Scream and Scream Again: A History of the Slasher Film

Scream and Scream Again: A History of the Slasher Film (2000)

*** (out of 4)

Wes Craven, Tobe Hooper, John Carpenter, Gunnar Hansen, Robert Englund, Sean Cunningham, Tom Savini and William Lustig are just a few of the famous faces that appear in this documentary, which covers the history of slasher movies.,

If you're a fan of horror movies then you're probably like me and will watch any sort of documentary on the subject. With that said, if you're expecting the "history" of horror movies out of this documentary then you're going to be disappointed because a better title would have been "A History of Mainstream Horror Movies."

I say that because the majority of the running time is devoted to HALLOWEEN, THE Texas CHAN SAW MASSACRE, Friday THE 13TH, A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET and SCREAM. These are the films that get the majority of the attention and most of the other known slashers are either never mentioned or we just get a look at their posters.

So, yes the title of this is rather misleading but if you're a fan of the genre then I'm sure you'll enjoy what interviews are here. The stories we're told aren't anything we haven't already heard countless times before but we're horror fans so we love this type of stuff.

This documentary into the history of slasher films provides an interesting introduction to the genre from Psycho in the sixties, their heyday in the seventies and eighties with films like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Halloween, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street, how they went downhill with excessive sequels where the villains become the real stars of the films and there are more cheap laughs than scares and final finishes with the rise of the self-aware slashers like Scream and their parodies. Since this was made in 2000 it doesn't get as far as the more recent trend of remaking the early horror classics. Mark Kermode is a good presenter but the real treat is getting to see interviews with so many of the people involved in making these films Including the likes of Wes Craven, Robert Englund and Tobe Hooper.

While slasher films are far from my favourite genre this was an interesting film where those interviewed had something worthwhile to say rather than just go on about how great their films are. One thing we learn for sure is that every time the genre is declared dead it returns much like the villain returning in the next sequel.

Originally shown as part of a C4 season of slasher films, including the original 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre', 'Wes Craven's New Nightmare' and 'Scream', this documentary, presented by Mark "the-Exorcist-is-the-best-film-ever-made" Kermode is a very interesting and thorough journey through the films from which modern day horror icons such as Michael Myers, Freddy Kruger, Jason Voorhees and Leatherface were born. With interviews from Wes Craven, Tobe Hooper, Sean S. Cunningham, Tom Savini, Gunner Hansen, and exploring the origins of their creations in real life cases such as that of the Wisconsin man Ed Gein, the film explored the fascination with the 'mad and macabre' and tries to shed light on why people enjoy being scared. With the Nightmare on Elm Street series, the bizarre celebrity status that the child-molester Freddy Kruger enjoyed (with even Freddy Pyjamas being available at one point)is touched upon, as is the in-depth look at the Friday 13th series of films. As Kermode walks around the filming locations for such iconic horror moments as the closing scenes at Camp Crystal Lake, and the suburban stillness of 'Haddonfield' it is very easy to become interested in these much forgotten films of the 70s and 80s. Even the lesser known entries into the genre such as 'Chopping Mall' 'Prom Night' and 'Graduation Day' get a mention. Noticing that Bob Clark's 'Black Christmas' was a forerunner to 'Halloween', and acknowledging Hitchcock's 'Psycho' and Mario Bava's 'Bay of Blood' deserves praise in itself, but credit must go to the makers for managing to compile an interesting and impressive collection of interviews with the masters of horror, talking even to John Carpenter. Whilst occasionally seeming apologetic for its own interest in the genre, the final tone of the documentary is that of defiant enjoyment. As Kermodes final summary at the end of the film clearly states. What with the embarrassingly never-ending torrent from Hollywood of the remakes of films such as 'Texas Chainsaw', 'The Hills Have Eyes', 'Black Christmas', 'Amityville' 'The Hitcher' 'When a Stranger Calls', and numerous others, watching this introductory documentary is a perfect way to get excited by the original masterpieces all over again.