The Jaded Horror Fan – A Horrible Threesome
Steve Wood
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Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger, and Michael Myers – the best of the slashers and, in some cases, the originators of the genre. Everyone has their favorite, and here I will lay out my argument for mine while discussing the others.
I’ll start with Myers and Halloween since it was the first of these three series to have a film release. I wasn’t around during its initial run, and honestly, it took some time to go back and see it, but I was seriously impressed. The biggest difference between this series, at least the original, and the others is the cast and acting. 1978’s Halloween stands out due to the fact it was taken seriously and wasn’t shot only for its shock value.
When compared to the other slasher movies, there isn’t really too much violence shown on screen; yet, Halloween is considered arguably the best slasher movie of all time. In reality, though, being thrown into that sub-genre is a bit of a disservice. A better categorization would be a psychological thriller with bits of violence thrown in. Nick Castle’s portrayal of The Shape is something else that should be taken into consideration as he was played simple, yet haunting and powerful.
Next up is Voorhees and Friday the 13th Part 2. This was my introduction to the slasher sub-genre and where I found my love for watching mindless teens be murdered in gruesome and creative ways by a dude wearing a sack on his head. Though Jason is a fun character, there is little to him, and the series ultimately turned into a joke where the payoff for each film was either how Jason would kill the teens or how he would be dispatched at the end.
While I did enjoy all of them, including Manhattan and Jason X, there was always something missing from this series, and I doubt anything substantial will ever be developed. But if you like violence with no sense of story, this is the series for you.
Lastly is Freddy and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Out of the trinity, Freddy was always the scariest character to me for a couple of reasons – the way he looked and the fact he came after you while you were dreaming. Every kid has nightmares, and some have them after watching a movie. Well, when that movie’s plot revolves around a killer coming after you in your dreams, you’re bound for some long nights or even hopping into your parents’ bed.
It is also worth noting that Englund’s portrayal of Freddy required the most “acting” out of the three, as he actually had dialogue and you could see his face. In doing this, a lot of the seriousness was taken away and some comedy was thrown in, mainly in the dialogue, but some of the kills were deliberately preposterous and absurd, which only added to the humor. All the funny business still didn’t change the fact that Freddy was the most “scary” to me.
I mentioned that we all have our favorite and reasons for it… well, mine is Michael Myers, and the reason is simply that he has no motivation for what he does. Dr. Loomis spent almost two decades trying to get behind the dead eyes of Myers to no avail and ultimately determined that he was evil incarnate. Both Jason and Freddy were psychopaths, yes, but their motivation was merely revenge, which is okay, but I prefer the not knowing.
I know I’ll probably get some scoffs for this one since I didn’t dig into the movies or any of the sequels, but I only wanted to speak on the killers themselves.
Who is your favorite, and what is the reason behind it?
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