2 of 2

Write now Article Tools

Page 3 of 3

Evil, and returns for both Halloween and Friday The 13th. But 1980 was not done with the slasher movie, Jamie Lee Curtis and Leslie Nielson starred in the movie Prom Night in which a killer with a grudge stalked celebrating teens. A young Tom Hanks starred in the brilliantly suspenseful He Knows Your Alone, a young bride to be comes face to face with a brutal killer that is of course after he has despatched all of her friends.

Maniac saw a New York man going to pieces while stealing parts from ladies of the city; and Jamie Lee Curtis returned to the horror genre again for Terror Train.

In 1982 journalist Deborah Ballin (Lee Grant) becomes stalked by a nutcase (played by Michael Ironside) in the movie Visiting Hours. Banned in the UK television channel ITV made the terrible mistake of showing the movie uncut, the result was expensive for the network.

Another legend was born in 1983, but it was so "out there" that until recent years it was forgotten. The movie Sleepaway Camp featured the most shocking final revelation of any of the slasher movies, taking a nod and a wink from Friday The 13th the movies finale left people completely gobsmacked.

The next big landmark in the genre was in 1984 when another legend was born, Freddy Kruger stalked the dreams of the kids in the picturesque location of Elm Street in the movie A Nightmare On Elm Street. Freddy Kruger was a child abuser burned to death by the residents of Elm Street many years prior to the original movie, but the vengeful Kruger returned to haunt the dreams of teens, if Kruger killed his prey in their dreams they also died in real life.

As the 1980's continued more Friday The 13th's, Elm Street's and Halloweens saturated the slasher genre. But it was the cleverly scripted April Fools Day in 1986 that put the death nail in the coffin of the slasher movie until ten years later. April Fool's Day had a pretty bizarre ending that was both loved and hated by horror movie enthusiasts, some went as far as to say they had been cheated. Whatever the case the movie ended the run of slasher movies, and until 1996 horror movies became just a dirty word.

For the third time Wes Craven caused a stir in 1996, having mortified audiences with Last House On The Left, and caused a whirlwind with The Nightmare On Elm Street movies, Wes Craven returned with the movie Scream. This new breed of slasher movie mixed graphic horror and comedy together and shook it up vigorously. Scream re-energised the horror movie genre, and proved there was still life in the slasher genre. While it charged up the slasher genre, it was only Scream and its two sequels that occupied the slasher mantel of the 90's into the early 2000's.

In 2007 having caused controversy with his movies House of A 1000 Corpses, and the Devil's Rejects, maverick director/musician Rob Zombie remade Halloween. This movie delivered something far more terrifying than the original and insured the way for a series of movie remakes, Friday The 13th, My Bloody Valentine, and Terror Train are all in production to bring the slasher movie to a whole new generation.

Learn more about this author, Spencer Hawken.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3

Add your voice

Know something about The slasher movie: An introduction?
We want to hear your view. Write now!