Hybridity, Pastiche and Parody

The 2012 film Cabin in the Woods directed by Drew Goddard is a very self-aware film which deconstructs the tropes of the horror genre whilst also entertaining audiences. Initially the film starts as a stereotypical horror film; a group of friends who go up to ‘a cabin in the woods’, which is very eerie and spooky. It is then soon revealed that the group is being recorded by 2 operators who are controlling  their actions, personalities and surroundings. The film gives commentary to the horror genre as it is revealed the stereotypical character archetypes of ‘the athlete’, ‘the scholar’, ‘the whore’, ‘the virgin’, ‘the fool’ are needed for a ritual to the ‘Gods’.

A film series that I absolutely love that also manages to  play on the idea of parody and pastiche is the 2015 comedy horror series Scream Queens. The series is hyper-stylised and plays homage to horror classics and slasher films as well as high school comedies. The series has a similar to the tone to the 1996 American Slasher film Scream which was directed by Wes Craven, which can even be seen referenced in the title ‘Scream’ Queens. The characters of the three ‘Chanels’ also references to the 1988 dark comedy film Heathers, which features a clique of 3 ‘Heathers’.

In 1996 Scream it parodies the genre whilst still remaining to be of that genre, as the characters find themselves aware that they are in a horror film. In the film we see the characters discussing the ‘rules’ of surviving, ‘don’t have sex, don’t open the door, don’t say you will be right back, don’t split up..’ etc.

Although I am not really fan of the horror or slasher film genre, I find myself very interested and entertained by the pastiche and parody of horror and slasher films, as they are able to both provide humour and add commentary to the horror/slasher genre itself.

 

 

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