Halloween Q&A

Halloween

1. How does the start exemplify a common technical code convention of the horror genre?

The beginning of the film starts with a flashback to Michael when he's six years old. We're shown through the opening with a point of view shot as if we're Michael as he wonders round his house spying on his older sister, Judith. The start follows a common technical code convention by jumping straight into a murder- there is no equilibrium at the beginning of the film, we're just straight away shown Michael murder his sister with a knife, after she's had sex with her boyfriend. 

2. How does the setting fit with the horror genre?

The setting of the film has a creepy effect. The film is mainly shot at night for the duration, and that is when the murders take place. The abandoned house adds to the horror genre as being freaky and mysterious as we connote abandoned houses with ghosts and death. Another typical horror setting is the graveyard- although we're taken there during the day, when Dr Loomis realizes that Judith Myers tombstone has gone missing, this adds a mysterious effect. The film is also taken place is a small Suburban town where everybody knows each other. The small town is made up of ghost stories about the 'Boogey Man' aka Mike Myers and because it's set of Halloween when the crime took place, therefor we're prepared for similar events to happen again.

3. What iconography of 'innocence' do we hear or see early on?

Laurie's innocent personality as a character. She refers to herself as being a girl scout and is the only virgin out of her friends, so therefor has a pure and innocent representation in comparison to the other teenagers who are sexually active. 

4. What was the main industry impact of Halloween?

The film was cheap to make, it cost $325,000 to make the film and made a profit of $70 million. The success of Halloween resulted in several other horror films to be made in a similar style.

5. Name some "Slasher" films which followed on from Halloween.

I found that some slasher films which followed after the success of Halloween are Friday the 13th (1980), Prom Night(1980), Terror Train(1980) and My Bloody Valentine(1981) are just a few which were also low budget films and made a high profit on their release.

6. What are the four plot rules of the "Slasher" film sub-genre which Halloween began?

1. A traumatic event in the past creates a psychopathic killer.
2. The killer returns to the site of the event, usually on a specific date in the present that allows the makers to use a calender motif in the title.
3. The killer stalks and graphically kills a group of obnoxious and stupid teens of both sexes, usually with some kind of blade, often a garden or farm implement.
4. A 'final girl' survives, usually boyish and often virginal, so thwart the killer, although he is never entirely vanquished.

7. Give three ways in which Laurie is androgynous.

She is given a gender-free name so therefor the name 'Laurie' could be a man or a woman as it could also be short for Laurence. She has boyish features including her structured face with defined cheek bones and a masculine look to her. Laurie's character also isn't like the others girls in the movie, she's only seen wearing a skirt in the opening of the film and it's very long and proper. Then throughout the rest of the film she's wearing trousers and looks prim and proper. She also doesn't have a boyfriend like the other girls. Laurie also has a deep voice.

8. What does the extract mean by "a reactionary sexual agenda?"

Laurie the 'final girl' who survives is a virgin unlike the other teenagers who become 'sexualised victims'. The victims are Judith, Lynda and Bob who were all killed by Myers after having sexual intercourse and Annie who is killed whilst in her underwear going to pick up her boyfriend.

9. How does the director, John Carpenter, counter the suggestion that Halloween had a reactionary sexual agenda?

John Carpenter states that he didn't kill of the teenagers for having sex- he done it to show that they were killed by Mike Myers as they weren't paying attention to what was going on around them, like Laurie was. 

10. Why does Mike Myers kill his sister?

The reading says that Myers killed his sister Judith because he misunderstood her having sex with her boyfriend. Although, other reasons could be because he is jealous. 

Mike Myers killing