html')]