The Holidays Can Be a Horror, amiright?!
Musings on final girls, my most anticipated read for 2021, and Gruss vom Krampus!
I know this year has been one hell of a year, but how is it almost December already? It is seriously bewildering to me.
I’m not looking forward to it reaching freezing temperatures or the snowfall that only is pretty for a hot minute and then it becomes dark slush that makes crossing the street a treacherous adventure. But December is my birthday month! I also get to take a long vacation away from work until the new year.
The holidays do mark when I shift gears from horror movies to the fluffy ones, but there are some classic holiday horror flicks that I love sprinkling in here and there. The Nightmare Before Christmas is a Christmas movie and not a Halloween movie and this is yet another hill I’ll die on, but I digress. Gremlins is always a favorite, of course. And while not a horror movie, How The Grinch Stole Christmas is such a classic. Who knew I’d grow up to feel like the Grinch was so relatable?
I’ve already ordered my all-black Santa hat and a haunted snow globe sweater. The holidays but make it goth!
On Final Girls
Spoilers for several horror movies
TW: loss, grief, death of a parent, suicide mention
Like any genre, horror has its own set of archetypes, stereotypes, and tropes. We all know these. The “Whore” who gets killed after having sex in a slasher. Her jock boyfriend who gets killed either before or right after her. The “Nerd” who may veer into creep territory, is a red herring for the killer/antagonist, or is in love with the girl who will eventually outlive them all. And of course, the “Final Girl.” She used to not have sex. She was pretty but, you know, not a bombshell like the Whore. And somehow, maybe because her brain wasn’t being clouded by those pesky hormones, she manages to outsmart the killer and defeat them.
Horror has had so many variations of a Final Girl. Some of my favorite actresses that have been Final Girls are: Jamie Lee Curtis, Sigourney Weaver, and Neve Campbell. These are, of course, some favs for many fans.
As horror has evolved, these tropes have too. We’ve seen Laurie Strode go from helpless babysitter who is rescued by Dr. Loomis to a hardened, traumatized adult woman who is paranoid and has strained relations with her family. From Sally Hardest managing to escape Leatherface and his family to Grace Le Domas fighting back against her new in-laws for her life on her wedding night. We’ve seen Final Girls who actually end up dying at the end of the film like Dana in The Cabin in the Woods. Recently, though she survives with her family, Adelaide Thomas in Us could be considered a variation of the trope. In Happy Death Day, Tree Gelbman goes from self-absorbed sorority girl to Final Girl who has a new perspective on life following her harrowing Groundhog Day journey where she is killed/kills herself in order to find her killer.
Horror is a genre that can be so incredibly sexist and misogynistic. Not to mention, “mainstream" and “canon” horror can also be very racist. I think the reason I find the Final Girl trope so fascinating is because of this sort of contradiction. A lot of horror is made by men, written by men, produced by men, and so on. But most of the time, the last one standing, the one who has to deal with the fallout of the terrible events that have occurred, and the one who has defeated whatever evil is about is the Final Girl. Every other character is set-up so that they either are pushed out of the way or aid her as she goes on her own hero’s journey.
The Final Girls with Taissa Farmiga and Malin Åkerman is such a fun and funny meta-horror that plays with this trope. In this movie, Åkerman isn’t the Final Girl, but she does aid in her on-screen daughter Max (played by Farmiga) becoming one to escape the 80s slasher Max and her friends have been transported into. It’s a funny movie, but Max is a grieving teen who’s lost her mom. While she and her friends’ main objective is to escape the the fictional movie-within-a-movie, Max uses their predicament to spend more time with her mom who was known for her Camp Bloodbath role of Nancy. It’s heart wrenching to see Max spend time with the woman who looks like her mom, sounds like her mom, was once her mom. It’s the Final Girl trope spun a bit on its head and used as a way to explore this grief and how one would react to getting to spend more time with that special loved one that’s passed.
In Vampires Vs. The Bronx, Rita (portrayed by Coco Jones) isn’t quite a Final Girl because she survives at the end with the help of her friends, family, and community. But Rita, a Haitian-American teen, shows up ready to fight the white vampires who are part of the gentrification of the Bronx with both courage and smarts. Like the boys in the movie who watched Blade to prep for their fight, Rita is also nerdy and is more than prepared to take on the undead. As she says, “We’re Haitian! My grandma’s been preparing me for this my whole life!” She’s not about to let the boys take on the vampires alone. She’s going headfirst into their nest too! If Oz Rodriguez makes more movies for a Vs. The Bronx franchise, I hope we get to see more of Rita.
Last night, I saw a tweet making the rounds on my feed asking what “offensive stereotype in a movie…would you be?” I sat for a moment thinking about this and how to potentially answer with a quote-retweet. If I were in a 90s or 00s horror movie, it would definitely not be a great role. Would I even make it to the end? Past 5 minutes of screentime? Would I even be in it? On TikTok, I wrote my bio as “Not the Final Girl, but the one who knows all the rules.” I’ve often referred to myself as a not creepy, Latina Randy Meeks. I’m a horror nerd! I know the rules! But would I make it through a horror movie?
The Final Girl trope has evolved. We’ve seen so many iterations of the character in movies and it’ll continue to evolve as more creators, especially BIPOC, have an opportunity to play with the genre.
Regardless, you can expect me to perform a two-minute dialogue in a record store or in the middle of a shopping center about how there’s a simple formula to all of this!
One Good Scare — Krampus (2015)
Yes, another Michael Dougherty flick in my newsletter. Listen, the man knows how to make a good horror movie.
Krampus is one of the movies I got to see in theatre, not really knowing much other than the premise was used the folkloric character, and it was one hell of a ride and at times, a bit scary. I’m talking about that one Jack-in-the-Box thing, if you know you know. Not to mention, two of my favs: Adam Scott and Toni Collette are in it.
Krampus starts out as a dysfunctional family gathering for Christmas for the Engel family. All around, they fight with each other and definitely do not behave themselves with a Christmas spirit. Except for young Max. He still believes in Santa and even writes a letter to Old Saint Nick. But when his bullying cousins read his letter aloud to embarrass him, Max tears it up and the wind carries it from his house to the outside up into the sky. Later that night, a bizarre blizzard strikes their neighborhood and the gathering quickly turns into one horrific night as the Krampus arrives to punish them with his various minions.
It’s not a perfect movie but it’s pretty dang good and definitely a fun one to keep in the horror for the holidays collection. It’s definitely one to watch with some hot cocoa and under a warm blanket during a snowy night.
But if you celebrate Christmas, just be careful of losing your cheer or spirit for the holiday, lest you summon the Krampus…
The Other Black Girl — Most Anticipated Read for 2021
Back in March of this year, author Zakiya Dalila Harris made headlines with her incredible seven-figure book deal from Simon & Schuster for her debut novel The Other Black Girl. The book has been pitched as Get Out meets The Devil Wears Prada and is inspired by Harris’ own experience, having previously worked in editorial at Knopf (Penguin Random House). The book’s copy reads:
“Twenty-six-year-old editorial assistant Nella Rogers is tired of being the only Black employee at Wagner Books. Fed up with the isolation and microaggressions, she's thrilled when Harlem-born and bred Hazel starts working in the cubicle beside hers. They've only just started comparing natural hair care regimens, though, when a string of uncomfortable events elevates Hazel to Office Darling, and Nella is left in the dust.
Then the notes begin to appear on Nella's desk: LEAVE WAGNER. NOW.
It's hard to believe Hazel is behind these hostile messages. But as Nella starts to spiral and obsess over the sinister forces at play, she soon realizes that there's a lot more at stake than just her career.”
Publishing is a very white industry. We all know this. The Diversity Baseline Survey 2.0 reported in January of this year that Black publishing professionals only make up 5% of the industry overall, but only 1% of editorial across the board. And it’s no secret as to why the numbers are so low.
So when news broke of Harris’ book deal along with those incredible comps? Oh yeah, it caused so much conversation on Twitter, in group chats, and in DMs. Because while The Other Black Girl is a fiction novel, is it really?
Thanks to a pic shared on Twitter by my best bud Christian the book’s epitaph comes Tananarive Due’s words at the beginning of the Horror Noire documentary, “Black history is Black horror.”
Simply one hell of a fucking way to start a book.
For many reasons, The Other Black Girl is one of my most anticipated reads from 2021. And if you’re like me and you want to preorder it already, check it out on Bookshop!
With the holidays fast approaching, remember to stay safe out there, folks! Wear your masks. Wash your hands for 20 seconds. Get tested often. And get your flu shot!
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