Over the past century of horror filmmaking and entertainment, the world has maintained a fascinating relationship with horror media due to how they channel the feelings and fervor of the modern world. However, no other subgenre of horror has tested the sands of time quite like slasher films.
Characterized by nudity and grotesque violence, predominantly inflicted upon women, slasher films are typically considered to be the dumbest, bloodiest and dullest subgenre of the horror’s myriad of categories. Granted, slasher films offer a tremendous amount of campy and gory fun at the cinema, but the subgenre, in retrospect, holds more than meets the eye since these films depict brutal insight into some of the American society’s most relevant, precognitive anxieties about the patriarchal society, traditional family values, politics, class and the very essence of human beings.
So, with the release of the newest “Halloween” film this October, here are some of the best slasher movies to check out this month! Some are dumb fun while others are grotesque examinations of society.
-       “Psycho” (1960)
-       “The Cabin in the Woods” (2011)
-       DOUBLE FEATURE: “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (1974) & “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2” (1986)
-       “I Know What You Did Last Summer” (1997)
-       DOUBLE FEATURE: “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984) & “A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors” (1987)
-       “Black Christmas” (1974)
-       “Tucker and Dale vs. Evil” (2011)
-       “Candyman” (1992)
-       “Scary Movie” (2000)
-       “The Stepfather” (1987)
-       “The Final Girls” (2015)
-       “The Slumber Party Massacre” (1982)
-       “Teeth” (2007)
-       DOUBLE FEATURE: “Friday the 13^th“ (1980) & “Friday the 13^th: The Final Chapter” (1984)
-       BINGE ‘EM: “Fear Street Trilogy” (2021)
-       “Hush” (2016)
-       “The Mutilator” (1984)
-       “Phenomena” (1985)
-       “Freaky” (2020)
-       “Child’s Play” (1988)
-       BINGE ‘EM: “Scream” franchise (1996-2011)
-       “American Psycho” (2000)
-       “You’re Next” (2013)
And, of course, the best of the best…
-       “Halloween” (1977) & “Halloween” (2018)
-       “Graveyard Shift” episode of SpongeBob SqaurePants (2002)