Screenshot from Scream 4 > From victims to heroines Colten Kamlade Staff Reporter lone girl runs through a desolate forest, her clothes torn and her hair in disarray. She trips and falls, looking behind her she lets out a dramatic scream. It’s a trope we are all familiar with: The final girl, the last one to survive the murderous rampage. From Black Christmas (1974) to Split (2016), the plot device has survived decades of use. Another common role for women in horror is the Blonde. Usually she is the first to die, often drinking and partying her way into the arms of the killer. Lynda Van der Klok from Halloween (1978) is a perfect example of this trope—she drinks, she smokes, and she has sex. Tatum Riley is a similar character from Scream (1996). These two types of characters are the most common roles for actresses in horror. There is a wide range of variation within these categories, but most female characters can be placed into one or the other. Now, it seems common knowledge that horror is a genre that does nothing but exploit women, using them as eye- candy or as helpless victims. There is some truth to this notion. The ’7os and ’8os were the worst for limiting the type of characters women could play, but I want to suggest that the role of women in horror has changed over time and become more positive. Firstly, the blonde stereotype has a male counterpart that is just as worn out. We'll call him “the partier.” In The Evil Dead (1981), Scotty, Ash’s friend, is the airhead. Scott, the sex-crazed troublemaker from Friday the 13th: Part 2 (1981), also plays this role. In fact, any film that features the blonde stereotype generally features a ditzy male character who acts as their sexual interest. Considering this, I think it is unfair to claim that horror portrays women as unintelligent. There are a lot of stupid people in horror films; some of them just happen to be women. Secondly, while female leads in slashers like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) seem like nothing more than fodder for the killer, recent horror films like The Witch (2015) and The Babadook (2014) have deep character development. Films like Ginger Snaps (2000) have even been called feminist in nature. The Descent (2005) has an all-female cast, a rarity for big budget films. I’m not just picking and choosing here, either. A study by Google found that the only genre that men did not get more screen time than women in was horror. Considering that many of these lead roles have become positive, I believe horror has gained an unfair reputation for being a misogynistic genre. Popular movies that are actually trash: Scary edition > Avoid these films in your scary movie marathons Jessica Berget Opinions Editor h, fall...how I have missed you. all means a lot of different things to different people. It could mean the season of scarves and pumpkin spice lattes, or knit hats and stepping on crunchy leaves. Whatever the case, fall is the season for getting cozy. For me, it means getting cozy and binge-watching scary movies. Every year for the entire month of October | get snug witha blanket and a hot drink and watch as many scary movies as I possibly can. Watching so many scary movies I have been able to separate the true horrors, from the truly horrible. If you plan on having a scary movie marathon this year, be sure to avoid these films. Tt (2017) Let’s start with the recent horror movie that everyone has been talking about. Although the hype for this movie was very real, the horror was not. I feel like re-makes of horror movies are always terrible, and this movie is proof of that. It is filled with lame jump scares, an initially creepy, eventually annoying clown and a boring, typical scary movie formula. The only scary thing about this movie was that I was on a date when I saw it and I didn’t get lucky. Poltergeist (1982) > A love for candy and costumes never dies ¢¢ It’s not even really about the candy, dressing up and going out is fun no matter how old you are.” Jessica Berget Opinions Editor Wie Halloween coming around the corner, the time for getting sick off of chocolate and candy is upon us. Unfortunately for young adults, we must wait until the day after October 31 to purchase the half-priced boxes of sweets to experience the whimsy that is Halloween candy. To me, this doesn’t make any sense. There are people out there just giving away free candy and we have to buy it because we are too old to participate in trick-or-treating? People will say it’s an activity that’s just for kids, but if adults want to dress up and experience the innocent fun of trick- or-treating, I say we should let them. It’s not even really about the candy; dressing up and going out is fun no matter how old you are. I would much rather people go out and trick-or- treat than get black-out drunk or do harmful drugs at a Halloween party. I can understand why some people wouldn't want to give candy to people who don’t show up in costumes; that defeats the whole purpose. However, as long as they’re polite, fully dressed- up, and just want to have a good time trick-or-treating, what’s the harm? It also allows adults to have fun like they were kids again. I have many fond memories trick-or-treating with my friends when I saw young, and I would love it if I could still do it. Being an adult shouldn't stop you from having some childish fun occasionally, and Halloween night is the perfect time to do it. So, if an older kid comes trick- or-treating at your house, don’t turn them away because you think they are too old. Let them participate in the Halloween festivities. They aren't hurting anyone and all they want is free candy, what’s wrong with that? ¢¢ Watching so many scary movies I have been able to separate the true horrors, from the truly horrible.” The first half of this movie is interesting but it gets lamer and lamer as it goes on. Some of the scenes are iconic, like the clown doll, the skeleton in the pool, the guy ripping his face apart in the mirror, but other than that it’s a pretty boring flick. Eraserhead (1977) Whenever I think of bad horror films, this is the first one that comes to mind. Not only is it not scary at all, it’s annoyingly confusing. With it’s weird characters, singing number, and plot lines, I can’t understand why anyone would enjoy this movie. After watching it | realized that was an hour and 49 minutes I would never get back. Halloween (1978) This might be everyone's first choice when making their Halloween horror movie list, but despite the fitting movie title for the holiday, it’s a horrible bore. If you want to watch Jamie Lee Curtis run away and scream for almost two hours, this movie might be for you. The Conjuring (2013) Although this typically spooky ghost movie is full of jump scares, it is not full of surprises. It follows the same formula as every horror movie about a family moving into a haunted house. A lot of the plot is incredibly dramatic and over the top, which makes it more laughable than horrifying.