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Feminism plays a big part in horror films, I would say, although it's often a juvenile sort of feminism. Succubi aren't really feminist. In fact, they've stemmed from a fear of female power. A lot of movies are about this. I would say the most mature explorations of feminism in horror have been those of Dario Argento. When it comes to women, he has more hang ups than Fellini, but he has the guts to explore them. Every view of womanhood and feminism appears in his movies. Check out Phenomena for female empowerment. A girl uses her primal feminine connection to nature to save herself. Over the course of his films, female characters evolve and gain autonomy. The ending of Opera is another such instance. It's pretty impressive, because Italian culture is more than a little misogynistic. Hammer movies also have hints of burgeoning feminism AND the cultural resistance to it . Sexual politics can become a real, fleshed out source of horror in these films. The original Wicker Man also has some feminist sub text as well. A man from a conservative culture deals with sexually liberated women who lack inhibitions. Feminism and the generation gap play out really well in that movie. Texas Chainsaw Massacre shows a woman being very resilient, and another example of intergenerational conflict playing out and showing resistance to feminist ideology.
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04-23-2007, 12:52 PM
