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Tuesday 26 February 2013

Sexism And Gender Discrimination In The World Of The Horror Film!

Welcome Back, Folks!

Today, we get down andver-so-slightly-dirty! So settle down, get comfy, because this is going to be a long, but hopefully fulfilling ride for everyone.

Today, we deal with a significantly more weighty and unusual topic, for you all to consider and cogitate on. This time, the subject-matter stems from a discussion over at  Sex, Gore, Mutants  about the Soska Sisters' recent release AMERICAN MARY (2012) and also, an article by Keri O'Shea and Annie Riordan at  Brutal As Hell  where the issue of women in the horror industry and female horror fans was being debated.

From the outset, I should state that I am a heterosexual man. As such, that may colour my view on certain areas we are going to be discussing today. I'm no different to most hot-blooded men, in that I enjoy the company of the opposite gender. Right, I've said it. So, I'm not going to use this article to post material apologising for that. I am what I am. I'm not saying that's right, or that it's wrong. Nor am I arguing that there's anything wrong with being homosexual, if that is who you are. It's just that this is who I am. I am also not going to use this article, to say "Ah, pity those poor women. Don't they have a tough life?" That would be demeaning and sexist. That's not the purpose of what I want to write about. No, today, I want to examine some of the issues raised by the discussion and articles I mentioned at the start, as I felt they warranted further and deeper analysis.

As much as I am loathe to admit it, the sad fact is that even in the 21st Century, in the year 2013, it is still very much a Man's world. Men control most of the top positions in the major conglomerates (Apple, NewsCorp, Microsoft, the BBC, Hollywood, Bollywood, etc, etc). Men tend to be the ones in power in many governments. Men also tend to be the people pulling the strings, when it comes to the rest of us.

It's not right. It's not fair, and it's absolutely not just.

In an ideal world, Women would occupy at least half of all these same roles, should they wish to of course, and women would be treated as equals not subservients, in every country. Women would be paid at the same level as men, when undertaking the same role within a company. Women would be dignified as complete human beings, rather than the sexualised, and objectified beings that most of us men treat them like. (There's no point in denying it gents. We all do it, even if we won't admit it. And I include myself in that horrible association too!) There would be no glass-ceiling for women to have to break-through in the corporate world either. Childcare costs would be reasonable and fair, and available to either women or men, as and when they were needed. Laws would support women too, in their time of need. (Sadly, anyone who has been following recent news events, over the gang-rape of the unnamed female student in India at the end of December 2012, will see that we men have a long, long way to go to rectify the appalling treatment of women in the world around us!)

Let's not kid ourselves, gents. We men are to blame for the way things are in the world, when it comes to the treatment and subservience of women. It is us men who treat women in this disgusting manner. We condone it. We further it. We are absolutely 100% to blame for it. It is our fault women are constantly treated as second-rate persons. We do it, without noticing we do it. We do it, because we can. We do it, because we want too. We do it, because it helps keep the world in the manner we men want it to remain.

And we have to take a stand, and stop it.

Now, you're probably asking yourselves, what on God's Green Earth has this go to do with a blog on extreme cinema? It has everything to do with it, as I will demonstrate to you.

Think though the last year's worth of horror films you've watched. Ask yourself the following questions?

1) How many of the horrors you watched, featured victims who were all female?
2) How many films were written or co-scripted by women?
3) How many films were produced and/or directed by women?

With a few, very rare exceptions, I would make an educated guess:
1) That the majority of films you viewed, did indeed feature victims who were exclusively female.
2) That almost every film was written by a man, or a group of men, with minimal female input?
3) And that, almost every film was directed by a man also.

The possible exceptions, would be if you've watched The Soska Sisters (Jen and Sylvia Soska) in either their debut film DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK (2009) or their recent festival hit AMERICAN MARY (2012). The identical twin-sisters hail from Canada, where they've been causing a stir in the horror genre, ever since they were at Film School. DEAD HOOKER... was their low-budget shocker that took the world by storm, and demonstrated that whilst still relatively new to the film industry, these two ladies were destined for something much more, if given the time and money to hone their talent and take it to the next level.

February 2013, and it's "Women In Horror" month - Women In Horror Month Site - which writers Keri O'Shea and Annie Riordan have expressed some anger and disappointment about it.
But February is a vast wasteland of Why Bother? So hey, why not add to the misery and proclaim February to be Women In Horror Recognition Month too? Yeah, great, thanks.

Lately – by which I mean, over the last 15/20 years or so – this disturbing new trend has popped up among young(er) girls. They watch a handful of horror movies and suddenly feel driven to announce to the world that they – drum roll, wait for it – ARE FEMALE! Wow! They watch horror movies with their boobs and vaginas and everything! “LOOK! I’m a girl and I’m watching horror movies! How badass riot grrrl does that make me?! I am HARDCORE! I can watch horror movies just like boys do, but I’M A GIRL! Hear me roar! Check me out! But DO NOT call attention to the fact that I AM FEMALE because THAT’S SEXIST!!! I will proudly set aside a month for you all to worship me but DO NOT segregate me! You must recognise my feminine power without calling attention to it!”

Look, I’m female. I’ve been a female since I was born. I’ve also been a horror fan for roughly the same amount of time. This bullshit about female horror fans being overlooked, under-appreciated and discriminated against is exactly that – BULLSHIT.
At first glance, I would suspect that many of my male readers might be thinking "We're trying to do something good here. Look, we're celebrating womanhood in film, and extolling your virtues by placing you up on a pedestal." For my female readers, some might be agreeing with the men, but there may well be some who are also thinking to themselves, "God, what a load of sexist bullshit", just like Keri and Annie say. If I throw caution to the wind, there may even be a few of the men nodding quietly too. After all, isn't positive discrimination as bad as normal discrimination? Doesn't it seem a little perverse that in order to counter sexism, we have to actively promote one section of society over another?

Maybe.

But let's take a step back for a second. In the real world, in which you, I, and everyone else lives in knows only too well, the real-world can be a horrible, miserable and god-awful place to get by in. Yes, life can also be great and fantastic, and can serve up some amazing experiences, but life is tough for the most part. It's like playing a game, with no rules, and when you ask what the rules are, some twisted nutter says that "There are rules, but I'm just not going to tell you what they are. Yet each time you break them, I am still going to punish you"!

In the real-world, everyone is not equal. In the real-world, life is not equal. Some people are born luckier than others. Some are more financially stable than others. Some of us have a great life, some have a good life, and some have a shitty life. It's the inequality that can mar our life. We strive to fight back, to rebel, to make our stand on the world, and life just keeps on giving you lemons. And we all know how bad lemons suck!

Inequality can be a troubling state. Depending on where you are born, who you are born from, and which body you are born into, can alter the life you lead. If you are born into a poverty-filled part of the globe, your life may well be extremely tough. If you are lucky enough to be born into a wealthy family, then you may be set up for life, and never have to struggle for a single thing. (We should all be so lucky.) But inequality stays with us from the moment we are born, to the day we die. It's there, in every aspect of our lives, and in the background of each day we live, it toys with us to a greater or lesser degree.

Currently in the world, many nations are going through a truly agonising economic crisis. There are countries with extreme inequality between the rich and the poor, and mass unemployment affecting everyone - irrespective of your age. Life is certainly tougher today for most of us, than it was, say, back in 2003. We are poorer financially; poorer in our social lives, and time-poorer too. Ten years ago, "blogs", and most social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, 4Square, etc) did not exist. We still texted. We still telephoned. We even wrote the odd letter, every now-and-again. We still spoke to friends, family and neighbours - in person. But we had more time to do all of these things, rather than simply just wasting time telling people that we were doing something.

As technology has improved the way we can communicate with our friends, our family, borders between nations have shrunk. Yet, there is still deep inequality. Men and women are more inequal than ever before, despite the majority of both genders having access to all of this technology. In the cinema industry, men still control most of the films that get made. They are the ones who sign the cheques, dictate what you see and when you'll see it. This week, the 86th Annual Academy Awards, also known as The Oscars took place. In the entire history of one of the most famous awards ceremony's, only one woman has ever won Best Director - Kathryn Bigelow in 2009 for THE HURT-LOCKER. Yet, as female directors, there are a fair few around: Jodie Foster, Mary Harron, Kimberley Peirce, Julie Taymor, Gillian Armstrong, Sofia Coppola, Andrea Arnold, Jane Campion, Amy Irving, Agnieszka Holland, Julie Delpy, Catherine Breillat, Sarah Polley, Alison Anders, Lisa Cholodenko, Penelope Spheeris, Penny Marshall, Claire Denis, Amy Heckerling and Sally Potter - and they're just the ones I can think of, off the top of my head. However, in comparison to male directors, the talent pool is much, much smaller.

According to a report on  Jezebel.com  for every one female director, there are over 15 men doing the same. For the 21 women I've just named, that means there are at least 315 men. Now expand that figure globally, and let's say there are 100 major or well-known women directors, and there will be 1500 men. Let's now say there are 1000 nameable female directors, and there should be around 15,000 male directors. Women are still in the distinct minority.

Doesn't that figure shock you? It does me.

Now how many women do you think control the major film studios? Here is a list of the majority of major film studios, who deal with most of what you will see at your local cinema, whether that be multiplex, megaplex, or arthouse independent.
  • 20th Century Fox (Peter Rice), which is then owned by NewsCorp (Rupert Murdoch)
  • MGM (Gary Barber)
  • Universal (James Schamus)
  • Eon (Johannes Teyssen)
  • Working Title Films (Tim Bevan)
  • Paramount (Brad Grey)
  • Sony Pictures Entertainment (Michael Lynton)
  • Warner Bros (Barry Meyer), which is then owned by Time Warner (Glenn Britt)
  • Pixar (John Lassetter), which is now owned by Walt Disney International (Andy Bird)
  • Marvel Studios (part of Marvel Comics Inc.) (Isaac Perlmutter)
  • Miramax (Steve Schoch)
  • Lionsgate Entertainment (Jon Feltheimer)
  • The Weinstein Company (Rob Weisbach)
  • CBS Films (Bruce Tobey) 
Only one, single woman is in charge - step forward Ms Anne Sweeney who heads Touchstone Pictures! One woman out of 14 major companies, and these 14 companies often have many sub-divisions featuring smaller, independent or niche studios too, predominantly run by - you guessed it - men.

No wonder, women feel marginalised, segregated, isolated all of the time. For half of the entire human population, things aren't quite as rosy as they are for us men. And I know I'm generalising here, but I'm sure you will see what I mean. So what are we going to do about it?

Well, let's start with the simple thing. As utterly stupid as this sounds, women are human beings too. There are lots of decent female film-makers. Unfortunately, because many of the men are in control of the films that are green lit, not only are women not chosen to direct works that they may well be ideally suited for, they tend to get overlooked in full, when it comes to fictional films. Kathryn Bigelow is the exception to that rule. But even she has had to fight to get to where she is. Jodie Foster directs too, but as one of the very few openly lesbian film-stars, film writers, and film directors, it could be argued that she has an even tougher time with things. Anyone who saw her speech at this year's Emmy's can attest to this. Her speech was incredibly profound and moving. (Thanks to  GoldenGlobes.org  for the following transcript.)
I’m 50. You know, I was going to bring my walker tonight, but it just, it just didn’t go with cleavage. Robert, I want to thank you for everything for your "bat" praise, rapid fire brain, the sweet intro. I love you and Susan, and I am so grateful that you continually to talk me off the ledge when I go on and foam at the mouth and say "I’m done with acting. I’m done with acting. I’m really done. I’m done. I’m done." Trust me, 47 years in the film business is a long time.
Thank you. Looking at all those clips, you know, the hairdos and the freaky platform shoes, it’s like a home movie nightmare that just won’t end. And all of these people sitting here at these tables, they’re my family of sorts: fathers mostly, executives, producers, the directors, my fellow actors out there. We’ve giggled through love scenes. We’ve punched and cried and spit and vomited and blown snot all over one another. And those are just the co-stars I liked. But you know, more than anyone else, I share my most special memories with the members of the crew: blood shaking friendships. Brothers and sisters, we made movies together, and you can’t get more intimate than that. So while I’m here being all confessional and I guess I just have a sudden urge to say something that I’ve never really been able to air in public, so a declaration that I’m a little nervous about, but maybe not quite as nervous as my publicist right now, huh, Jennifer? But, you know, I’m just going to put it out there, right? Loud and proud, right? So I’m going to need your support on this.
I am single.
Yes, I am. I am single. No, I’m kidding, but I mean, I’m not really kidding, but I’m kind of kidding. Thank you for the enthusiasm. Can I get a whoop or something? I mean, please. Jesus. Seriously, I hope that you’re not disappointed that there won’t be a big coming out speech tonight because I already did my coming out about a thousand years ago back in the Stone Age, in those very quaint days when a fragile young girl would open up to trusted friends and family, co workers and then gradually, proudly to everyone who knew her, to everyone she actually met. But now apparently, I’m told that every celebrity is expected to honour the details of their private life with a press conference, a fragrance, and a prime-time reality show. And you guys might be surprised, but I am not Honey Boo Boo, child. No. I’m sorry. That’s just not me. It never was, and it never will be. But please don’t cry because my reality show would be so boring. I would have to make out with my own (unintelligible), or I’d have to spank Daniel Craig’s bottom just to stay on the air. It’s not bad work if you can get it, though. But seriously, if you had been a public figure from the time that you were a toddler, if you’d had to fight for a life that felt real and honest and normal against all odds, then maybe then you, too, might value privacy above all else.
Privacy.
Some day in the future people will look back and remember how beautiful it once was. I have given everything up there from the time that I was 3 years old. That’s reality show enough, don’t you think? There are a few secrets to keeping your psyche intact, over such a long career. The first - love people, and stay beside them. My family and friends here tonight and at home. And of course, Mel Gibson. You know you saved me too. There is no way I could ever stand here without a acknowledging one of the deepest loves of my life, my heroic co parent, my ex partner in love, but righteous soul sister in life, my confessor, ski buddy, consigliere, most beloved BFF of 20 years, Cydney Bernard. Thank you Cyd. I am so proud of our modern family, our amazing sons, Charlie and Kit , who are my reason to breathe and to evolve, my blood and soul. And boys, in case you didn’t know it, this song, like all of this, this song - is for you.
Bowing to an enraptured crowd, Ms Foster then left the stage. So what does this say about sexism and gender discrimination in the world of the horror film? Plenty.

The sad fact is, that for most women, trying to break into the film industry, is tough-going at the best of times. Entering a genre that is so male-centric as that of horror, means you are essentially entering the boys-own world, and should be wary of doing so. Whilst there are many women who love horror films, horror novels, for every transgressive movie that features strong women behind or in-front of the camera, there are thousands of others that don't. Horror and exploitation even have sub-genres known as WIP films: depending on who you speak to, it refers to "women-in-prison" or "women-in-peril". There's no male equivalent, of course, but it does demonstrate in spades, just how sexist the horror genre can be. I've mentioned the term "torture porn" before, in previous articles. The fact that "torture porn" is also a sub-genre of horror and is a sub-genre that is (predominantly) one whose whole raison d'etre is the depiction of women being tortured for both the film's killer's pleasure, as much as that of the audiences, kind of speaks volumes.

I'm not saying it's wholly wrong, but the fact it is such a significant area of the horror genre does bother me. Why are there so few films that feature female killers? Why do so many films feature female victims, who are - almost without exception - scantily-clad, topless, or naked?

Dario Argento once said:
I like women, especially beautiful ones. If they have a good face and figure, I would much prefer to watch them being murdered than an ugly girl or man. I certainly don't have to justify myself to anyone about this. I don't care what anyone thinks or reads into it. I have often had journalists walk out of interviews when I say what I feel about this subject.

The first, significant horror novel to feature a women in peril, was probably Bram Stoker's "Dracula", (in which Dracula hunts Jonathan Harker's devoted fiancee, Wilhelmina Murray). Written in the same era as the rise of the Women's Movement, women the world over wanted to take a stance against inequality and unfair treatment. Moving through three "waves" or movements, (1st Wave: refers to the feminist movement of the 19th and early-20th Centuries, which focused on female suffrage; 2nd Wave: from the 1960's to the 1980's, which dealt with gender inequality in laws and culture, and the 3rd Wave, which focused on the different, but nonetheless impressive achievements made by women in the USA), women were making it known to all that they were no longer standing being treated as second-rate citizens any more.

So can we blame Stoker for writing the first "woman-in-peril"? Was he being a sexist, pig-headed man, or was he just writing what he wanted to write? It would be wrong and foolish to lay the blame solely at Stoker's door. That would be far too simplistic, but as the man who started-off the horror genre as we really know it, he should take a tiny portion of the blame. One of the many reasons women are treated as inferiors, is because the world is unequal. When anyone in power has more power over some than others, then that person, people, or organisation will (usually) try to do what they feel is best, not what is necessarily best. Just take a look at any government.

How many governments say "Vote for us, and we'll do X, Y, and Z". You vote for them, they get into power, and then the inevitable happens: they do anything, everything, except X, Y, and Z. Politicians are notoriously powerful, but twisted people. The majority only tend to become politicians, because they seek power, and they are willing to do anything to get that power, even if it means stepping on toes of colleagues, friends, family and the electorate-at-large to gain that power. I've mentioned in past articles on my blog about the cases of the Expenses Scandal from 2011.

In recent weeks, here in the UK, Chris Huhne, a politician, has been convicted of "perverting the course of justice" at Southwark Crown Court, for coercing his now ex-wife, Vicky Pryce, into taking points on her driving licence, for a speeding offence he committed. (He is due to be sentenced in the coming weeks.) The allegations are that he used marital coercion to get her to sign a DVLA (Driver And Vehicle Licensing Agency - the organisation who licence all motorists and vehicles, here in the UK) statement saying it was her that was driving the car at the time, when in fact it was him. He wanted Ms Pryce to take the points, as he was on the verge of being banned if he gained any more. I should also say, that she is being tried as well, to see whether she "perverted the course of justice" or not too.

Much of Europe is currently dealing with the "Horsemeat Scandal" - see  Horsemeat Scandal Timeline  for more info. More corruption. More misuse of controls. More abuse.

Corruption is rife, everywhere. I'm sure you've heard of the saying "Absolute power, corrupts absolutely" attributed to John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton. Well, it's true. You've also heard of "With great power comes great responsibility" (attributed to - depending on who you ask - Stan Lee, Franklin Roosevelt, or possibly Jesus Christ!). Again, so true. But if power corrupts and makes you irresponsible, and in the process, also turns most men into raging, sexist dinosaurs who seem to want to keep women under their thumb, then maybe the time has come to remove power from people. To making everyone truly equal, and to disperse "power(s)" to different people, so no, one individual has enough power that can corrupt them, or anyone around them.

This may sound blase, but most women don't want, desire, (or need) power. They just want to be treated as equals. To be given their fair dues. To not be treated lesser than a man. And that's not really a big ask now, is it? However, within the world of cinema, and to a lesser but still formidable extent, the horror genre, women are kept under the thumbs of men. Physically. Psychologically. Emotionally. Mentally.

Yes, there are more women working in the fields of horror - academically it's never been better, and likewise, in the field of literature, female horror authors have never been more abundant - but in the film industry, they are few and far between. It's still predominantly men directing films written by men, featuring men killing women, for a predominantly male audience. And the killings are almost exclusively men killing women during sex, (or who are about to have sex, or who are in some state of undressing). It seems Hollywood seems to want to equate sex with violence, despite the fact that Hollywood has one of the toughest stances on mixing sex and violence in the MPAA. (See the documentary THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED for an in-depth discussion on what the MPAA allow and don't allow when it comes to sex and violence.) Violence is okay, sexual violence is better still, but God-forbid you dare show just plain, ordinary, bog-standard sex featuring two people making love!

I can't even recall the last film that featured a strong female killer, going after predominantly male victims. BAISE-MOI (2000) perhaps? BOY MEETS GIRL (1994, Ray Brady)? Or do we need to go back further, to the likes of I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (1978)? There have been more recent films featuring female villains, e.g. EXCISION, INSIDE (aka L'INTERIOR, 2007, Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury), but they are few and far between.

So why does the horror genre keep taking the safe, easy route of men killing women, and male directors filming tales about men killing women? I say this, in the same month, that the US remake MANIAC (2012, Franck Khalfoun) is due in UK and US cinemas. The film, a remake of the 1980 exploitation flick from William Lustig, features a man who preys on women, to rape and then kill them, before scalping them and placing their heads on mannequins! Both films have been heavily accused of misogyny, and it's easy to see why. Women are portrayed as sexualised beings, and victims. Nothing more. If this was only an occasional issue, or even if such a plot formed 40-60% of all horror films, then it wouldn't be a major problem, as there would at least be 40-60% to counterbalance them.

But it isn't.

It's the norm! Nearly every major horror film, is nothing more than men killing women. And that depresses the hell out of me.

A good horror film will not simply be "killer stalks women", "killer kills women", "killer dies", which is what many of these films resort too. We'd have horrors that deal with other aspects. I am in no way saying that women in horror films should never be killed (or injured or attacked). I simply want things to be a little more equal. If what Dario Argento says is what many horror movie writers and directors think, and it probably is, then the horror genre will always be a sexist, misogynistic field. And it'll be a field in which women are marginalised and sexualised, and compartmentalised forever. The only times they will break-through, is when they are marginalised, and sexualised, and compartmentalised - by men.

Just take a look at the Soska Sisters...

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8429/7881169810_52e4b940bf_z.jpg

With all respect to them, and I absolutely do not mean any offence here, would these two women have got to where they are, if:


1) They weren't stereotypically attractive (by Western standards)
2) They weren't young (they're 29 years old each, having been born on April 29th, 1983)
3) They weren't identical twins

I know that's going to sound disgustingly sexist, but would the likes of Eli Roth want to help these new recruits get AMERICAN MARY into production. (And just in case anyone is confused here, I am in no way suggesting that the Soska Sisters haven't got to where they are, except through sheer hard work!) According to Marc Lissenburg from his interview with the Sisters over at  Sex, Gore, Mutants Roth assumed that the script already existed. Would DEAD HOOKER... have been given a distribution deal by Monster Pictures, Bounty Films and Eureka Entertainment (all one-and-the-same-company), if the distributors weren't able - in part, at least - to capitalise on the fact that the Soska Sisters look the way that they do, and are the age that they are? If they had been two, ordinary, average-looking women in their mid-40's, would their film have even been considered releasing at all, in any form? Somehow I doubt it, and that's not to demonise the Sisters, but more a demonising of the men who work in the film industry, and saw oodles of sex-appeal and dollar signs when their photos probably crossed their desks!

Sex is now infused in everything. From adverts in magazines and on billboards, that use double-entendres to sell you stuff you don't need, through to things like the fashion and cosmetics industry, where women are constantly bombarded with imagery and words that says "You aren't beautiful or sexy, unless you use this"! It has now crossed genders, and is being targetted at men too. "Joop Homme" is a men's fragrance that is constantly being advertised on the UK branch of TV network Fox. The likes of David Beckham, the topless Diet Coke guy, Matthew Fox and Josh Holloway plug at our synapses, to get us to buy "Davidoff Coolwater", or use the latest shaving lotion from Gillette. It's reverse-sexism: show the hunky guy as an unobtainable, unachievable sexual piece of meat, and - if you're a woman - you can have him if you buy our products, or - if you are a man - you can be him, and be desirable to every single woman, who will submit to every sexual desire your heart desires!

Well, I hate to break it to ad-exec's all over the globe, but most men and women aren't that shallow. We know full well your products will NOT make us more desirable, more attractive or more sexually-voracious, just because you tell us so. We know that you've auto-tuned, and Photoshopped the models in your ads to within an inch of their life, so they appear flawless - a truly hideous example amply demonstrated  here  of Jessica Alba. (The left-hand image is the "before" or original, untainted image, whilst the right hand side one is the "after" or modified and published image. Note how they've accentuated her bust size and height; modified her hair; made her much thinner at the waist, and made her look positively anorexic around her neck and shoulders, so that you can see her joints!)

I'm probably veering too-far off-topic, and for that I apologise. I'm angry at the inherent sexism and victim-nature in a film genre I love deeply. From silent classics like NOSFERATU (1922, Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau) and THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925, Rupert Julian) to modern-day slashers such as FRIDAY THE THIRTEENTH (1980, Sean S. Cunningham) or A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (1984, Wes Craven), right-through to the soon-to-be-released version of MANIAC I mentioned earlier on, films use (and treat) women truly disrespectfully. Weak, willing (or unwilling) victims to be dispatched, inthe most pornographic and vile methods possible.

We shouldn't need something like Women In Horror Month, but we do need to have women given a much fairer deal in the world of horror cinema. Women should not always be portrayed as victims, as pieces of meat. Nor as disposable sexual objects, and little else. They are our equals: complete beings with thier own seperate but equally valid interests and voices. Let's have more of them working behind the cameras, writing scripts, and workshopping on films. If more women were given such chances, I think the horror genre might actually grow and expand in a way it hasn't done for years now. Considering most of the most-interesting horror works now come from Europe, and not Hollywood (or America), maybe the trend for better, stronger roles in-front of and behind the cameras will start there?

Women have the right to be heard and seen in horror, just not solely naked, bloodied and screaming, at the hands of men!

Thank You for reading.

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