Slumdog millionaire was released in 2009 and is about the tv show “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” the film is based in India and is about how one character who came from poverty manages to win the show however is accused of cheating, throughout this film there numerous representations of Indians shown.
The first representation shown is of India itself, India is shown to be very westernised by the fact that they have modernised and have programmes such as who wants to be a millionaire which was a hit show in the united kingdom. The role of some characters can be said to westernised, in the film there is a sense of gang culture when the main characters brother joins the gang and calls himself “ Gun Master G” this is typical of teenagers in the western culture by making nicknames for themselves and following gang culture.
Another clear representation is to with the Indian people themselves, in the film the Indians are portrayed to be second class under the British, in the film there is a scene where a female character asks her friends about “East enders” a hit British show showing that their lives are orientated by the British as they wish to follow their television. This idea is also reconfirmed when it shows the main character Jamal working as a customer service salesman selling phones to people in England. In one scene it shows a conversation between Jamal and a women in England and the way she asks so where are you from then, and how he lies by saying just down the road from you shows how the character is lying because he also believes that Indians and English are not on the same level. Another scene which also infers this ideology is when an American mans car had been vandalised and an Indian man beat up Jamal as he was the American couples tour and then the American couple say this is how we do in America shows that they are placing the Indians under the Americans.
Some of the stereotypes that British have are shown in the film, one stereotype of the Indians is that they are spiritual, this spiritual side of India is shown when they talk about the different Gods and religions in India. Another stereotype is to do with sex, Indians have often been associated with sex due the book of karma sutra and other factors but this side is also shown as there are scenes in which show prostitution which is allow showing this modern westernised culture.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jan/24/oscars-india-slumdog-millionaire-ian-jack
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/jan/18/slumdog-millionaire-british-asian-reaction
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Independent Study 1st Draft
“Were not alone, there is something living in the hills”[1]
To what extent is “The Hills Have Eyes” (2006) a typical horror film?
According to Steve Neale the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements”[2]. The repertoire of elements refers to themes and conventions which are repeated in a certain genre. The horror genre has many conventions that stand out that have been recognised as key aspects of the horror genre, things such as “The Final Girl”[3] and “Evil Entity”. Many contemporary horror films have been accused of borrowing elements from other genres of film; this is known as “hybridity. These films are called hybrid films as they are two or more genres mixed together. Richard Maltby states “Genre is not fixed” [4] this suggests that genre is not based on recurring elements but based on the zeitgeist, the spirit of the age. The hills have eyes shows some of the conventions of a typical horror film but it has also borrowed many element from other genres of film, so can it still be classed as a horror? Or a hybrid genre?
The word genre is a French word meaning “type”, the concept of genre has been used since the ancient Greek times when plays were grouped into different categories such as “tragedies” and “comedies”, this was done so audiences would be able to recognise which type of play they wanted to see depending on the mood they was in. Many theorists dispute their ideas about genre conventions and recurring elements in films; Phillips argues that “the audience demand for predictability”[5] this suggests that the recurring elements are needed and are essential in films, this would mean that for a film to be effective it would have to follow the conventions of its genre as it is what the audience want to see. On the other hand some theorists argue that “genre is not fixed”,[6] Neale suggests that “difference is absolutely essential to the economy of genre”[7], he added “if each text within a genre were, literally, the same, there would simply not be enough difference to generate either meaning or pleasure[8]”. This quote suggests that difference is needed to attract audiences because if films were the same as previous films it would be too similar to generate the pleasures which the audience consume from films. The key to a effective film is to take both sides of the argument into consideration, audiences do need the elements of a genre to be in the film as it does make the genre of film clear to the audience, but there also has to be a sense of something new to keep the audience engaged and not feeling as if they have seen this before. To fuse the typical genre elements with some difference would create a effective film, this would mean that the film still shows the typical conventions of a film of that genre but with the difference, this would allow the film to still come under a certain genre as it follows the conventions of the genre but it will have some variance which make it less repetitive and more effective.
A genre of film is recognisable to its audience by the use of recurring elements also known as the “repertoire of elements[9]”, these elements are clear in every genre of film. These elements of film can be the scene or setting, it can also be identified by the props used, often the films would have a character whose role is similar to a character in another film of the genre, also the genre of film may contain a similar narrative or storyline. In horror films the key settings would be dark places with a gothic feel to it, the types of props used would be knives, masks also the horror film would contain large amounts of blood. In terms of similar characters a key character which has come up in horror films is known as “the final girl[10]”. The final girl is the name given to the last surviving female character in horror films, this character has been seen in films such as “Scream”(1996), “Halloween”(1978), Friday the 13th (1980) and many more. The final girl is typically a virgin[11] or sexually unavailable[12] the character itself normally shares some history with the killer of the film, for example in “Halloween H20” (1998) the final girl’s relationship to the killer is that she is the killer’s sister. The typical narrative that is key to horror films is the good vs. Evil storyline also known as binary opposition[13]. The storyline will be about a set of good characters fighting against the bad character, the evil character would normally be at a disadvantage because of the number of good characters, but this disadvantage is used to amplify the power of the evil character.
The horror genre could be said to be arguably one of the most popular genres of film in Hollywood, Wood states “the horror film has consistently been on of the most popular and, at the same time the most disreputable of Hollywood genres[14]”, this quote shows that horror from its beginning has been notorious amongst the film genres. The reason for the genres popularity is due to many things, one of the main reasons is because a horror movie offers its audience something that films from other genres cannot, the horror genre allows the audience to enjoy the thoughts which the mind oppresses, it allows the audience to be something which they normally wouldn’t, Wood suggests “one might say that the true subject of the horror genre is the struggle for recognition of all that our civilisation represses and oppresses[15]” this quote suggests that the main subject for horror is about the struggle for recognition that the audience feel when watching a horror. The horror genre plays on the on its audiences life and is allowing them to relate to the characters in the film, the genre confronts its audiences with ideas which they are not used to and often object, the horror movie aims to target the publics fears and nightmares and show them that in the film.
One of the other aspects which is important to the horror genre is the way in which it uses realism and reality. Many theorists and authors have stated that the reason why the horror genre is so effective is because of how it uses realism in movies such as “Scream” (1996). Scream is based on a serial killer who is tormenting a group of teenagers, the settings in the film show this aspect of realism, the settings show classrooms, schools, college parties, all things which would be associated with the life of teenagers, this makes the film more realistic because the audience who would watch this film would be able to relate with the film therefore putting themselves in the places of the characters in the film which in turn leads to them being scared which fulfils the purpose of the horror genre. In the book “Monster Movies” (1995) Murphy states “horrors never never land is bearable because it is so entirely rational[16]” this supports the idea that horrors key point is to be realistic as the quote says that horror has to be rational. Realism plays an important part in the horror genre, and because of this “The Hills Have Eyes” (2006) can be accused of not being a true horror film, the film is based in a desert which is not realistic also the villains of the films are mutants that have been effected by nuclear bombs which have been tested in the area. The film does not show the realism which is seen in other films of the horror genre.
The genre of “The Hills Have Eyes” has been classed as horror, but after viewing the film the viewer will notice that the main villains are mutants, and the plot involves a disaster struck by nuclear bombs both of these aspects give the film a sci-fi feel to it. “The Hills Have Eyes” could be said to be a hybrid genre of horror and sci-fi, this combination of genre has been made before, films such as “Frankenstein” (1910) was also a hybrid genre of sci-fi and horror, the film meets the science aspect because it is about a scientist who creates a living person, the horror aspect is made because the scientist makes a monster who terrorises people. The fact that this film was a hybrid genre supports the idea that the genre is based on the zeitgeist; this is because at the time of “Frankenstein” the world was obsessed with science and technology and therefore this was shown even in the horror genre, this supports the idea that the main influence of genre is what is happening in the social world.
Another factor of the genre which is based on the spirit of the age is within the representation of women. Women in horror films have been portrayed in different ways through the ages, the common representation of women is that they are shown to be weak and inferior to the male characters, they are shown to be incapable of looking after themselves. Smith argued that “The role of women in a film almost always revolves around her physical attraction and the mating games she plays with the male character[17]” this quote suggests that the role of women in films is not of a real character, they are only there to engage with the male character and look good which links to the “Male Gaze[18]”. When looking at the representation of women a comparison has to be made about the representation through the ages, after looking at the original of “The Hills Have Eyes” (1977) there was some noticeable differences between the original text and the more contemporary text. One of the most interesting changes that was noticed was how women were shown as being stronger in the original film and weaker in the modern film, this was interesting because at the time of the original film women’s rights had not fully been acknowledged by society, women were still seen as being housewives and mothers and the idea of them being shown as strong wouldn’t have been accepted by the audience. In the 1977 version of the film the female characters put up a fight against the mutants but in the more contemporary film they are seen as being passive and just let the violence happen.
One of the possible reasons for this representation could be down to the rise of feminist movement, because of the controversy that was going on at the time the writers and directors may have thought it was a good idea to show women being shown as strong otherwise the film would have been accused of following the patriarchal society and not allowing women to be shown as strong. Another reason why the representation for the 70s version to show women as strong is because of who the film was aimed at, theorists argue that the main reason why genre itself changes is due to either the change in society or the change in the target audience, this is what may have caused the change in the representation of women. Horror movies were likely to be seen by university students of both genders equally this may be the reason why in the original film the women are seen to be stronger because the films were being watched by men and women and women would like to see the character that they associate with being able to defend themselves. This idea would explain why in the modern version of the film the female character is seen to be weaker; the film is aimed more at men then both genders and because of this reason they represent women in the way that the male audience would like to see them therefore the female characters are easily manipulated and less powerful then males. Another reason for the representation in the original film could be because of the actual scene itself, the female characters are trying to save the child which shows their nurturing mother side which would have been a common view of women at the time and the reason for not including it in the new version of the film is because maybe that view of women isn’t as common as it was before due the rise of the new man and women working.
Often horror films show current issues which are affecting society, in “The Hills Have Eyes” the story line features issues about war and nuclear weapons this is because of the war which is going on in society, the violence and brutality which is shown in the film can often be meant to show the brutality of war. This idea can be supported because of the introduction of the film, the film starts with a explosion going off and witting explaining the effects of nuclear weapons this was done because at the time that the film was being made there wars going on and the film is supposed to provide a moral panic to its audiences. Another text in which a similar technique was used was “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (2003) this film like “The Hills Have Eyes” was a remake to an original film, the film was originally made when America was at war and was remade because of the war, the film was remade when America was at war with Iraq. The chaos and the brutality shown in the film represents the consequences of war. This point supports the idea that films are based on the zeitgeist more then generic conventions as both “The Hills Have Eyes” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” have adopted current issues in their films which shows the more important factor in a film is to reflect the state of society.
From the beginning of the film the directors make it clear that the film has a story line to do with government wars and nuclear weapons. The film expresses the problem by having the main story line to with the mutants who survived the atomic bombs but have been deformed due to the weapons this is similar to what happened in reality with the war in Vietnam as the people who lived around the area were born deformed because of the effects of the nuclear power. The film sets off to inform its audience about the effect of the war, by using the mutants as the villains it shows how wars can damage peoples lives and how the effects will be worse as the mutants in the film are set on killing the group of humans. The audience is shown the extent of the effects of war due to deformation of the villains, in the beginning of the film in the introduction pictures of the mutants are shown to emphasise the effects of war and the extreme conditions of the survivors, images show babies being born with oversized heads, also two babies joined by the head these images are shown to show the severe consequences of war.
There are many factors which make the genre of “The Hills Have Eyes” arguable; the first was mentioned previously, horror films have always been about realism “horror genre exists alongside the conventions of realism[19]”, since the early films such as “Halloween” (1978) and “Psycho” (1960) the horror genre has always based its scenes and story line around being realistic. “The Hills Have Eyes” can be said to be unrealistic, the setting of the desert makes it hard for audiences to relate to the characters as the majority of the audience would have never been to a desert. The fact that the main villains are mutants who survived atomic bombs is also unrealistic for this reason it makes it arguable if the film follows basic horror conventions. However one side of the argument could be that this realism of the genre has become to repetitive and giving the film something new allows its audience to have new uses and gratifications of the text. However there is evidence to support the idea that the film is a typical horror, the first piece of evidence is the use of the final girl. The final girl is present in the “The Hills Have Eyes” and she does follow the regular conventions of the final girl with being sexually unavailable, but she doesn’t fully follow the role. The final girl normally has a history with the killer as seen in movies such as “Scream” and “Halloween H20” but in “The Hills Have Eyes” final girl doesn’t have any history with the mutants she is a random victim which challenges the idea of the final girl. Also another aspect of the final girl role which is not met in this film is that normally the final girl is the last surviving character but in “The Hills Have Eyes” she is not the only character which survives, along with her 2 other character survive.
“The Hills Have Eyes” meets some of the “repertoire of elements[20]” which is mentioned and is key to the horror genre but like the final girl it follows the role differently, the film offers thrills and fright as every other horror film does, the villains also conform in a way that the typical killer would in the slasher genre, the film also features use of blood and violence which is also recognisable as being apart of the horror genre. Genre was seen to be made up of key elements which would allow its audiences to recognise the genre but as seen with films such as “Frankenstein” often genre can adapt to show social changes in a film. To sum up “The Hills Have Eyes” is a typical horror film which included the key elements of the genre in the film, however the film is not just made up of the typical elements the film has been effected by the zeitgeist. The film has found a way to include the conventions of horror but adds a difference which has been impacted by the spirit of the age, by breaking away from the typical elements the film has been able to avoid repetition and become more effective which has lead to audiences being more satisfied.
Word count: 3,044
[1] “ The Hills Have Eyes” (2006)
[2] Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
[3] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[4] Richard Maltby(2003), Hollywood Cinema
[5] Patrick Phillips (1996) Understanding Film Texts
[6] Richard Maltby(2003), Hollywood Cinema
[7] Steve Neale (1980) Introduction
[8] Steve Neale (1980) Introduction
[9] Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
[10] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[11] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[12] http://www.screams-of-terror.com/finalgirl.asp
[13] Claude Levi-Strauss
[14] Wood (1979): introduction
[15] Wood (1979): introduction
[16] Brian Murphy (1995) : Monster Movies
[17] Sharon Smith (1972): Women and Film
[18] Laura Mulvey (1975): Visual pleasure and narrative cinema
[19] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[20] Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
To what extent is “The Hills Have Eyes” (2006) a typical horror film?
According to Steve Neale the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements”[2]. The repertoire of elements refers to themes and conventions which are repeated in a certain genre. The horror genre has many conventions that stand out that have been recognised as key aspects of the horror genre, things such as “The Final Girl”[3] and “Evil Entity”. Many contemporary horror films have been accused of borrowing elements from other genres of film; this is known as “hybridity. These films are called hybrid films as they are two or more genres mixed together. Richard Maltby states “Genre is not fixed” [4] this suggests that genre is not based on recurring elements but based on the zeitgeist, the spirit of the age. The hills have eyes shows some of the conventions of a typical horror film but it has also borrowed many element from other genres of film, so can it still be classed as a horror? Or a hybrid genre?
The word genre is a French word meaning “type”, the concept of genre has been used since the ancient Greek times when plays were grouped into different categories such as “tragedies” and “comedies”, this was done so audiences would be able to recognise which type of play they wanted to see depending on the mood they was in. Many theorists dispute their ideas about genre conventions and recurring elements in films; Phillips argues that “the audience demand for predictability”[5] this suggests that the recurring elements are needed and are essential in films, this would mean that for a film to be effective it would have to follow the conventions of its genre as it is what the audience want to see. On the other hand some theorists argue that “genre is not fixed”,[6] Neale suggests that “difference is absolutely essential to the economy of genre”[7], he added “if each text within a genre were, literally, the same, there would simply not be enough difference to generate either meaning or pleasure[8]”. This quote suggests that difference is needed to attract audiences because if films were the same as previous films it would be too similar to generate the pleasures which the audience consume from films. The key to a effective film is to take both sides of the argument into consideration, audiences do need the elements of a genre to be in the film as it does make the genre of film clear to the audience, but there also has to be a sense of something new to keep the audience engaged and not feeling as if they have seen this before. To fuse the typical genre elements with some difference would create a effective film, this would mean that the film still shows the typical conventions of a film of that genre but with the difference, this would allow the film to still come under a certain genre as it follows the conventions of the genre but it will have some variance which make it less repetitive and more effective.
A genre of film is recognisable to its audience by the use of recurring elements also known as the “repertoire of elements[9]”, these elements are clear in every genre of film. These elements of film can be the scene or setting, it can also be identified by the props used, often the films would have a character whose role is similar to a character in another film of the genre, also the genre of film may contain a similar narrative or storyline. In horror films the key settings would be dark places with a gothic feel to it, the types of props used would be knives, masks also the horror film would contain large amounts of blood. In terms of similar characters a key character which has come up in horror films is known as “the final girl[10]”. The final girl is the name given to the last surviving female character in horror films, this character has been seen in films such as “Scream”(1996), “Halloween”(1978), Friday the 13th (1980) and many more. The final girl is typically a virgin[11] or sexually unavailable[12] the character itself normally shares some history with the killer of the film, for example in “Halloween H20” (1998) the final girl’s relationship to the killer is that she is the killer’s sister. The typical narrative that is key to horror films is the good vs. Evil storyline also known as binary opposition[13]. The storyline will be about a set of good characters fighting against the bad character, the evil character would normally be at a disadvantage because of the number of good characters, but this disadvantage is used to amplify the power of the evil character.
The horror genre could be said to be arguably one of the most popular genres of film in Hollywood, Wood states “the horror film has consistently been on of the most popular and, at the same time the most disreputable of Hollywood genres[14]”, this quote shows that horror from its beginning has been notorious amongst the film genres. The reason for the genres popularity is due to many things, one of the main reasons is because a horror movie offers its audience something that films from other genres cannot, the horror genre allows the audience to enjoy the thoughts which the mind oppresses, it allows the audience to be something which they normally wouldn’t, Wood suggests “one might say that the true subject of the horror genre is the struggle for recognition of all that our civilisation represses and oppresses[15]” this quote suggests that the main subject for horror is about the struggle for recognition that the audience feel when watching a horror. The horror genre plays on the on its audiences life and is allowing them to relate to the characters in the film, the genre confronts its audiences with ideas which they are not used to and often object, the horror movie aims to target the publics fears and nightmares and show them that in the film.
One of the other aspects which is important to the horror genre is the way in which it uses realism and reality. Many theorists and authors have stated that the reason why the horror genre is so effective is because of how it uses realism in movies such as “Scream” (1996). Scream is based on a serial killer who is tormenting a group of teenagers, the settings in the film show this aspect of realism, the settings show classrooms, schools, college parties, all things which would be associated with the life of teenagers, this makes the film more realistic because the audience who would watch this film would be able to relate with the film therefore putting themselves in the places of the characters in the film which in turn leads to them being scared which fulfils the purpose of the horror genre. In the book “Monster Movies” (1995) Murphy states “horrors never never land is bearable because it is so entirely rational[16]” this supports the idea that horrors key point is to be realistic as the quote says that horror has to be rational. Realism plays an important part in the horror genre, and because of this “The Hills Have Eyes” (2006) can be accused of not being a true horror film, the film is based in a desert which is not realistic also the villains of the films are mutants that have been effected by nuclear bombs which have been tested in the area. The film does not show the realism which is seen in other films of the horror genre.
The genre of “The Hills Have Eyes” has been classed as horror, but after viewing the film the viewer will notice that the main villains are mutants, and the plot involves a disaster struck by nuclear bombs both of these aspects give the film a sci-fi feel to it. “The Hills Have Eyes” could be said to be a hybrid genre of horror and sci-fi, this combination of genre has been made before, films such as “Frankenstein” (1910) was also a hybrid genre of sci-fi and horror, the film meets the science aspect because it is about a scientist who creates a living person, the horror aspect is made because the scientist makes a monster who terrorises people. The fact that this film was a hybrid genre supports the idea that the genre is based on the zeitgeist; this is because at the time of “Frankenstein” the world was obsessed with science and technology and therefore this was shown even in the horror genre, this supports the idea that the main influence of genre is what is happening in the social world.
Another factor of the genre which is based on the spirit of the age is within the representation of women. Women in horror films have been portrayed in different ways through the ages, the common representation of women is that they are shown to be weak and inferior to the male characters, they are shown to be incapable of looking after themselves. Smith argued that “The role of women in a film almost always revolves around her physical attraction and the mating games she plays with the male character[17]” this quote suggests that the role of women in films is not of a real character, they are only there to engage with the male character and look good which links to the “Male Gaze[18]”. When looking at the representation of women a comparison has to be made about the representation through the ages, after looking at the original of “The Hills Have Eyes” (1977) there was some noticeable differences between the original text and the more contemporary text. One of the most interesting changes that was noticed was how women were shown as being stronger in the original film and weaker in the modern film, this was interesting because at the time of the original film women’s rights had not fully been acknowledged by society, women were still seen as being housewives and mothers and the idea of them being shown as strong wouldn’t have been accepted by the audience. In the 1977 version of the film the female characters put up a fight against the mutants but in the more contemporary film they are seen as being passive and just let the violence happen.
One of the possible reasons for this representation could be down to the rise of feminist movement, because of the controversy that was going on at the time the writers and directors may have thought it was a good idea to show women being shown as strong otherwise the film would have been accused of following the patriarchal society and not allowing women to be shown as strong. Another reason why the representation for the 70s version to show women as strong is because of who the film was aimed at, theorists argue that the main reason why genre itself changes is due to either the change in society or the change in the target audience, this is what may have caused the change in the representation of women. Horror movies were likely to be seen by university students of both genders equally this may be the reason why in the original film the women are seen to be stronger because the films were being watched by men and women and women would like to see the character that they associate with being able to defend themselves. This idea would explain why in the modern version of the film the female character is seen to be weaker; the film is aimed more at men then both genders and because of this reason they represent women in the way that the male audience would like to see them therefore the female characters are easily manipulated and less powerful then males. Another reason for the representation in the original film could be because of the actual scene itself, the female characters are trying to save the child which shows their nurturing mother side which would have been a common view of women at the time and the reason for not including it in the new version of the film is because maybe that view of women isn’t as common as it was before due the rise of the new man and women working.
Often horror films show current issues which are affecting society, in “The Hills Have Eyes” the story line features issues about war and nuclear weapons this is because of the war which is going on in society, the violence and brutality which is shown in the film can often be meant to show the brutality of war. This idea can be supported because of the introduction of the film, the film starts with a explosion going off and witting explaining the effects of nuclear weapons this was done because at the time that the film was being made there wars going on and the film is supposed to provide a moral panic to its audiences. Another text in which a similar technique was used was “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” (2003) this film like “The Hills Have Eyes” was a remake to an original film, the film was originally made when America was at war and was remade because of the war, the film was remade when America was at war with Iraq. The chaos and the brutality shown in the film represents the consequences of war. This point supports the idea that films are based on the zeitgeist more then generic conventions as both “The Hills Have Eyes” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre” have adopted current issues in their films which shows the more important factor in a film is to reflect the state of society.
From the beginning of the film the directors make it clear that the film has a story line to do with government wars and nuclear weapons. The film expresses the problem by having the main story line to with the mutants who survived the atomic bombs but have been deformed due to the weapons this is similar to what happened in reality with the war in Vietnam as the people who lived around the area were born deformed because of the effects of the nuclear power. The film sets off to inform its audience about the effect of the war, by using the mutants as the villains it shows how wars can damage peoples lives and how the effects will be worse as the mutants in the film are set on killing the group of humans. The audience is shown the extent of the effects of war due to deformation of the villains, in the beginning of the film in the introduction pictures of the mutants are shown to emphasise the effects of war and the extreme conditions of the survivors, images show babies being born with oversized heads, also two babies joined by the head these images are shown to show the severe consequences of war.
There are many factors which make the genre of “The Hills Have Eyes” arguable; the first was mentioned previously, horror films have always been about realism “horror genre exists alongside the conventions of realism[19]”, since the early films such as “Halloween” (1978) and “Psycho” (1960) the horror genre has always based its scenes and story line around being realistic. “The Hills Have Eyes” can be said to be unrealistic, the setting of the desert makes it hard for audiences to relate to the characters as the majority of the audience would have never been to a desert. The fact that the main villains are mutants who survived atomic bombs is also unrealistic for this reason it makes it arguable if the film follows basic horror conventions. However one side of the argument could be that this realism of the genre has become to repetitive and giving the film something new allows its audience to have new uses and gratifications of the text. However there is evidence to support the idea that the film is a typical horror, the first piece of evidence is the use of the final girl. The final girl is present in the “The Hills Have Eyes” and she does follow the regular conventions of the final girl with being sexually unavailable, but she doesn’t fully follow the role. The final girl normally has a history with the killer as seen in movies such as “Scream” and “Halloween H20” but in “The Hills Have Eyes” final girl doesn’t have any history with the mutants she is a random victim which challenges the idea of the final girl. Also another aspect of the final girl role which is not met in this film is that normally the final girl is the last surviving character but in “The Hills Have Eyes” she is not the only character which survives, along with her 2 other character survive.
“The Hills Have Eyes” meets some of the “repertoire of elements[20]” which is mentioned and is key to the horror genre but like the final girl it follows the role differently, the film offers thrills and fright as every other horror film does, the villains also conform in a way that the typical killer would in the slasher genre, the film also features use of blood and violence which is also recognisable as being apart of the horror genre. Genre was seen to be made up of key elements which would allow its audiences to recognise the genre but as seen with films such as “Frankenstein” often genre can adapt to show social changes in a film. To sum up “The Hills Have Eyes” is a typical horror film which included the key elements of the genre in the film, however the film is not just made up of the typical elements the film has been effected by the zeitgeist. The film has found a way to include the conventions of horror but adds a difference which has been impacted by the spirit of the age, by breaking away from the typical elements the film has been able to avoid repetition and become more effective which has lead to audiences being more satisfied.
Word count: 3,044
[1] “ The Hills Have Eyes” (2006)
[2] Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
[3] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[4] Richard Maltby(2003), Hollywood Cinema
[5] Patrick Phillips (1996) Understanding Film Texts
[6] Richard Maltby(2003), Hollywood Cinema
[7] Steve Neale (1980) Introduction
[8] Steve Neale (1980) Introduction
[9] Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
[10] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[11] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[12] http://www.screams-of-terror.com/finalgirl.asp
[13] Claude Levi-Strauss
[14] Wood (1979): introduction
[15] Wood (1979): introduction
[16] Brian Murphy (1995) : Monster Movies
[17] Sharon Smith (1972): Women and Film
[18] Laura Mulvey (1975): Visual pleasure and narrative cinema
[19] Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
[20] Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
Monday, January 26, 2009
First Paragraph Rewrite
“Where not alone, there is something living in the hills”
To what extent is “The Hills Have Eyes” (2006) a typical horror film?
According to Steve Neale the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements” . The repertoire of elements refers to themes and conventions which are repeated in a certain genre. The horror genre has many conventions that stand out that have been recognised as key aspects of the horror genre, things such as “The Final Girl” and “Evil Entity”. Many contemporary horror films have been accused of borrowing elements from other genres of film, this is known as “hybridity. These films are called hybrid films as they are two or more genres mixed together. Richard Maltby states “Genre is not fixed” this suggests that genre is not based on recurring elements but based on the zeitgeist, the spirit of the age. The hills have eyes shows some of the conventions of a typical horror film but it has also borrowed many element from other genres of film, so can it still be classed as a horror? Or a hybrid genre?
“ The Hills Have Eyes” (2006)
Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
Richard Maltby(2003), Hollywood Cinema
To what extent is “The Hills Have Eyes” (2006) a typical horror film?
According to Steve Neale the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements” . The repertoire of elements refers to themes and conventions which are repeated in a certain genre. The horror genre has many conventions that stand out that have been recognised as key aspects of the horror genre, things such as “The Final Girl” and “Evil Entity”. Many contemporary horror films have been accused of borrowing elements from other genres of film, this is known as “hybridity. These films are called hybrid films as they are two or more genres mixed together. Richard Maltby states “Genre is not fixed” this suggests that genre is not based on recurring elements but based on the zeitgeist, the spirit of the age. The hills have eyes shows some of the conventions of a typical horror film but it has also borrowed many element from other genres of film, so can it still be classed as a horror? Or a hybrid genre?
“ The Hills Have Eyes” (2006)
Steve Neale (2002), Genre and Contemporary Hollywood
Carol Clover(1992), Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film
Richard Maltby(2003), Hollywood Cinema
Self-Evaluations 2
ATTAINMENT - 2
i have worked to a good standard through the term, i feel as if i have improved in both med 5 work and med 6 work.
EFFORT- 2
- i would say that the level of effort i have put in has stayed the same as before,i put more effort into classwork then homework but i have started to spend more time on homework in med 6 as i aim to get higher grades then previous works
Punctuality - 1
- have never really come late to lesson
Submission and quality of homework -2
- my homework is normally given in on time i normally get all the work done on the blog when it was meant to be given in. the quality of work has increased from before as i feel i am puttin more effort in.
Ability to work independently -2
- i have the ability to work on my own but i have noticed that the work speed is slow as i am not doing much on my own
Quality of writing - 2
- i feel i have improved with the quality of my written work but it can still be improved, my grades that i haver recieved from my med 6 work have been higher then the work in the previous terms.
Organisation of Media folder - 2
- all the work is in the folder but is not in the correct order
Oral contributions in class - 1
- i believe i do contribute the classroom discsions if i have something to say, i ask questions when i am not sure aout certain things.
Standard of Module 5 blog - 2
- some good work on the blog, everything is up to date except the indepenedent study
Standard of Module 6 blog - 1
- all work up to date, the subjects i ahve been told to look into i have looked into with depth
www. have learnt more about my topic
startting contributed much more in class
ebi. better standard of work
spend longer on homework
i have worked to a good standard through the term, i feel as if i have improved in both med 5 work and med 6 work.
EFFORT- 2
- i would say that the level of effort i have put in has stayed the same as before,i put more effort into classwork then homework but i have started to spend more time on homework in med 6 as i aim to get higher grades then previous works
Punctuality - 1
- have never really come late to lesson
Submission and quality of homework -2
- my homework is normally given in on time i normally get all the work done on the blog when it was meant to be given in. the quality of work has increased from before as i feel i am puttin more effort in.
Ability to work independently -2
- i have the ability to work on my own but i have noticed that the work speed is slow as i am not doing much on my own
Quality of writing - 2
- i feel i have improved with the quality of my written work but it can still be improved, my grades that i haver recieved from my med 6 work have been higher then the work in the previous terms.
Organisation of Media folder - 2
- all the work is in the folder but is not in the correct order
Oral contributions in class - 1
- i believe i do contribute the classroom discsions if i have something to say, i ask questions when i am not sure aout certain things.
Standard of Module 5 blog - 2
- some good work on the blog, everything is up to date except the indepenedent study
Standard of Module 6 blog - 1
- all work up to date, the subjects i ahve been told to look into i have looked into with depth
www. have learnt more about my topic
startting contributed much more in class
ebi. better standard of work
spend longer on homework
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Essay Plan So Far
Essay title : Is the “Hills Have Eyes” (2006) a typical horror film
My topic
My study will look at the film the hills have eyes and look into if it can be said to be a pure horror film. I will look at the key conventions of horror films and how they have been shown and try and find similarities in the hills have eyes to prove it is a horror film. Many of the modern horror films have been accused of being “hybrid” genre horrors as they have borrowed aspects of other genres of film, it has been like this since the 1990s with various different films. The other thing I will be looking at is the representation of women in the hills have eyes, the female characters play a big part in making a horror films and their representation has always been a indicator of the genre of film, I will be analyzing the film to study the representation of women to find out how they have been represented and if there is a change from historic horror movies to present. I will be looking at the changes to see what the factor was that changed the representation. Aswell as looking at the female roles in horror films I will be looking at the representation of the main male protagonist to see how he has been shown. With the “new man” being on a rise I will look to see if the main male protagonist shows signs of being a new man or does he still display the traditional ideas about men. Also I will be looking the different aspects of horror films to see which are the most influential on horror films and what a “real” horror film is. I will also be looking at the sub genres of horror such as slasher movies, monster movies, survival horror etc.
Other films
In this study I am looking at what makes a typical horror therefore I will need to study a range of horror films so I will be able to pick up on the key conventions of the genre to see if the hills have eyes also displays this. I will be looking at other films which belong to the same genre to look for similarities and differences, the films I will be looking at are:
- Scream
- Halloween H20
- The Texas chainsaw massacre
- Psycho
- The hills have eyes (1977)
- The hills have eyes II
For each of the films above there is a reason for why I will be looking at them in terms of my study. Along with the films listed at the top I will look at other horror films to understand more about the genre but also I will analyze films such as scary movie as it is a parody of a horror which uses the key horror conventions and makes it humorous, by watching the films it will enable me to underling key horror points and allow me to make my answer more accurate. As said above I will be looking at the films for different reasons some will be to analyse the role of women some will be see change from historic texts to modern texts and some will be for the conventions of horror.
Scream
Scream is very similar to my main text of the hills have eyes, both films feature a female protagonist and the films have similar story lines. Scream is a movie which has been known to be a proper horror movie due its use of gory scenes and the use of realism which has become key to horror films over the years. I will look at scream and the conventions of horror it shows and then I will be able to find the convention in the hills have eyes to see if it matches up. I will also look to see if scream has borrowed conventions from other films if so could it be said that the new horror is a mix of traditional horror and conventions from other genres. Also from this film I will look at the last girl theory and see how that character is shown in horror movies.
Halloween H20
Another similar film to the text of my focus, this film also has a female protagonist and could also be classed a slasher film. Also this film is abit older then my text so it will allow me to see the stages of change from historical horror to new horror. Since this film has a female protagonist it will allow me to see if the representation of women is the same in the hills have eyes.
The Texas chainsaw massacre
Another film which follows the horror conventions, I will be able to compare this film as it is similar to both scream and Halloween, the film is also a good example of a slasher film so it will be useful and help me to categories weather the hills have eyes is a slasher film or something else. The film is also a good link to watch because the role of the female character and the actual role is very similar to the character in the hills have eyes.
Psycho
This film is the original horror film and best highlights the conventions of the horror genre, this will allow me to see how it was originally shown. This film will have the original representation of females and males as it is a historic text. I will input information about this film when I have to talk about the origins of horror and when I am comparing contempory horror with modern horror.
The hills have eyes 1977
This will be my main historical text as it is the original to the film I am looking at, this film will make it easier to see the difference and the impact of social change on the movie, I will talk about things like desensitizing of the audience and how it has become on of the key conventions to horror movies now. The role of women in the film were shown differently in that time which will allow me to talk about how women were shown before compared to now and if women’s role in horror films makes up the key point.
The hills have eyes II
This is the more contemporary version of my film so it will allow me to see where the genre of film is going and if the makers have changed certain things as the first hills have eyes is just a remake of a classic maybe with the second film it will allow the directors to put forth more modern ideas. After watching the film I found out that this prediction was true as there is more sex shown in the film, also the film has more of a modern feel to it.
My first paragraph will start of with talking about what my essay is about and define what media means by the word typical, “According to Daniel Chandler the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements” in a certain genre” this will just be a introduction to my essay allowing me to explain what I mean by a typical horror film and what I aim to do in the essay. ( Daniel chandler)
A typical horror
In this section I will look at all the different conventions which make a horror film. I will look at things such as the setting the use of violence and also the realism that is seen in horror films. One of the things I found from research and actually watching the movies is that every horror film has to offer a sense of a realism to its audiences for it to be scary otherwise it would not effect the audience therefore not scaring them “horrors never never land is bearable because it is so entirely rational” (Brian Murphy)
Horror conventions
In this section I will look more in-depth to the conventions of the horror movies and what the audience expect “one might say that the tire subject of the horror genre is the struggle for recognition of all that our civilization represses and oppresses" (Wood 1979). After explaining the horror conventions I will start to introduce the conventions in the hills have eyes and compare them with those of other horror films.
Hybrid genres
This section will feature information about the hybrid genre and the issue that has followed with all recent horror films how it has borrowed aspects of different genres to make the new horror genre. I will talk about the genre of the hills have eyes and what it could be and what has been mixed together to make this film. Also I will talk about different aspects of the film that do follow the horror genre but other things which do not.
Matching up the conventions
I will go through all the conventions of horror films and look for a link within the hills have eyes to see if the hills have eyes can be called a true horror film. Also in this section I will look at things that have changed so conventions that are now key to horror movies which weren’t before and then I will see if the hills have eyes possess these conventions.
Comparing old to new
Here I will do a full analysis of both films and compare them to each other to find out what social issues come up, there is a change in the film and I will explain why that change accured if it was down to the feminist movement or something else, I will highlight all the changes made from the new film to the old film and also to the film which was produced after my main film to see if there are any changes.
Representation of women
Here I will look at the way women have been shown in the horror movies and then compare it to the way women have been shown in the hills have eyes. Also I will look at the representation of women overall and see if the representation has changed over time if so then why this change could have accured. In the modern version of the film the female character seems to be less as powerful then she is in the olden one, this could be down to the fact that now the audience of horror films like to see helpless female characters in the film and at that time the idea was still in process so they may have not been aware of this at that time, another point of evidence to include is from the film Halloween h20 that the female character is seen to be strong much stronger then she would have been portrayed if the film had been produced today.
Another point inside of women’s representation that I will look at is if this representation of women is important to horror films, this leads me to my next point about the representation of males and how they are being shown in todays horror movies.
"The image of woman as (passive) raw material for the (active) gaze.....The argument returns again to the psychoanalytic background that woman as representation signifies castration ( Mulvey)
Sharon Smith Journal (1972): Women and Film "The role of women in a film almost always revolves around her physical attraction, and the mating games she plays with the male character
Representation of men
This will be similar to the female paragraph but will be about males, I will look at how males have been shown in horror movies compared to how it has been shown before, I will look at the way males have been shown in horror films and the reason why, I will also look at the relationship between the male character and the female character and what trends come up.
Also I will be looking at the new man in a closer look and seeing if there is any representation of the new man in horror films, if not what could the reason be to why the representation has changed if not isit because those who conform to being the new man may not enjoy horror movies.
Books
1 Burton G 1999: media and popular culture.
2 Mulvey, Laura, 1975,-'Visual pleasure and narrative cinema'
3 Sharon Smith Journal (1972): Women and Film
4 Wood 1979: introduction
5 Brian Murphy : monster movies
6 Maltby, Richard: Hollywood Cinema
7 The cinema book
My topic
My study will look at the film the hills have eyes and look into if it can be said to be a pure horror film. I will look at the key conventions of horror films and how they have been shown and try and find similarities in the hills have eyes to prove it is a horror film. Many of the modern horror films have been accused of being “hybrid” genre horrors as they have borrowed aspects of other genres of film, it has been like this since the 1990s with various different films. The other thing I will be looking at is the representation of women in the hills have eyes, the female characters play a big part in making a horror films and their representation has always been a indicator of the genre of film, I will be analyzing the film to study the representation of women to find out how they have been represented and if there is a change from historic horror movies to present. I will be looking at the changes to see what the factor was that changed the representation. Aswell as looking at the female roles in horror films I will be looking at the representation of the main male protagonist to see how he has been shown. With the “new man” being on a rise I will look to see if the main male protagonist shows signs of being a new man or does he still display the traditional ideas about men. Also I will be looking the different aspects of horror films to see which are the most influential on horror films and what a “real” horror film is. I will also be looking at the sub genres of horror such as slasher movies, monster movies, survival horror etc.
Other films
In this study I am looking at what makes a typical horror therefore I will need to study a range of horror films so I will be able to pick up on the key conventions of the genre to see if the hills have eyes also displays this. I will be looking at other films which belong to the same genre to look for similarities and differences, the films I will be looking at are:
- Scream
- Halloween H20
- The Texas chainsaw massacre
- Psycho
- The hills have eyes (1977)
- The hills have eyes II
For each of the films above there is a reason for why I will be looking at them in terms of my study. Along with the films listed at the top I will look at other horror films to understand more about the genre but also I will analyze films such as scary movie as it is a parody of a horror which uses the key horror conventions and makes it humorous, by watching the films it will enable me to underling key horror points and allow me to make my answer more accurate. As said above I will be looking at the films for different reasons some will be to analyse the role of women some will be see change from historic texts to modern texts and some will be for the conventions of horror.
Scream
Scream is very similar to my main text of the hills have eyes, both films feature a female protagonist and the films have similar story lines. Scream is a movie which has been known to be a proper horror movie due its use of gory scenes and the use of realism which has become key to horror films over the years. I will look at scream and the conventions of horror it shows and then I will be able to find the convention in the hills have eyes to see if it matches up. I will also look to see if scream has borrowed conventions from other films if so could it be said that the new horror is a mix of traditional horror and conventions from other genres. Also from this film I will look at the last girl theory and see how that character is shown in horror movies.
Halloween H20
Another similar film to the text of my focus, this film also has a female protagonist and could also be classed a slasher film. Also this film is abit older then my text so it will allow me to see the stages of change from historical horror to new horror. Since this film has a female protagonist it will allow me to see if the representation of women is the same in the hills have eyes.
The Texas chainsaw massacre
Another film which follows the horror conventions, I will be able to compare this film as it is similar to both scream and Halloween, the film is also a good example of a slasher film so it will be useful and help me to categories weather the hills have eyes is a slasher film or something else. The film is also a good link to watch because the role of the female character and the actual role is very similar to the character in the hills have eyes.
Psycho
This film is the original horror film and best highlights the conventions of the horror genre, this will allow me to see how it was originally shown. This film will have the original representation of females and males as it is a historic text. I will input information about this film when I have to talk about the origins of horror and when I am comparing contempory horror with modern horror.
The hills have eyes 1977
This will be my main historical text as it is the original to the film I am looking at, this film will make it easier to see the difference and the impact of social change on the movie, I will talk about things like desensitizing of the audience and how it has become on of the key conventions to horror movies now. The role of women in the film were shown differently in that time which will allow me to talk about how women were shown before compared to now and if women’s role in horror films makes up the key point.
The hills have eyes II
This is the more contemporary version of my film so it will allow me to see where the genre of film is going and if the makers have changed certain things as the first hills have eyes is just a remake of a classic maybe with the second film it will allow the directors to put forth more modern ideas. After watching the film I found out that this prediction was true as there is more sex shown in the film, also the film has more of a modern feel to it.
My first paragraph will start of with talking about what my essay is about and define what media means by the word typical, “According to Daniel Chandler the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements” in a certain genre” this will just be a introduction to my essay allowing me to explain what I mean by a typical horror film and what I aim to do in the essay. ( Daniel chandler)
A typical horror
In this section I will look at all the different conventions which make a horror film. I will look at things such as the setting the use of violence and also the realism that is seen in horror films. One of the things I found from research and actually watching the movies is that every horror film has to offer a sense of a realism to its audiences for it to be scary otherwise it would not effect the audience therefore not scaring them “horrors never never land is bearable because it is so entirely rational” (Brian Murphy)
Horror conventions
In this section I will look more in-depth to the conventions of the horror movies and what the audience expect “one might say that the tire subject of the horror genre is the struggle for recognition of all that our civilization represses and oppresses" (Wood 1979). After explaining the horror conventions I will start to introduce the conventions in the hills have eyes and compare them with those of other horror films.
Hybrid genres
This section will feature information about the hybrid genre and the issue that has followed with all recent horror films how it has borrowed aspects of different genres to make the new horror genre. I will talk about the genre of the hills have eyes and what it could be and what has been mixed together to make this film. Also I will talk about different aspects of the film that do follow the horror genre but other things which do not.
Matching up the conventions
I will go through all the conventions of horror films and look for a link within the hills have eyes to see if the hills have eyes can be called a true horror film. Also in this section I will look at things that have changed so conventions that are now key to horror movies which weren’t before and then I will see if the hills have eyes possess these conventions.
Comparing old to new
Here I will do a full analysis of both films and compare them to each other to find out what social issues come up, there is a change in the film and I will explain why that change accured if it was down to the feminist movement or something else, I will highlight all the changes made from the new film to the old film and also to the film which was produced after my main film to see if there are any changes.
Representation of women
Here I will look at the way women have been shown in the horror movies and then compare it to the way women have been shown in the hills have eyes. Also I will look at the representation of women overall and see if the representation has changed over time if so then why this change could have accured. In the modern version of the film the female character seems to be less as powerful then she is in the olden one, this could be down to the fact that now the audience of horror films like to see helpless female characters in the film and at that time the idea was still in process so they may have not been aware of this at that time, another point of evidence to include is from the film Halloween h20 that the female character is seen to be strong much stronger then she would have been portrayed if the film had been produced today.
Another point inside of women’s representation that I will look at is if this representation of women is important to horror films, this leads me to my next point about the representation of males and how they are being shown in todays horror movies.
"The image of woman as (passive) raw material for the (active) gaze.....The argument returns again to the psychoanalytic background that woman as representation signifies castration ( Mulvey)
Sharon Smith Journal (1972): Women and Film "The role of women in a film almost always revolves around her physical attraction, and the mating games she plays with the male character
Representation of men
This will be similar to the female paragraph but will be about males, I will look at how males have been shown in horror movies compared to how it has been shown before, I will look at the way males have been shown in horror films and the reason why, I will also look at the relationship between the male character and the female character and what trends come up.
Also I will be looking at the new man in a closer look and seeing if there is any representation of the new man in horror films, if not what could the reason be to why the representation has changed if not isit because those who conform to being the new man may not enjoy horror movies.
Books
1 Burton G 1999: media and popular culture.
2 Mulvey, Laura, 1975,-'Visual pleasure and narrative cinema'
3 Sharon Smith Journal (1972): Women and Film
4 Wood 1979: introduction
5 Brian Murphy : monster movies
6 Maltby, Richard: Hollywood Cinema
7 The cinema book
Saturday, January 3, 2009
First Paragraph
Is the “Hills Have Eyes” (2006) a typical horror film?
According to Daniel Chandler the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements” in a certain genre. The horror genre has many conventions that stand out that have been recognized as key aspects of the horror genre, things such as “the last girl” and “Evil Entity”. The hills have eyes shows some of the conventions of a typical horror film but it has also borrowed many ideas from other genres of film, so can it still be classed as a horror? or is it a hybrid genre? I will be looking at the representation of women and the changes in society and how they have impacted the horror genre.
According to Daniel Chandler the word typical represents the “repertoire of elements” in a certain genre. The horror genre has many conventions that stand out that have been recognized as key aspects of the horror genre, things such as “the last girl” and “Evil Entity”. The hills have eyes shows some of the conventions of a typical horror film but it has also borrowed many ideas from other genres of film, so can it still be classed as a horror? or is it a hybrid genre? I will be looking at the representation of women and the changes in society and how they have impacted the horror genre.
Historical Texts
The main historical text I will be looking at is the original hills have eyes made in 1977 made by the director Wes Craven who is a known director in the horror and thriller genre. The original hills have eyes will be useful to study as it will highlight the changes in society and changes within representation from the 70’s and today. Analysing the text will allow me to compare differences from the films and then allow me to think about why this change has happened is it due to female rights, or the rise of feminists.
After watching the hills have eyes 1977 I compared it to the more contemporary version of the film which was produced in 2006, after watching the original I found some similarities but also some differences. The first thing I looked at was the representation of women in the film, in this film women were not shown as being promiscuous as the clothing they wore covered their bodies and they did not act in a way which gave a impression of them being promiscuous. The one scene showed a female character putting her top back on while sleeping with her husband, this shows women still have a sex life but the movie promotes the idea of sex after marriage which was a important issue in them and days. In the 2006 edition of the film women were shown differently by the use of clothing is well, one of the first scenes in the film shows the female character wearing a bra only which connotes ideas of sex which shows in today’s society that idea is more of a norm.
In both of the films there is a similar scene where the villains come to sexually abuse the female character within this scene I picked on many similarities and differences. Both of the films show women being abused by men and being treated in a harsh way, the films show the male character throwing the female around and forcing her to have sex this shows that the idea of men being more powerful then women and men having the right to do what they like with women is still around. However one difference is the explicitness of the scenes, the 1977 version is no way as bad as the 2006 version showing that the audience have become desensitised and are used too explicit content that is the usual in the genre. Another difference I found which was interesting was the reaction of the female characters, surprisingly the female characters of the 1977 film put up more of a fight then the 2006 characters. The 2006 film seems to show male dominance being more powerful then before which was strange as society is seen to be more equal now then before but the horror genre has seem to kept its original morals and values. Even through all of this the female characters are still shown as good carers as the female character in both films are shown to sacrifice their own lives for their babies.
From analysing both texts I found how the genre itself has changed, one change in the genre could be that it has fused with other genres as contemporary horror films now show a lot more sexual scenes then before, there was definitely nude scenes in horror films before but now they are scenes of characters having sex which were uncommon before, this means that horror films now offer their audiences aspects of other genres in their films. this film does not show a change in society in terms of how people represented and also with women’s rights showing that the horror genre has stuck to its original ideas and still shows women in the same way which they did before.
After watching the hills have eyes 1977 I compared it to the more contemporary version of the film which was produced in 2006, after watching the original I found some similarities but also some differences. The first thing I looked at was the representation of women in the film, in this film women were not shown as being promiscuous as the clothing they wore covered their bodies and they did not act in a way which gave a impression of them being promiscuous. The one scene showed a female character putting her top back on while sleeping with her husband, this shows women still have a sex life but the movie promotes the idea of sex after marriage which was a important issue in them and days. In the 2006 edition of the film women were shown differently by the use of clothing is well, one of the first scenes in the film shows the female character wearing a bra only which connotes ideas of sex which shows in today’s society that idea is more of a norm.
In both of the films there is a similar scene where the villains come to sexually abuse the female character within this scene I picked on many similarities and differences. Both of the films show women being abused by men and being treated in a harsh way, the films show the male character throwing the female around and forcing her to have sex this shows that the idea of men being more powerful then women and men having the right to do what they like with women is still around. However one difference is the explicitness of the scenes, the 1977 version is no way as bad as the 2006 version showing that the audience have become desensitised and are used too explicit content that is the usual in the genre. Another difference I found which was interesting was the reaction of the female characters, surprisingly the female characters of the 1977 film put up more of a fight then the 2006 characters. The 2006 film seems to show male dominance being more powerful then before which was strange as society is seen to be more equal now then before but the horror genre has seem to kept its original morals and values. Even through all of this the female characters are still shown as good carers as the female character in both films are shown to sacrifice their own lives for their babies.
From analysing both texts I found how the genre itself has changed, one change in the genre could be that it has fused with other genres as contemporary horror films now show a lot more sexual scenes then before, there was definitely nude scenes in horror films before but now they are scenes of characters having sex which were uncommon before, this means that horror films now offer their audiences aspects of other genres in their films. this film does not show a change in society in terms of how people represented and also with women’s rights showing that the horror genre has stuck to its original ideas and still shows women in the same way which they did before.
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