Halloween (1978)

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

During the opening credits the audience is introduced to the Michael's theme tune which is later played throughout the film when something bad is about to happen. This parallel music helps the audience to foresee future deaths later on in the film and creates a sinister atmosphere that the audience will revisit at numerous points in the film. The opening scene of Halloween uses one long take as a Point of View shot as Michael, this gives the audience a restricted narration as they only see what Michael is seeing, which is even more restricted due to the character wearing a mask. This creates suspense which is conventional for a horror film and sets the atmosphere for the rest of the film.

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

The most obvious aspect is that the film is based on Halloween, hence the appropriate title. This fits well with the horror genre as Halloween has a sinister appeal to it as it is a night where we celebrate the dead. But also the film is based in the quiet suburb of Haddonfield. This works well with horror films as the audience would usually associate a suburb with being safe and peaceful, so for such a horrific event to take place, it takes away the sense of safety that the audience would normally feel and gives the film more realism. There also the more conventional settings for a horror film, for instance the mental institute is an institution that is commonly found in horror films to established why the killer is the way they are. In the scene that features the mental institute, it also happens to be a stormy night, emphasising the danger and evil that occurs. 

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

At the very beginning of the film their are young children 'trick-or-treating' and singing Halloween themed rhymes. This resembles their innocence as it shows how oblivious they are to what is about to happen but also that they don't fully understand the true meaning of Halloween. The main character, Laurie Strode, is seen as the 'Golden Girl' in the film because compared to her friends, she doesn't seem to be interested in partying or boys. But one of the main signs of her innocence is her virginity, she is one of the only characters in the film that is a virgin.   

4. What was the main industry impact of Halloween?

Halloween was considerably cheap to make compared to all the block buster movies from that time. This meant that the film was a lot more profitable for for the industry and so film makers started to follow in the same footsteps so that they could make more money. One of the main reasons it was cheaper to make was because they didn't use any known A-list actors and so they didn't have to pay them a lot of money. Another reason was the lack of special effects used to make the film. The film revolved around simple brutal murder scenes and so there was no need for any expensive effects to be used.

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

Following on from Halloween, a number of "Slasher" films were that created from around the world. In 1979, 'Friday the 13th', which was directed and produced by Sean S Cunningham was released. In 1980-1981, a number of "Slasher" films came out, from 'Prom night, Terror Train' and 'Bloody Valentine' (George Mihalka) to 'Night School' (Ken Hughes) and 'The Burning' (Tony Maylam). Many of these films took inspiration from Halloween and used it as a model to perfect their own films. 

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

1. A traumatic event from the past takes place and creates a psychopathic killer.

2. The killer returns to the site of the traumatic event, usually on a specific date (like Halloween) which allows the makers to use a calendar motif in the title (hence the title Halloween). 

3. The killer then stalks and graphically kills a group of obnoxious teens of both sexes, often with some kind of blade, like a knife, and usually there is a garden or farm implement.

4. A 'final girl' survives, normally a boyish character and often virginal, to thwart the killer, although he is never entirely vanquished.  

7. Give three ways in which Laurie is androgynous.

The term 'androgynous' means when a female character shows male traits. Throughout the film there are key aspects which suggests that Laurie is androgynous, one of which being her dress code. Compared to her two friends, Lynda and Annie, Laurie's clothes tend to hide her body shape and cover her up to avoid any skin or body parts being exposed. Lynda and Annie's clothes seem to be more tight fitted and exposing to attract male attention. There is even a difference in the colour of her clothes, Laurie's outfits are more dark and washed out colours in comparison to her friends bright coloured outfits. Laurie also doesn't appear to wear make-up in the film and instead goes for a more natural look. We get the impression she is not interested in the way she looks and she prefers to be more practical rather than flattering, which is a trait commonly found in males. Lastly, Laurie seems to have a much deeper voice compared to other female characters in the film. This makes her appear more serious and boring compared to her high pitch, energetic friends. 

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

The extract demonstrates that "a reactionary sexual agenda" means that the virginal characters, in this instance Laurie, survives the film whilst the sexualised characters, like Judith, Annie and Lynda, are killed by the psychopathic killer. This creates a strong link between sex and death and determines who the survivors will be. This was common in slasher movies from this time to discourage people from having sex before marriage and to stop people fooling around.

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

John Carpenter expressed that the only reason the character died were because they were not paying attention to what was going on as they were distracted. Throughout the film Laurie is very aware that Michael was stalking her and she was alert at all times. She was even very focused on her studies at school, which is demonstrated in the scene were Laurie notices that Michael through the window and yet she is still able to fully answer the teachers question. Although, her friends didn't notice what was happening as they were too focused on boys, sex and having fun rather than concentrating on what was important. Carpenter claimed that sexual activity had nothing to do with why any of the characters died, it just happened to work out that way to show that the other characters were distracted.

10. Why does Mike Myers kill his sister?

There have been many theories as to why Michael killed his sister. One of which being because she had sex, however others have suggested that Michael was replicating the movement of sexual intercourse with the knife. Although, as the sequels are created, we do come to realise that Laurie was actually his sister and Michael was adopted by the Myers family.