Feb 23, 2021
So much has been written about the final girl that the term has become shorthand for the feminine role in horror. But the trope of the final girl, which rose to fame in the 1970s and 80s, doesn’t represent all women in horror. The final girl is a fighter, who uses her intellect and cunning to survive the movie villain’s massacre. The problem, though, is that the final girl is so named because she is the only one left standing; the rest of the women fall to the murderer’s knife, or weapon of choice. But, if we rewind horror history just a decade or two, we see a broader range of female characters. Hammer Horror was famous for its actresses, most of them fitting a certain image: wide-eyed, buxom, often blonde. Beyond the “look,” these women played a wide range of characters. From conniving villains to sharp-toothed monsters to fierce fighters, the women of Hammer Horror were a bright spot in Horror History.
Recommended in this episode: 12 Hour Shift
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Our social media is @MonsterWrote on Twitter and Instagram. Our email is monsterwrote@gmail.com. This episode was produced and researched by Lisa and Mel. Theme music is “Misconception” by Nicolas Gasparini, used with permission.