Slashers have been part of Hollywood film-making since nearly the very beginning of the art itself, and are themselves offshoots of the classic revenge plots so popular to late 19th-, early 20th-Century playwrights. The Terror from 1928, Thirteen Women in 1932, and The Leopard Man from 1943 are all early examples of the maniac seeking revenge plotline in film. But it wasn't until a genius of cinema brought us probably his most famous work in 1960 that the modern slasher film was born.
Now, to be fair, since the majority of modern slasher films are franchises, I will only be picking one entry if there are multiple films.
With that being said, let's get to the list:
10: House of Wax
Released in 1953, House of Wax is a remake of an even earlier film, The Mystery of the Wax Museum, and was directed by Andre DeToth and starred the unequaled Vincent Price. While not technically a slasher by the modern definition, it did influence many later directors and had many of the themes and plot devices that would later become tropes of the slasher genre.
Vincent Price stars as a talented wax sculptor who is disfigured in a fire set by the owner of the wax museum he works at. Years later, he rebuilds the titular location with the help of his mute sculptor Igor (because of course his name was Igor) and his assistant Leon. Despite his preference for historical figures, Price's Professor Jarrod decides to include a House of Horrors section with infamous crimes from history. A hooded figure starts killing people and bodies start disappearing from morgues, only for wax figures bearing their uncanny likenesses to start appearing in the House of Wax.
Like many 50's horror films, House of Wax is a gimmick film, using the new 3-D technique to draw in audiences. But rather than being a hindrance, it actually works in the film's favour, especially during a scene where a shadowy figure appears to rise from in front of the screen and then runs into it. The reason for this success is because the film's director only had one eye, and was thus unable to see in stereoscopic 3-D, so he focused on making an effective thriller without worrying about throwing everything at the camera as many films of this type would do. Hokey by today's standards and the acting can seem a little stilted at times, but the director does manage to create an atmosphere of mystery, and despite it being pretty obvious what's going on as soon as the action really starts, the reveal near the end is still pretty effective and creepy to this day.
9: Peeping Tom
Another early example of the slasher film, this film was released in the same year (1960) as a much more famous film of the genre, and was panned by critics and audiences for its tone, themes, and subject matter and nearly ended the director's career. Considered by many to be the first 'modern' slasher, Peeping Tom follows a voyeur who films the murder of young woman so that he can watch their faces as they die.
Carl Böhm, in his most famous role, portrays Mark as cold, socially awkward but yet somehow still intriguing in a macabre sort of way. And while Mark is clearly the worst kind of monster, one hiding in plain sight, the film still makes him somewhat sympathetic in the way it portrays his descent into this insanity which now consumes him. I won't spoil it for those that haven't seen it, nor will I spoil its visceral, gut-wrenching climax, but just know that this is probably one of the greatest examples of slow-burn psychology in film.
8: The Hills Have Eyes
Wes Craven's 1977 exploitation film, The Hills Have Eyes, is rarely regarded as a slasher film because it doesn't follow the modern slasher trope of following the exploits of the killers. But, I feel that that is a little shortsighted in that this film contains many of the themes of slashers. Family stranded in the desert, hunted by cannibalistic savages, and increasingly gruesome deaths. All hallmarks of the slasher film, the only difference being that we want the family to make it out alive, though we know instinctively that that won't happen.
Deliberately, achingly slow build-up, genuine moments of dread, claustrophobia, and fear of the unknown mark the feelings that this film evokes. And like Jaws, you actually see very little of the killers, just the aftermath. And by the time you do see Papa Jupiter, unexpectedly crashing through a window after someone, it just drives the action to full throttle, from which master Wes Craven never lets off of.
7: Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
Immediately following on from Friday the 13th Part III, The Final Chapter begins with Jason being taken to the morgue, waking up and going on a killing spree. Not much different than any of the other films in the franchise before it or after it during the Paramount era. But, there is one main difference.
This was meant to be the last film and the director was given complete creative control to end the franchise as he saw fit and he used that license to craft probably the most tense film in the series next to the original. And while it would have been easy to choose the first film, which is a great film for what it is, but I really do feel that The Final Chapter is a better film in a number of ways.
First, while the first film is technically a slasher, it is really a thriller in execution, which works fine for this movie. But it also works against it as you have to build the world of this story and prevent the identity of the killer from being revealed too early. By the second film, Mama Vorhees is dead and Jason is introduced, followed by the introduction of the mask in the the third. So, by the fourth film, Jason is a well established character with a well established modus operandi and we can simply ignore building that and get to what we go to Friday the 13th films for, the killing.
Second, because this was supposed to be the last film, the director was allowed complete control and decided to give Jason what he viewed as a proper send off , the high body count, and the introduction of a child survivor. And the film works, too. More tightly plotted than parts 2 or 3 and with better production values than most of the sequels to follow, this film is basically the perfect example of how to make sympathetic characters in a slasher film and to make your slasher be an almost unstoppable monster without resorting to the gimmick of part 6.
6: The Bird with the Crystal Plumage
Giallo films, with their hyperstylised violence, graphic nudity, and hypervisual gore, were a major early influence on the slasher films of the 70's and 80's and no director typified the giallo genre than Dario Argento. And none of his works show his mastery of the form than his directorial debut, L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo, from 1970.
An uncredited adaptation of The Screaming Mimi, the story revolves around an American writer in Rome who becomes a witness to an attempted murder and decides to assist the police in their investigation into what they believe is a serial killer. Sam, the writer begins interviewing contacts of the previously murdered women, but rather than unraveling the mystery, he is only drawn deeper into it.
With the signature vibrant colours of Argento, strong sadomasochistic undertones, surprisingly subtle acting, beautiful cinematography and a genuine sense of mystery and suspense, this is easily one of Argento's best films ever.
6: Scream
Wes Craven proved himself the master of the slasher film by the early-80's with films such as The Hills Have Eyes and A Nightmare on Elm Street, but had moved away from the genre for some time before directing Scream in 1996. Scream came at a time when the slasher genre as a whole was in serious decline, but with its mix of satire and genuine suspense, it led to a revival of the genre which would lead to the current crop of remakes and sequels that have plagued us since.
And this film continues Craven's uncanny ability to create characters that you actually root for and don't want to see slaughtered, also upending the common trope of the final girl by having most of the main characters survive and by having more than one killer to help throw you off the scent of who the bad guy really is. And it really works in this film's favour because it keeps you guessing from the first kill all the way to the last frame.
5: The Devil's Rejects
Rob Zombie is a strange creature in the horror world. For the most part, his films suck, but they still manage to bring in the fans. I'd say kind of like the Michael Bay of horror if Michael Bay didn't also produce and direct horror films. But, his sophomore effort is different. Where House of 1000 Corpses is unique for its time in the brutal nature of it, I think its safe to say that it isn't good. But the sequel, The Devil's Rejects actually manages to be a compelling, if a little shallow, story that turns many of the slasher tropes on their heads.
Firstly, the family from the first film are now our protagonists and the cops hunting them are the antagonists. Second, there don't really seem to be any idiotic decisions from the family's victims, they just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And lastly, the events of the film feel organic, like they could really happen in our world. The gore is intense, which was a welcome change at the beginning of the PG-13 era of horror that followed, the acting is good, and the film just feels competently made. To say I was surprised by it is an understatement, especially considering how terrible his other films are.
4: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
Banned in several countries upon its initial release in 1974, Tobe Hooper's classic originated many of the common elements of later slasher films, such as the use of power tools as weapons and the large, hulking monster as the killer. The story is simple enough, but the best slasher films always have simple stories, and the characters are fairly one dimensional, but the atmosphere is tense and suspenseful and the gore is actually fairly tasteful.
3: Psycho
The granddaddy of them all. Directed by the inimitable master, Alfred Hitchcock, Psycho is considered by most to be the genesis of the modern slasher film. And you can see its influence in many later films; the mystery of the killer's identity in the first Friday the 13th, the surprising death of the main character from A Nightmare on Elm Street, the killer being tied to a central location as in most slasher films to follow, and the list goes on.
But Psycho works in a way that most slasher films don't, in that the setting of a creepy hotel is an easily identifiable trope to anyone who has spent any time on the road and has had to choose whether to continue on or to stop at the shady, middle of nowhere hotel. Norman Bates appears normal at first, if a little strange, but as the film progresses he becomes creepier and creepier, culminating in the shocking twist at the end, and all of this is down to Anthony Perkins' masterful performance.
Hitchcock's use of lighting, shadows, camera angles, and sound design all combine to create a fully realized and compelling world. The acting is incredible, the sets beautiful and yet grimy, and the atmosphere is completely engrossing. And again, the twist at the end comes completely out of nowhere, though they do intertwine the reveal into the story through subtle hints and masterful craft.
2: A Nightmare on Elm Street
It was a tough call between the original A Nightmare on Elm Street and Wes Craven's New Nightmare, but for me, the original is still the best in the series. And while New Nightmare took a unique tack with the story by making A Nightmare on Elm Street a movie within the film's universe, but then having Freddy Krueger turn out to be real and stalking Heather Langenkamp in the real world, A Nightmare on Elm Street took a completely crazy concept that could have easily turned into self parody (which it did in the following sequels) and made it into something legitimately chilling and menacing story.
Robert Englund is the driving force behind that strength as his Freddy Krueger character, unique among modern slashers in that he speaks, is a monster in every sense of the word. He is horribly disfigured, supernatural, and relishes in the torture that he dishes out to his victims. He takes great pleasure in the pain he causes others and that enjoyment is evident in every action he takes. Krueger makes jokes and taunts his victims, but he never succumbs to camp and actually is menacing through his jokes and taunts. And then the film throws you for a loop by killing the character we've been following since the beginning and pivots to a completely different character.
Wes Craven stated in interviews that he based the idea off several Indonesian articles he read about healthy young people dying in their sleep, but took it one step further by creating a nightmare world that has physical implications in the real world. And the contrast between the real world and the nightmare realm through the use of colour, lighting and sound design creates a genuine sense of difference between the two. The grimy, but still false cleanliness of suburban America is the perfect backdrop for the presence stalking these children. And the broken down, grimy, industrial look of the nightmare realm is a genuinely intimidating environment with its false geography and mutable nature creating a genuine sense of dream logic.
All in all, Nightmare is one of the best slasher films to come out of the golden age of slashers and introduced us to one of the icons of horror for decades to come. But, there is one film that stands head and shoulders above the rest.
1: Halloween
The 1970's were a time of great upheaval in Hollywood, introducing the concept of the summer blockbuster with Jaws, bringing us a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars and brought us the inimitable talent of John Carpenter. There are few in Hollywood as multitalented as Carpenter. Writer, director, musician, editor, composer. And Carpenter uses all his talents in the production of his films. But none more so than 1978's Halloween.
Taking a day that for many Americans has become just part of the cultural landscape and lost much of its original meaning or intent, Carpenter made that day scary again with just a few notes, a dreamy suburban neighbourhood, a mechanic's jumpsuit, and a repainted William Shatner mask.
Jamie Lee Curtis, in her breakout role, manages to convey a sense of naivety and innocence not often seen in slasher films as she plays against Nick Castle's hulking, silent behemoth. Through his use of cinematography, Carpenter manages to turn a quiet, peaceful suburb at day into a foreboding and sinister place at night and the sound design genuinely draws you into this world he has created, immersing you in this town and making you feel for Strode and the two children she now protects.
In my mind, the very best example of what a slasher can, and should be. Stay tuned next week for the next in the series; science fiction.