Women in Horror: Ten Female Characters that Break the Mold of Convention
by Marc Patterson
As we’re closing out Women in Horror month 2011 I feel like it wouldn’t be complete for us if I didn’t take the opportunity as the owner and “editor-in-chief” of this website to highlight some of the female archetypes in genre film that, for me, exemplify strength in a female role. In constructing my list I went through the process of re-watching some films, and really scrutinizing characters to pick out ones that I felt, as a man, were particularly well-written and portrayed. The result is a list that is less than obvious. I can’t say that I didn’t intend for it to be that way. I wanted to allude to some off-beat and less than obvious choices. I also wanted my male perspective to come through strongly. It would be a dishonest representation if I suppressed that perspective in favor of more popular and more acceptable choices.
How did I choose the ladies on this list, pulling them from the hundreds of others? First, I wanted there to be a personal connection for myself. These are all films which I admire and have seen more than once. They are ones that I would call favorites. I wanted to eliminate the distancing effect of picking a film because it’s important on a larger scale, or to the majority of genre fans, but not necessarily important to me. When all is said and done the most significant impact a film can have is that of the impact upon an individual. A film succeeds in being most powerful in the intimacy that comes when you’re pulled into it completely. Second, with the field narrowed I looked at films where women rose above both adversity and their pre-determined station to overcome whatever conflict was presented. I eliminated films where weak women became strong in a final moment. I looked for those films where the woman never backed down, was always strong, always a force to be reckoned with, even if she fell as a victim and was overpowered by her oppressors. Horror as a genre is one that rings truthful, more than any other genre, that good does not always triumph over evil. In spite of this truth, it should never take away from the inherent virtue in fighting for good. Finally, I looked at films where the woman embraced her femininity and sexuality and used them in a way that made her strong. Often in the conversation around equality and recognition there is a suppression of sexuality. Men are made to feel dirty, or worse – as a lesser being, for simply being men. I fiercely believe in equality in all aspects of life. Additionally, I’ll never deny that which makes me a man. It’s perfectly okay for men to want to look at women and admire their beauty, and vice versa. It’s part of the human experience. It’s how we survive, and we should never deny it, rather embrace it with a sense of mutual respect. And I need to stress RESPECT. Last, but not least — and perhaps this is redundant at this point — I looked for women who exhibited grace, beauty, decisiveness (and sometimes defiance), wit, charm, and smarts.
With all that said, here is my list of ten leading ladies that I love and who have my undying adoration from now until years to come…
Sigourney Weaver as Ripley in Alien – This woman has to be at the top of nearly every list. In my introduction I mentioned this list would be less than obvious and out of the gate is the character who is on EVERYONE’s list, but with good reason and purpose. More so than any character in the world of horror, Ripley stands as a shining example of everything I spoke to. Sigourney Weaver’s portrayal of Ripley is stunning perfection. Ripley is every bit the equal amongst a crew on the Nostromo that is dominated by men, but she’s not a testosterone fueled woman that can hang with the boys. She is sexy (though that hardly dominates her character) decisive, and above all a survivor. In the grand scope of the film, she’s a stronger character than her male counterparts and twice as smart.
Pam Grier as Coffy in Coffy – There’s absolutely no way I could construct this list without mentioning Pam Grier, which is why I kept it open to genre film and not strictly horror. Forget about Shaft. Coffy is one bad motherfucker. She’s an object of men’s desire, but not one to be trifled with. She’s a sexually charged predator, using her stunning beauty to bring the mob to justice, while at the same time never tipping the scales towards being lascivious. She’s the reigning queen of the blaxploitation film, a woman that demands R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Dig it.
Camille Keaton as Jennifer in I Spit on Your Grave – Oh I could get myself into hot water on this one. Is Camille Keaton’s depiction of Jennifer in I Spit on Your Grave a bold and empowered feminist, or is this a wanton woman who was looking for trouble and got it? I’m down with Joe Bob Briggs on this one. Jennifer was a proper feminist in every way. Comfortable in her own skin, on her own, with no need of a man. When outnumbered and attacked who could triumph? But she held her own to the end, and when the cards were down didn’t lean on a man or the law to settle her vendetta. She stood squarely on her own and took care of business. And as the tagline states – what jury would convict her?
Natalie Jackson Mendoza as Juno in The Descent – There could be a loaded debate here as to whether or not Sarah or Juno might have made a better pick for this list. In carefully looking at the film I sided with Juno over Sarah. Sarah, though psychologically wounded from the loss of her husband and daughter, never really recovered and never was able to stand and make a strong choice on her own. For better or worse that person was Juno. No question Juno is a flawed character and one set up to be the antagonist amongst the group of women. However, I found her to be the strongest of the bunch and the most human. She exhibited smarts under pressure and took the reigns to lead the way in a dire situation, even when that situation was of her own making and even when the consequences proved deadly.
Reike Ike as Ocho in Sex & Fury – If you thought that including I Spit on Your Grave on this list was controversy then clearly I must be going for incendiary. After all, what sort of lunatic would have the audacity to cite a Japanese pink film and in the same breath talk about strong women? Obviously, I’m that man. I’m not going to argue that Sex & Fury is a straight-up violent blood-bath of sexploitation, rampant with murder and revenge gone wild. There is an intense debate a mile long that could take place surrounding this film as being pro-feminism, or a product of a system that wishes to own and enslave women as pure objects. However, as interesting as that is, it’s also missing the point for the moment. What we’re talking about in this moment is the character of Ocho. Yes, she was designed to titillate a largely male audience, but she’s a defiant woman that will not be dominated nor owned by any man. Ocho is a liberated woman. She is independent and she kills a fuck-ton of men. Though she does so in the name of vengeance I would debate until I’m blue in the face it has nothing to do with revenge. It’s because she has a blood-lust for anyone and anything that represents oppression. And to me, anyone who is willing to fight tooth and nail for freedom and equality, who stands unashamed of who they are, deserves recognition.
Yeong-ae Lee as Geum-ja Lee in Lady Vengeance – Geum-ja is a virtuous and angelic being blackmailed and imprisoned for a wrong she didn’t commit. Thirteen years in prison were served by quietly concocting a plan for revenge. To look at Geum-ja from a distance might reveal a woman teetering on the brink of insanity, but there is so much more going on that begs a closer look. It’s clear that Geum-ja plays up this appearance of lunacy as though she is a method actor delivering on demand when necessary. Her hardened resolve for personal justice is but a single facet of her being, and alone wouldn’t have been enough for her to make this list. She’s a mother to her inmates, donating an organ to keep one alive, nursing another back to health, defending another from bathhouse rape, all the while carefully constructing an elaborate plan for uncompromising vengeance that she will carry out with heartless exactitude. Hardly a lunatic. Truly an angel… of vengeance.
Radha Mitchell as Rose in Silent Hill – “Mother is the word for God on the hearts and lips of all little children” – William Makepeace Thackeray (or perhaps Eric Draven?) Rose is the consummate mother superior. A woman who is an unlikely heroine, and would shun that word, but one that does not back down from the darkest of evils in order to find and protect that which is hers. She is the Messiah, willing to lay down her life for that of her child, who will go it alone to the pit of hell. To be portrayed by Radha Mitchell, a woman with a stellar track record for taking on sophisticated roles that never play the victim, only strengthened the character, which may have suffered under other names.
Jen & Sylvia Soska as Geek and Badass (respectively) in Dead Hooker in a Trunk – At this point I’ve taken this list all over the place. Might as well bring it back home with a couple of independent gals who have been getting a lot of attention lately. As a whole Dead Hooker in a Trunk was a thoroughly entertaining film made by a couple of sisters who are working to increase the profile for women working in horror. Clearly it’s easy for me to slip into talking about the women behind the film while this should be focused on the characters they portray, but here it’s especially difficult to separate the filmmakers from their role in that they wrote the parts, and I think that’s what makes these characters so endearing. Geek and Badass sit diametrically opposed to each other but unified in their sisterhood. Their characters are easy to love, but don’t pull any punches, especially Badass. Without downplaying the achievements of their contemporaries, so many actresses are striving to stand out from the pack while Jen & Sylvia just do it.
Jenny Wright as Mae from Near Dark – Sure she’s a vampire, and that might make her more monster than human and in some regards diminish her womanhood, but honestly? I hardly think so. Though Adrian Pasdar gets the headlining role in the cast I’ve always thought that it should have been Jenny’s. I never really cared much about Caleb and his plight. He’s a great plot device, but the real story of interest was that of Mae, the vampire cowgirl drifter who wants everything a normal girl wants, and is willing to sacrifice herself for it. She runs with a sadistic bunch of killers and isn’t an exception to exacting brutality when called for. Some might argue that her ultimate transition back to being human was accomplished by a man, and that takes away from the feminine strength of the character, but I think you’d really be splitting hairs to infer such a thing. Plus, I’d also sidestep the argument and let you take that up with Kathryn Bigelow, who scripted and directed the film.
