HISTORY OF THE

SLASHER GENRE

By Conor Horne

What is a Slasher movie?

A Slasher film is defined as a

film in which a psychopathic

killer stalks and kills a

sequence of victims in a

graphically violent manner.

Great examples of the most

popular Slasher films include:

Friday the 13th (1980), A

Nightmare on Elm Street

(1984) and Child’s Play

(1984).

Earliest influences?

Slasher films have had

influences from many earlier

film like, for example, The

Spiral Staircase (1945) which

featured POV shots and jump

scares; things commonplace in

slasher films. There are

various other influences that

helped shape the genre

throughout the early 20th

century.

The first Slasher film?

Many people would say the

Psycho, directed by the great

Alfred Hitchcock is the first

slasher film; the ‘Mother of all

Slashers’. However, the film

Peeping Tom (1960) was

released 3 months before

and has many of the same

conventions and codes

associated with that of a

Slasher film.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

(1973)

The low-budget hit by director Tobe Hooper is the first film in one of the leading franchises in the horror genre itself, let alone the Slasher genre. Released in 1973 it is considered one of the greatest and most controversial horror films ever made. Empire magazine has described it as "the most purely horrifying horror movie ever made“.

Black Christmas (1974)

One of my personal favourite slasher films Black Christmas, directed and produced by Bob Clarke sparked the start of holiday-themed slasher films. It embodies many of the classic Slasher tropes: A mysterious unknown caller, a sorority house, brutal murders and intrigue as it leaves you thinking who really was the murderer?

The Golden age of slasher

films.

Now we enter what is known as the Golden age

of slasher films, a time in which the genre really

flourished. Great classics were being crafted like

Child’s Play, Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on

Elm Street.

Halloween (1978)

Directed by John Carpenter

Halloween became one of the

most successful independnt

horror films ever made

grossing $47 million

(equivalent to $250 million as

of 2014) and paved the way for

many other Slasher films in the

future.

Friday the 13th (1980)

Directed by Sean S. Cunningham Friday the 13th

became one of the best known films within the golden age of Slashers, it succeeded in what it set out to accomplish which was to frighten the audience. Funnily enough, Jason, one of the most recognisable killers was not actually in the film until the last scene.

A Nightmare on Elm Street

(1984)

Directed by Wes Craven A Nightmare on Elm Street was released in 1984 and became an instant commercial success. It successfully played on people’s fear of being out of control, as the victims were in their dreams which were ultimately controlled by Freddy. A Nightmare on Elm Street has spawned multiple sequels and even a remake in 2010.

A Rough Patch

After that the genre slowed down incredibly as less original and unique ideas were being put out in favour of more of the same. More sequels of some of the already established franchises like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Friday the 13th. With the new-found popularity of VHS many low-budget Slasher films were allowed to pop up, it was the home video revolution.

A Brand new franchise

In 1988 a brand new

franchise was created;

Child’s play. Child’s play,

directed by Tom Holland

has become a cult hit

despite gaining only

moderate success in the

box office. Chucky, the

main villain has now

become one of the icons of

the slasher genre.

An Honourable Mention:

Candyman (1992)

During the 90’s the Slasher genre saw a new icon with Bernard Rose’s Candyman, which showcased the first black Slasher killer icon. The narrative, based on a novel by the horror master Clive Barker borrows elements from Urban Legends like Bloody Mary; if you say her name in the mirror a few times she will appear.

A Revival: SCREAM (1996)

Directed by Wes Craven, who also directed A Nightmare on Elm Street, SCREAM saw a revival to the Slasher genre. The genre seemed like a fad of the 80’s that didn’t carry on into the 90’s yet SCREAM successfully brought it back. Adding characters that were aware of the tropes and conventions of Slasher films.

Return of the Sequels

As with many of the other main Slasher franchises we can expect there to be sequels. The sequel to the cult-hit, SCREAM 2 gained $101 million in the box office. It was the highest grossing R-rated film of the time. Other sequels to major franchises like Halloween and Child’s play also were released.

Remakes, Reboots and

Throwbacks.By 2002 the Slasher genre had nearly all disappeared from modern cinema and since it had been a long time since there had been any real new ideas film-makers chose to make remakes; to bank on people’s nostalgia in hopes of creating a faithful modern adaptation of such timeless classics. Some examples of modern remakes include The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) and House of Wax (2005).

Late 2000’s to early 2010’s

And that brings us to where we are today, there have only really been few new IPs that have really stood out from the crowd. There have been remakes and sequels to some of the bigger Slasher franchises though like Friday the 13th

(2009) and A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010). A notable sequel to be released though is Curse of Chucky (2013) which bypassed cinemas entirely and went for, instead, a straight-to-DVD release.