February 2014 is The 5th Annual 'Women In Horror' month. I am a HUGE supporter of Women In horror in general no matter what month it is as I believe that women in the horror industry should be allowed as much opportunity to thrive and succeed as much as men, We all should be given a chance to showcase our talents and contributions to the Genre no matter of our sex, race, background, education or beliefs. It's amazing how the most unlikely individual can make a horror masterpiece. Just cause they might not have seen 'Rosemary's Baby' or Read Stephen Kings 'Salem's Lot' or don't have a degree in political science doesn't mean that they can't act or create a great horror movie, Everyone deserves a chance in Horror and all Genres alike. Today I have decided to make my personal contribution to Women In Horror Month by discussing my Top 5 Fave Women in the history of the genre.
5. Laurie Strode played by Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween, Halloween 2, Halloween H20 & Halloween Resurrection.
Before Nancy Thompson and Sydney Prescott there was Laurie Strode. A pleasant 17 year-old school girl who stays out of trouble and does her homework on time. In Halloween she is stalked throughout the day by Michael Myers as she spends time with her friends then spends the evening babysitting Tommy, Later in the evening Tommy notices Myers across the road and tells Laurie, She eventually goes over to investigate to find the corpses of all her friends and the tombstone of Judith Myers In a bedroom, she is then attacked by Michael Myers and throughout the rest of the movie is chased and terrorised by Myers until she eventually fights back stabbing him with whatever's within reach, from the sharp end of a coat hanger to his own Knife. Laurie Strode may very well be the one who started the Legacy of the 'Scream Queen' a term that I am personally not fully comfortable with but still a lot of great Actresses followed in her shoes after Carpenters Iconic horror so I can't really leave her out of this list.
4.Nancy Thompson played by Heather Langenkamp in A Nightmare on Elm Street Parts 1, 3 and Wes Cravens New Nightmare...as herself Lol.
Nancy Thompson was the 1st 'Scream Queen' I remember watching when I first saw the nightmare movies. Nancy Thompson is a typical schoolgirl who doesn't have a troubled past with the exception of her parents who might've killed a child murderer without mentioning it to Nancy, She and her friends are tormented in their dreams by Freddy Krueger who has the ability to kill them in their dreams, Nancy however (after a few nightmares, a serious lack of sleep and a development of 'Rouge' style hair) decides to fight back and starts reading books about turning household objects into weapons and becomes one sassy lady to her mom. The events of the first nightmare on elm street make her confident enough to return in 'Dream Warriors' (Nightmare Part 3) to help Kristen and others at the Elm street hospital to fight Freddy in their dreams. In 'New Nightmare' Heather is dealing with being a Hollywood actress and a mother at the same time when she is tormented by a demonic being who takes the form of Freddy Krueger, She finds the strength within to defeat Freddy by becoming Nancy Thompson once more and save her child. Nancy Thompson will be remembered as one of the best 'Scream Queens' for appearing in One Of the greatest horrors of all time if not THE greatest Horror of all time.
3. Carrie White played by Sissy Spacek in 'Carrie' (1976)
As I mentioned at the beginning of this article I was addressing how women in the horror industry are sometimes bullied and mistreated...This very powerful movie by Brian De Palma portrays bullying...How it effects women and others in general. Carrie White is an innocent young girl who is tormented on a daily basis not just by the bullies at her school but also her paranoid Religious mother, During her first Period she starts developing Telekinetic abilities and decides to explore her abilities why her bullies plot a sinister prank for the school prom (which later on kinda backfires) This movie is about what people are potentially capable of doing if pushed too far. Bullying is a very serious and sensitive subject in the world, not just at school, but in the workplace and within the movie industry, I loved how Carrie eventually stood up to her mother and others and how she proved that she can be her own woman...and the consequence of pouring Pigs blood over her. The entire Prom scene is still considered by many as the scariest moment in the History of Horror.
2. Sydney Prescott played by Neve Campbell In The 'Scream' Saga (1996-2011)
'Scream' is in my top 5 all time fave horrors and Neve Campbell's performance in this and the sequels is a huge part of that. Sydney Prescott is a high school student who's mother was brutally murdered one year ago, When a teenage couple in Woodsboro, California are killed Sydney is tormented by Ghost-face who tries to kill Sydney on many occasions but fails to do so, Eventually the killer (or killers) are reviled as her boyfriend Billy Loomis and Stu Macher who Killed her mother and framed Cotton Weary for her death. In this movie Sydney goes from running away to fighting back the moment she has a weapon in her hand wether it's a gun...or a TV. What makes Sydney Prescott stand out for me personally is that she is a 'survivor' not just physically but mentally, She is put through so much torment yet she fights on. I also loved her attitude throughout the entire trilogy, as her continues she becomes more brave and feisty, she suffers a great deal as all her friends are picked off one at a time but she somehow maintains her sass...I mean seriously watch Scream 2 and see how pissed off she gets when she's fighting Billy's mother....When pushed I swear Sydney Prescott can be such a Badass.....but not as mean as my No.1 Pick.
1. Ellen Ripley Played by Sigourney Weaver in The 'Alien Saga' (1979-1997)
Without any question this woman takes the gold medal in this event for being nothing less then a Badass throughout for dealing with arguably the most deadliest creature in the history of horror...and then an Army of them...then sacrificing herself...then resurrecting...Like I said BADASS! She is first introduced in Ridley Scott's 1979 Masterpiece 'Alien' as a Warrent Officer on a spaceship called 'The Nostromo' where they discover the alien on LV-426 and are picked off one at a time By this seemingly unstoppable creature. She does eventually defeat the creature and the company android that goes homicidal when she discovers the companies intentions for the creature. But it's James Cameron's 'Aliens' where Ripley really puts Boots 2 Asses,
From start to finish she takes shit from absolutely NOBODY! All the guys are all acting tough and so badass yet the moment they meet the Aliens they shit bricks and runs to the hills ('Game Over Man, GAME OVER!') but Not Ripley, She keeps her cool throughout whilst protecting a little girl and a band of shit-stained marines from an Army of Aliens, It's all about that iconic line when she fighting the alien queen 'Get away from her you bitch,'. Ellen Ripley will be remembered for decades to come as the most Badass Woman in Horror, She truly demonstrates empowerment in women not just in Horror but in all Genres, She's smart, Takes shit from no-one and fights to the end....have I used Badass to describe Ellen Ripley yet.....can't remember...Ellen Ripley My fave Female Horror Character played by my favourite Female Icon in Horror Sigourney Weaver.
From start to finish she takes shit from absolutely NOBODY! All the guys are all acting tough and so badass yet the moment they meet the Aliens they shit bricks and runs to the hills ('Game Over Man, GAME OVER!') but Not Ripley, She keeps her cool throughout whilst protecting a little girl and a band of shit-stained marines from an Army of Aliens, It's all about that iconic line when she fighting the alien queen 'Get away from her you bitch,'. Ellen Ripley will be remembered for decades to come as the most Badass Woman in Horror, She truly demonstrates empowerment in women not just in Horror but in all Genres, She's smart, Takes shit from no-one and fights to the end....have I used Badass to describe Ellen Ripley yet.....can't remember...Ellen Ripley My fave Female Horror Character played by my favourite Female Icon in Horror Sigourney Weaver.
My personal message to all women struggling to make it in the horror industry due to discrimination or being treated unfairly is this....
I can't begin to imagine how difficult it must be to try and make it in the horror industry, You ladies are always pushing to be the next John Carpenter, George A Romero or Sigourney Weaver. The thing is you CAN be, But it's not gonna happen overnight, Men and others are always immediately gonna criticise what you doing because you're a woman, You just have to ignore that and focus on your own work, no matter how many times you get the door slammed in your face, no matter how many of your screenplays get turned down no matter how many Acting auditions don't work out KEEP...MOVING...FORWARD! Never give up on your dreams no matter how hard things get because I'm telling you right now you WILL make it, At the end of the day it's about respect, People will respect you for working hard and never giving up, It's a tough industry and I am sometimes disgusted by what I read on the net about how badly women are treated and the lack of opportunities they get but when they do come around you gotta take then head on as they don't come around often, sometimes it's that one chance you get that becomes your moment to stand out from the crowd.
It's women like Sigourney Weaver, Jamie Lee Curtis, Heather Langenkamp, and Sandy King Carpenter who have paved the way for women to make their name in the future of the Genre...Some great current Examples is Dread Central Live on Dailymotion which is hosted by Staci Layne Wilson, Vanessa Gomez and Jill Kill, 3 fantastic Female Horror Fanatics. Jessica Cameron is an actress who directed her first movie recently 'Truth Or Dare', Jen and Sylvia soska (The Twisted Twins) for their directorial debut 'Dead Hooker In A Trunk'. Let's not also forget the great horror journalist we have around today Like Rebekah McKendry (Marketing Director at Fangoria Magazine) and Clarke Wolfe (Who Co-hosts The Bloodcast and The Pop Fix) all of the above very hardworking women who have made their mark in the industry...and so can you. So work hard, Be as sadistically creative as you can in your writing and stand out in your acting abilities and before you know it you'll be either screen-playing, directing or starring in the next big horror hit.
Please leave a comment below and thanks for reading :)
Follow Women In Horror Month on Twitter @WiHmonth
Follow me on Twitter @MrJonnyH_BITW
Follow me on Instagram 'mrjonnyh'
I can't begin to imagine how difficult it must be to try and make it in the horror industry, You ladies are always pushing to be the next John Carpenter, George A Romero or Sigourney Weaver. The thing is you CAN be, But it's not gonna happen overnight, Men and others are always immediately gonna criticise what you doing because you're a woman, You just have to ignore that and focus on your own work, no matter how many times you get the door slammed in your face, no matter how many of your screenplays get turned down no matter how many Acting auditions don't work out KEEP...MOVING...FORWARD! Never give up on your dreams no matter how hard things get because I'm telling you right now you WILL make it, At the end of the day it's about respect, People will respect you for working hard and never giving up, It's a tough industry and I am sometimes disgusted by what I read on the net about how badly women are treated and the lack of opportunities they get but when they do come around you gotta take then head on as they don't come around often, sometimes it's that one chance you get that becomes your moment to stand out from the crowd.
It's women like Sigourney Weaver, Jamie Lee Curtis, Heather Langenkamp, and Sandy King Carpenter who have paved the way for women to make their name in the future of the Genre...Some great current Examples is Dread Central Live on Dailymotion which is hosted by Staci Layne Wilson, Vanessa Gomez and Jill Kill, 3 fantastic Female Horror Fanatics. Jessica Cameron is an actress who directed her first movie recently 'Truth Or Dare', Jen and Sylvia soska (The Twisted Twins) for their directorial debut 'Dead Hooker In A Trunk'. Let's not also forget the great horror journalist we have around today Like Rebekah McKendry (Marketing Director at Fangoria Magazine) and Clarke Wolfe (Who Co-hosts The Bloodcast and The Pop Fix) all of the above very hardworking women who have made their mark in the industry...and so can you. So work hard, Be as sadistically creative as you can in your writing and stand out in your acting abilities and before you know it you'll be either screen-playing, directing or starring in the next big horror hit.
Please leave a comment below and thanks for reading :)
Follow Women In Horror Month on Twitter @WiHmonth
Follow me on Twitter @MrJonnyH_BITW
Follow me on Instagram 'mrjonnyh'