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I agree. I think Laurie Strode is the perfect example of the full "Final Girl" evolution, as she ceases to be the scared damsel in distress, and becomes a badass, ass kicking lady! 💪
yeah, its real hard to tell whether the trope is feminist or just sexist. On the one hand, modern final girls tend to be resourceful, smart, and tough, which could point to feminism, but many final girls need to be saved by men or just escape by chance. Plus the existence of the trope at all and most other girls in horror films just being idiotic, sexualized stereotypes points toward some sexism.
@@kohlcooke8789 I think also when it comes to older movies, what was once considered progressive is now not so much, in other words the feminist bar was much lower back then. I just watched the Texas Chainsaw Massacre again the other day, some of it reads as "see? this is patriarchy and it sucks" and "look! she was able to escape and jump through a window TWICE to save her ass! isnt that badass?" but from a modern perspective it's like "well yeah but if the guy in the pickup truck didn't happen to come along she ultimately wouldnt have escaped." it's definitely a mixed bag but as long as theyre not depicted as helpless and useless i'm happy
Being a final girl is not always a win, in lots of cases it’s a punishment. Notice how the men in some of these movies get to die “easy,, whilst the final girl is beaten, tortured (often in a sexual manner) and watches all of her friends die. Sometimes when you’re the last one standing, you’re not triumphing over evil but rather getting completely broken by it.
Well, ask yourself...would you rather survive and have to work through the trauma, with the (perhaps low?) chance of recovering and attaining happiness...or just die? It's a subjective answer. But honestly, people who argue that intense trauma is unarguably worse than death...they honestly baffle me. I think people with that mentality probably don't value life that much...
@@nowwhat8209 I’m not talking about real life, for me it’s more symbolistic than that. These movies usually don’t deal with the victim’s trauma afterwards, we only see them right after they survive these events, we only see them suffer. Maybe they end up winning, but their fight turns into torture porn for the audience, because our society likes seeing unruly people (especially women) get punished.
What I love about the first Texas Chainsaw, is that Sally isn’t the typical final girl. She clearly isn’t a virgin, she’s kinda mean to her brother and kinda annoying sometimes. Yet she wants to survive and fights hard in order to make it. And that’s what makes her one of the most awesome final girls of all times. RIP, Marilyn Burns. PS. Sorry for my english, I’m from Mexico.
@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 The people who apologise for their English are usually very fluent. It's the ones who aren't who don't apologise and native speakers who are barely literate or coherent.
This video made me realize that Rose Armitage from Get Out is a subversion of the Final Girl-she makes it to the end of an outsider’s murdering spree, except that she herself is the real monster and the ‘slasher’ is our protagonist acting in self-defense. She also invokes Missing White Woman Syndrome as the final trick up her sleeve, which helps to show that the real villain is not violence, but racism
but the main character who is black survives. she may be the technical "final girl" but she arguably didn't survive and the main black character is the film's focused survivor. the video compared the movie Scream where the second last character killing was a black woman - I'd say Get Out provides the reversal
I comment on The Take's Get Out separate video, but I also sees that Rose is also a subversion to the modern take on the Southern Belle. The Southern Belle is a common trope where a white daughter from an upper class white family in the South is typically innocent, pure, and is often kind to black slaves- she is the exception as oppose to her racist family. But Southern Belles were not a thing in irl (sees *They Were Her Property* book), and instead they were as vicious as their male counterpart. Rose seems to be somewhat a reflection on that where she turns out to be as bad as her family.
A smart observation, but not a genius take! Rose is a subversion of the overcompensating White liberal ally! If anything, Chris is the "Final Boy" who happens to be Black
@@aDriveAway exactly. That's such an inaccurate description. Nothing about Chris character says "slasher". Rose does not give any "subversion" of a final girl. Smh. Horrible take.
I would be careful not to denigrate the pacifist final girl. You say she is saved by chance, but she was saved because she ran away. She made the positive action to leave the home of the killer. She could have tried to stay in fight she chose to run. Running is the right choice because that is his home. That is why she is in danger. He's always existed, but now she's in his home and she's going to die. How she got there is important, but it doesn't change that she made a positive decision to take action and run away. That's pacifism that's not regressive. She rescued herself.
Thank you for this. I am the pacifist girl kkkkkkk and we're always looked down upon as if we're lesser and "not feminists" for being non-agressive. Which is bullshit.
I definitely think you managed to capture the conflicting elements of not just the trope, but the lens we all need to utilize when watching each movie alone. I'm really glad they touched upon race and the social upheaval that our society is undergoing for the betterment of true progress.
Sometimes its just plain dumb and asking for a death wish to play as the hero. Realistically the one who runs away as far as possible from the danger will be generally the smartest and the safest living to tell the tale. People even say that in self defense, only do so it enough to allow your attack to let you escape and run the hell away since fighting to the death is too risky. Pacifist girl is fine, not all girls need to fight physically to be considered strong. She is the one who is alive so she calls the shots over the one who goes back and most likely dies. Better to be alive and a subjective “weak” female character than one who died in vain. Especially after getting out the first time only to go back without a good reason or backup
I think Sally from Texas Chainsaw Massacre fits this. While she’s not as badass as Laurie or Sidney, she still holds her own: she overcomes witnessing the death of her friends and little brother, being terrorized by the Sawyers, and manages to escape twice! She threw herself out a window twice! Sure, she failed the first time, but the sheer fact she held out as opposed to giving in must have been badass at the time. And it’s the tenacity and endurance to survive that saves her in the end.
"Unlike her friends, this girl isn't into sex or even dating." Like I know it wasn't the creators' intention at all, but this makes me think.... "So that's where the asexual/aromantic representation has been hiding" :)
Please analyse the "Broken Bird" trope, in which an embittered woman copes with a tragic past by donning a Cynical, stoic exterior. Examples may include Veronica Mars or The Bride. 💜
I have to say I find the old-fashioned final girls easier to relate to. If I were in a dangerous situation where a crazed killer was stalking me, I don't think I would "find the power within myself" to take control. I think I'd be more likely to panic and start desperately swinging anything that looks like it could be used as a weapon. The "modernized" final girls are almost like superhero origin stories. They're the kind of empowerment that we only fantasize about.
I think you have to look at context like in most of the movies they fight back they usually try running away first but have no other choice but to fight back that's usually the character development that happens
That’s the point of it I believe, it’s taking full power back killing off the evil or becoming the evil for good instead of surviving then becoming damaged by it for life. It’s giving the power back to the women symbolically and literally, it’s not necessarily realistic but neither is most horror films
Fwiw, i would be inclined to resist the "evolution" of agency and empowerment they are trying to sell us here. Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween are film classics; I'm guessing 30 years from now no one will still be talking about the new Black Christmas or Assasination Nation films. And I would argue the reason why is Laurie Strode, in the original Halloween, is a really complex character that resists the over simplified argument presented here, and "agency" as sold to us by neoliberals who just want us to continue to consume as they offer us fantasies that don't impact anything in the real world will be exposed for what they are: full of empty rhetoric. The same people who try to sell you the new Laurie Strode as an example of agency (she is actually portrayed a terrified gun nut in the film, living in her self-made survivalist bunker) will also try to tell you that everything is fine, just keep buying Coke (or Pepsi) and eating MacDonald's while the world burns...
I don't think Dani's end was a very empowering one. She traded one abusive situation for another. The cult played on her most obvious insecurities and gave her the illusion of belonging, choice and power while controlling everyone else with drugs, sex or something along those lines.
Oh no that absolutely was a bad ending. It’s been pretty much confirmed by the director. What makes it so terrifying if how we aren’t sure at first if it is a bad ending or not. She was trapped by her grief at the beginning of the movie, and now, she’s trapped by everything else.
@@WinxMagicalHero to some, it's empowering...I guess. Context is important. Becoming propped up by a cult or possessed by a diety removes agency from the "hero." Her body survived, but not her soul
Maybe in the main character's point of view, she had a happy ending. But in the obeserver ( me ) point of view, rather like she sold her soul to evil type situation. So yeah, i question if she ever got freedom especially she got into a cult.
Something interesting I read recently about Halloween and Laurie Strode. John Carpenter stated that it was never his intention to use the "sex = death" trope or push some conservative attitude towards sexuality. Rather, Carpenter said he utilized sex as a way to distract the characters and make them oblivious to the red flags around them. He also said that Laurie's virginity was meant to make her comparable to Michael as he saw them both as sexually frustrated characters who struggled with their lustful feelings. Laurie actually has a desire for dating/sex (she mentions being interested in her classmate, Ben Tramer) but is very repressed. Carpenter said that, at the end, when Laurie fights back, stabbing Michael, that it was her releasing her pent up sexual frustration. It always kind of annoyed me that Halloween has been blamed for creating the "sex = death"/pushing conservative values and that Laurie was painted as an asexual character because it was never the intention of the creators.
@Manophere. com i don’t know what your trying to say but if you dont care about what women go through, why are you here bro? You comment the most out of everyone who watches the channel.
Honestly I think Sidney is probably the best one, obviously she survived more than most but she also subverts stereotypes and is her own person with a good character and someone u actually root for
@Manophere. com The crazy thing about true feminism is that is cares about violence regardless who is the victim. However, your statistics are absolutely incorrect and you clearly have some issues against women or you would see the true force of misogyny that fuels a huge % of violence against women. And, as I said before, I care about all violence, but the majority of violence (including rape) towards men is by other men. So there are some much deeper problems with gendered violence, that has to be fully accepted before moving into a realm where Feminism can truly become intersectional. I really hope you can find that at some point.
Right?! I'd love a horror comedy bordering on slapstick that's just the woman who was meant to be the first victim just both lucking and scheming out of each attempt to murder her because the monster/killer done underestimated her. Like, he thinks he's killed her, tries to move on to other victims, but when he finds out she survived the attempt he just hyperfocuses on killing her because she's not sticking to the rules, goddamnit! She's supposed to die first! >:(
Great video, as always! I just realized something about this trope. The final girl often embodies conservative values when it comes to how girls/women "should" be. The girl/woman is usually a virgin, doesn't drink, doesn't party, and seems repressed in other ways. The girls/women who do engage in the above-mentioned things often die whereas the final girl doesn't. It can send the message that women who "play by the rules" are worthy of living/being saved and women who do not adhere to those conservative "rules" aren't worthy of living their lives/being saved.
@Manophere. com dude. i can’t even understand your horrible “points” and arguments because your grammar is so bad. take an english class before you start spitting lies.
In their movies, conservatives kill anyone that doesn't fit in their rules. Years ago community call out this. Conservatives were scarring youth's mind, and them calling those children, snowflakes.
When the slasher films of the 70s became popular, America was very conservative. Sort of to counteract the ideology of "free love" that became pervasive during the 60s. Growing up in a time when deviating from the social norm ie premarital sex had to be stamped out .
@@theunknown5386 ew, don’t be that guy. I’m ace and even I still think it’s really weird to punish people for doing naughties in films. It’s a normal thing a lot of people do. Also a lot of the time it’s emphasised on women doing it, so also kind of misogynistic half the time.
The final girl, ganddaughter of the Gothic Novel Heroine. It's a very long line of damsels in horror fiction ranging from victims to a more empowered set of characters
That's why one of my favorite horror films is Night of the Demons because the black guy lived at the end. This was rare for a movie that came out in the 80's.
"missing woman syndrome" feel like you missed an opertunity to mention Amy Dunne from Gone Girl who literally weaponised that very trope in order to frame her husband and would have suceeded too lol
I just noticed the horror movies I have seen where the POC’s are the final girl/black man lives in the end, are in movies made by Jordan Peele. I’m not saying there aren’t more out there, but those two were the first ones that immediately came into my mind.
It's because he's the most recent. We have avp, 28 days later Final black guy in predator 2. There's plenty out there but peele made a huge name for himself and is "about black" films so his is notable. There are movies with a more mixed cast that has black survivors. I should do a list of my favorites one day!
Damn first time I've seen respect for BC 2019. But I wanna see more black and Asian final girls, heck, I know there are loveable jocks who end up as the secondary survivor but I'd love to see a kind hearted sensible black girl or black guy as the main final survivor
most producers/directors wont do that because movies with black protagonists doesnt do well internationally, unless its from a big franchise. Japan and Korean market are big money makers in movie industry but they are not very fond of movies with black lead except Marvel franchise ofc.
most producers/directors wont do that because movies with black protagonists doesnt do well internationally, unless its from a big franchise. Japan and Korean market are big money makers in movie industry but they are not very fond of movies with black lead except Marvel franchise ofc.
The fact the final girl seems pure, virginal or innocent, it's because the final girl innocence represents being a child. But then she fights runs survives, sees death and becomes a woman. Harsh, cunning, strong, with emotional scars. A Different kind of woman. I like that nowadays the final girl aren't virgin, is just the one that fights back and survives because intelligence.
Concurred, I loathe how, 90% of the time, the "Other Woman" is depicted as a self centred homewrecker who doesn't care one iota about how her actions affect everyone around her. 😒
Cult horror also has some great examples of Final Girl subversions. Jeryline of Tales From the Crypt's Demon Knight gets to be a Black woman with a criminal record and zero interest in social niceties. The innate subversiveness of horror comedy - which is predicated upon shifting cinematic modes reliant on the element of surprise - is super overlooked, especially with works considered "low-brow". Sometimes the low-brow stuff is most ahead of its time because it doesn't have studio heads breathing down filmmakers' necks. Anyway it's really great to see misogynoir being addressed in the conversation about the Final Girl trope.
Just saw this comment after I posted but yes!!! Jada Pinkett Smith was definitely a "Final Girl" didn't fit the usual trope..which could be seen as problematic in a way (feminine & race, etc.) But I guess it works because all the other characters weren't necessarily saints.
@@malakcanvas Right! Like YMMV on how progressive her characterization was but within the context of the extremely pulpy story and the rest of its characters, as well as the context of the Christian lore, it's a fitting and deliberate choice to make a complex, nuanced, untraditional FG.
Anyway, I believe the prevalence of the final girl in horror movies is in part because she is supposed to be an audience surrogate, and the assumption is that a female character will work as a better cinematic shorthand for projecting the vulnerability that the audience is supposed to feel. What I find a little disheartening is that you rarely see a male survivor in such films display his vulnerability like that. Think back to the end of Predator, where Schwarzenegger hitches a ride to safety in a helicopter, looking perhaps a bit exhausted and worn out, but not much else. If a woman had been in this role, it would practically be a requirement to show her shaking and crying by the end. We should be allowed to see men like that, too.
I was literally thinking about this trope yesterday. What are the odds you would do a video immediately the day after? Considering Halloween is just around the corner, very high actually.
I completely disagree with your read of Midsommar. I think the word "abusive" is a strong word to use with the protagonist's boyfriend. I don't want to belittle the fact that he does gaslight her when she suspects something is wrong, but to me they are both compliantly dragging themselves through a codependent relationship that gives them no happiness, because neither is ready to face their individual need for growth. Also she is not the only one who is suspicious about something being wrong in that place. She actually stays longer than she should because, just like everybody else, she is much too centered in her internal struggle to be fully aware of what's going on in the surroundings. Her trauma and her inability to grief the loss of her family in a healthy way that allows her to let go, make her the easy target for being brainwashed, and thus becoming a death cult queen killer, not because she's fighting some rightful cause. The only ones who don't, the couple who leave, or at least try to, from the very moment things get "death-worshippy", are the only people who have their shit together and can actually see things for what they are. I also think that they are presented as an icon of true healthy love, which is only possible precisely because they are independent people with a critical mind who value life above any "I respect it because it's cultural" bullshit.
Can you do one for The Chosen One trope? One person chosen by fate and destiny to protect the world from evil. Or in some cases turn to the dark side. Buffy Summers and Faith Lehane. Anakin Skywalker. Neo. John Conner. Harry Potter. Sam and Dean Winchester.
The Chosen One, is a story literally as old as time. It would be interesting if they did a video about that. IDK it might be to controversial, since Chosen Ones first appear in religious text.
Same I’m always like the supportive friend in everyone’s lives and I feel obligated to be so. Quite literally the supportive black friend. (I’m black irl if that wasn’t already clear)
@@sabrinac8453 Change is hard. I’ve suffered through decades of depression and nothing seems to help. I’ve never attempted suicide but I’ve been tempted. I’m hanging by a thread as it is. Being told to just change it doesn’t work. What does it matter if I change things if it doesn’t make any difference? I still wouldn’t feel better about life. Maybe I’ll get a short reprieve but then it’s back to the misery.
It is. I really liked the movie, but it's trippy as all hell. You really need to pay attention when watching it. Not anywhere near as straightforward as Hereditary, but still great and quite creepy, despite taking place in the daytime.
The final girl from You're Next is my favorite! she isn't the survivor just because she's a girl but because she's strong. She made sure that killers are dead before moving!!!
Love the quality of this channel. Cited research and great analysis every single time alongside well thought out commentary. The best film & TV critique team on the Tubes.
the latest era of the Final Girl is one that I'm still getting used to. Even though the 70s & 80s era Final Girls were before my time, characters like Sally (TX chainsaw massacre), Laurie (Halloween), & Nancy (Nightmare on elm street) are simply iconic & transcend time. those characters still hold up well today, IMO. Sidney Prescott was the Final Girl of my generation, & she definitely represented a chancing/evolving of the Final Girl trope. I also like Erin ( You're next), she totally surprised me & was not at all what I was expecting, that character made a huge impression on me.
I definitely can see where some people can find this trope problematic and sexist, but overall I'd say from the 70s on, when the trope was first noted, I feel that it has been and can be seen as a very empowering pro-feminist trope. For example, in Halloween, even though Laurie is saved by a man (Loomis) she still was very formidable force to get Michael to the more weakened state he was in. Her efforts weren't for nothing. Loomis saving her was more of a deus ex machina moment rather than Laurie being helpless and only being able to be saved by a man. It only temporarily got her out of harm's way, as no one can truly defeat Michael. I also kind of challenge the aspect of the trope saying how female characters are stereotypically very emotional and men are seen as more calm and strong and how it's problematic. Like part of the reason why that trope is the way it is is because you need to feel sympathy for the final girl. If she was just super strong and didn't show any fear, then you wouldn't feel any fear yourself for her safety. It definitely works when the female character is really strong and does not allow herself to be controlled or saved by men. Erin in You're Next is a great example for more modern movies and the trio of Trish, Valerie, and Courtney from The Slumber Party Massacre are great example from the heyday of the slasher movie subgenre. But again, in the former ,you don't really feel any fear for Erin's safety, you just feel excitement for how great of a final girl she is!! Just look at Jesse from A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge. He is a male final girl. He is scared the entire movie and fits into the super emotional stereotype. I just feel it's more based on that you want to feel fear for the main character, as it wouldn't be as much of a horror movie if they were emotionless and capable the whole movie. That obviously works in some contexts, however, a majority of the time, I feel that it's more based on wanting to stay close to the formula that worked for Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Halloween rather than trying to reinforce that female characters are emotional wrecks incapable of saving themselves and only can be saved by the help of a man.
I really cannot begin to explain how much and thoroughly I love this channel! I always walk away feeling as though I’ve been gifted the supreme privilege of a free education, as well as getting the chance to deep dive into how media impacts us. I’m grateful for y’all. Thank you!
It would be interesting to see a Black woman or just a woman of color, who stars in a horror film and ends up being the final girl. Most of the final girls mentioned in this video, who are women of color, are still seen as sidekicks/secondary characters to the main white character. The only exception to that is Adelaide/Red in Us
@@Chris-rg6nm first time hearing of that movie, I searched up the plot online, and maybe it fits? But it also came out in 2003, I would love to see more recent films
Ripley from Alien was in control, her character was written for a man originally. Also Jada Pinker Smith was a final girl in the 90's in the movie Demon knight from Tales from the krypt. None of these final girls were the typical final girl for their time or for now.
"Midsommar" is presentation of love-bombing period of being in cult. Dani's horror/story is yet to come - she survives, because the cult decided so, not because of any strenght or positive inner quality.
Well, you can analyse it in that way...or thinking that what keeps her alive is her capacity to feel. She is clearly the most sensitive character in the film and this capacity of feeling is what keeps her alive because sensitivity is very valuable for them. They experience the same pain, joy or sorrow. In this point, you can read it in two ways: an extremely dark way of portraiting feelings - as Dani finally decided to focus on her feelings and get revenge for all the pain she has experienced due to his insensitive boyfriend - or a dark but "empowering" way. Emotions have been always seen as a feminine thing, as women are too delicate that they can not control if they cry, shout or enter in panic. In Midsommar, by giving so much power to emotions, they are giving power to a "feminine thing", they are giving the message that it does not matter how logic, intelligent or able to ignore negative feelings you are, feeling emotions is something natural, nor feminine neither masculine. Women have been always portrait as been "too feely" as it was something negative to express your emotions. When we see a girl shouting or crying in a horror film, we usually feel pity for her. However, in Midsommar, the girl that cries, shouts and suffers is the most powerful of all the characters. Of course, portraying that those strong emotions can lead you to order the death of someone is a very extreme way of explaining the power of them, but it is a very interesting one. The girl who cries, who is dismissed by her emotions is, finally, the last survivor. The one who looks the weakest by traditional standards is the strongest because feelings and being sensitive are not a sign of weakness but of strength.
@@andymorgade7137 What keeps her alive is merely her youth. And the movie suggests she might not last long, as there's an image of a woman that looks like Dani sitting serene in flames.
literally the best slasher trope. reading "Men, Women and Chainsaws..." by Carol J. Clover helped me understand the story behind it. my top fave has got to be sally hardesty. she fought like hell to escape leatherface and his cannibal family.
Does it strike anyone else wrong that they claim they want to see strong women, but then try and say that women who show strength are "phallicized"? It's not a choice between feminine or strong, and it doesn't sit right that women standing up for themselves is being portrayed as the un-feminist thing to do
@@Fedha-dm1up oop. Wake tht up!!! I hear Lovie Simone will be in Season 2. And will be with Lexi. Im all for Black gay girls but can we also get BLACK COUPLES??? Why they all white or in interracial relationships??
@Isaak no I think she means like Blonde popular pretty girl who sort of flies through life and has a lot of attention amongst people and social media usually. Maybe
Besides Adelaide from the movie "Us" I can't think of a non-white final girl. I'm sure I'm forgetting a few but it shouldn't be this hard to remember them. 🤔 PS: I wrote this comment before I saw the video and I'm disappointed I was right. 🥺
Yara Zhayd recently uploaded a video which mentioned another non-white final girl. I’m not into horror and hadn’t seen the movie so don’t remember off the top of my head
I don’t know if you watch American Horror Story but their 1984 chapter actually had 2 final girls, one of which was black and in real life, a trans woman. I was pleasantly surprised!
@@cristinarivera5707 I was going to say this. Angelica Ross's character shared the title with Emma Roberts. I believe Brandy was a final girl in also survived in "I Still Know What You Did Last Summer".
I wouldn't consider Laurie to have been 'phalicized" for having used penetrated weapons. 6:15 Knitting needles at the time would have been associated with femineity. Hangers could have even been considered more feminine due to how women are often depicted as being "obsessed" with fashion and the knife she uses is one you'd find in the kitchen. While she may be using penetrating weapons, they are ones that are associated with pastimes that would have been seen as feminine ones. While anyone can knit, wear clothes, or cook, women are often depicted having a greater interest. The Menu is a cool horror movie, especially with Anya Taylor's addition of female rage Totally Killer is also a good one.
Neve's Sidney definitely changed the game and let's give an honorable mention to Brandy in "I Still Know" being one of the rare Black characters to not die in a horror film.
Could the next trope be "The middle child" How media portrays the middle sibling as the no one really cares like Meg from family guy, Sue from the Middle or even Jan form The Brady Bunch
I always hear the 'black guy dies first' joke, but besides the second Scream movie, I can't remember any other horror movie where a black guy indeed dies first.
i paused the video and watched assassination nation. Made me cry alot. really shows violence against women with how illogical toxic masculinity in combo with misogyny can be.
loved this one, girls! and ok, I NEED a list of all these movies mentioned! i’m a little surprised y’all didn’t mention the revenge aspect of horror (like I spit on your grave).
i feel like they often make the final girl a virgin is bcos she’s suppose to be pure and innocent a polar contrast to the cold hearted evil killer yea in a way they’re fantasizing these holy ladies but I really like the trope it’s kinda fun to watch her fight back
05:20: 'In a genre that so readily indulges in violence against women, this (woman as final girl) can be read as a small step forward, forcing men to transport themselves into the psyche of a victimized woman.' Now that's interesting. I haven't tought about it like that. This makes me rethink the whole horror genre.
My take on 'the virgin survives' is because she's not expecting her boyfriend to show up and save her, but must save herself - just like a man. We're just not ready for a male character to be captured, screaming and crying, and then the girlfriend kicks down the door, shoots the bad guys in the head and then carries him out to safety.
And this is why I like Hell raiser. The final girl survives with a feminine symbol (the box) and not a phallic symbol (knife or gun). Kirsty survives without needing to let go of her femininity.
Laurie in the 2018 halloween is one of my favorite characters ina movie. She’s strong and smart, but she’s scared and hurt and traumatized. And I love that they let her look old
My cousin loves the Final Girl and says it is the only heroine from yesteryear that is still around today. She says the FG is a badass to survive and/or takes out the slasher. I find this to be the view of a new generation somewhat. My generation was hit with criticisms by our college professors. Tomaytoe, Tomahtoe?
Horror is also often based around an incompetent 'hero' in the face of an overpowering 'monster.' That's what makes it different from regular action or even a thriller (according to some authors I heard talking about it once). This may be easier to communicate with female leads who we assume to be physically weaker. Notably, horror more often seems to happen to ordinary people and often involves young people with literally no expertise in anything.
I can only think of one example of an African-American girl being a final girl with Jennifer Love Hewitt, is Brandi in "I still know what you did last summer". They both survived in that film.
I just recently watched this movie and realized it did have many aspects of the trope. Lucy being promiscuous and dying while the chaste Mina lives. It’s interesting
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thanks
Can you please put non auto-generated captions?
the only final girl i know is from fractured but whole, never heard of final girl before that!!!! NOBODY has.
yay thanks
The Final Girl was a great 👍🏾 topic to talk about on the month of October
The new version of the final girl trope feels strangely uplifting, like "I've gone through some insane traumatic shit, but I got out"
I mean would you even want to live after going through that
I agree. I think Laurie Strode is the perfect example of the full "Final Girl" evolution, as she ceases to be the scared damsel in distress, and becomes a badass, ass kicking lady! 💪
@@trinaq Hell yes! When i grow up I want to be the older version of Laurie Strode
This instantly made me think of Dani in Midsommar 💐🐻🔥
@@anoni6108 Well, it's nice to have the option. i see your point tho
Ah the Final Girl...the ultimate grey area in film between sexism and feminism.
Where's the lie 😂😂 but some movies clearly give empowerment vibes so that's good? I guess...
The use of the word "girl" is part of that. Adult females are women.
yeah, its real hard to tell whether the trope is feminist or just sexist. On the one hand, modern final girls tend to be resourceful, smart, and tough, which could point to feminism, but many final girls need to be saved by men or just escape by chance. Plus the existence of the trope at all and most other girls in horror films just being idiotic, sexualized stereotypes points toward some sexism.
@@camelopardalis84 some are teenagers
@@kohlcooke8789 I think also when it comes to older movies, what was once considered progressive is now not so much, in other words the feminist bar was much lower back then. I just watched the Texas Chainsaw Massacre again the other day, some of it reads as "see? this is patriarchy and it sucks" and "look! she was able to escape and jump through a window TWICE to save her ass! isnt that badass?" but from a modern perspective it's like "well yeah but if the guy in the pickup truck didn't happen to come along she ultimately wouldnt have escaped." it's definitely a mixed bag but as long as theyre not depicted as helpless and useless i'm happy
Being a final girl is not always a win, in lots of cases it’s a punishment. Notice how the men in some of these movies get to die “easy,, whilst the final girl is beaten, tortured (often in a sexual manner) and watches all of her friends die. Sometimes when you’re the last one standing, you’re not triumphing over evil but rather getting completely broken by it.
Not to mention the survivor's guilt.
@@ariannamyrie9520 exactly, so many sequels are built on that it’s crazy
...........................
Well, ask yourself...would you rather survive and have to work through the trauma, with the (perhaps low?) chance of recovering and attaining happiness...or just die?
It's a subjective answer. But honestly, people who argue that intense trauma is unarguably worse than death...they honestly baffle me. I think people with that mentality probably don't value life that much...
@@nowwhat8209 I’m not talking about real life, for me it’s more symbolistic than that. These movies usually don’t deal with the victim’s trauma afterwards, we only see them right after they survive these events, we only see them suffer. Maybe they end up winning, but their fight turns into torture porn for the audience, because our society likes seeing unruly people (especially women) get punished.
What I love about the first Texas Chainsaw, is that Sally isn’t the typical final girl. She clearly isn’t a virgin, she’s kinda mean to her brother and kinda annoying sometimes. Yet she wants to survive and fights hard in order to make it. And that’s what makes her one of the most awesome final girls of all times. RIP, Marilyn Burns. PS. Sorry for my english, I’m from Mexico.
Well said
Your English is literally perfect 💛
Actually your English looks and reads better than most US born citizens :) I love your piece about Sally. Also RIP Marilyn Burns
@@jessicavictoriacarrillo7254 The people who apologise for their English are usually very fluent. It's the ones who aren't who don't apologise and native speakers who are barely literate or coherent.
However, all the men in Texas Chainsaw Massacre are killed relatively quickly or off camera; it is the women who are singled out for torment.
I realize that I've never seen male characters screaming and crying as much as female characters while being chased by a serial killer.
Just watch Nightmare on Elm Street 2
@@yikes_1219 lol the final guy was the best
Watch Evil Dead 2.
Hostel could be an option
@@yikes_1219 he was gay
This video made me realize that Rose Armitage from Get Out is a subversion of the Final Girl-she makes it to the end of an outsider’s murdering spree, except that she herself is the real monster and the ‘slasher’ is our protagonist acting in self-defense. She also invokes Missing White Woman Syndrome as the final trick up her sleeve, which helps to show that the real villain is not violence, but racism
but the main character who is black survives. she may be the technical "final girl" but she arguably didn't survive and the main black character is the film's focused survivor. the video compared the movie Scream where the second last character killing was a black woman - I'd say Get Out provides the reversal
I comment on The Take's Get Out separate video, but I also sees that Rose is also a subversion to the modern take on the Southern Belle. The Southern Belle is a common trope where a white daughter from an upper class white family in the South is typically innocent, pure, and is often kind to black slaves- she is the exception as oppose to her racist family. But Southern Belles were not a thing in irl (sees *They Were Her Property* book), and instead they were as vicious as their male counterpart. Rose seems to be somewhat a reflection on that where she turns out to be as bad as her family.
in no way can the main character in Get Out be considered a "slasher." This is the worst analysis of a movie Ive ever seen...
A smart observation, but not a genius take! Rose is a subversion of the overcompensating White liberal ally! If anything, Chris is the "Final Boy" who happens to be Black
@@aDriveAway exactly. That's such an inaccurate description. Nothing about Chris character says "slasher". Rose does not give any "subversion" of a final girl. Smh. Horrible take.
I would be careful not to denigrate the pacifist final girl. You say she is saved by chance, but she was saved because she ran away. She made the positive action to leave the home of the killer. She could have tried to stay in fight she chose to run. Running is the right choice because that is his home. That is why she is in danger. He's always existed, but now she's in his home and she's going to die. How she got there is important, but it doesn't change that she made a positive decision to take action and run away. That's pacifism that's not regressive. She rescued herself.
Thank you for this. I am the pacifist girl kkkkkkk and we're always looked down upon as if we're lesser and "not feminists" for being non-agressive. Which is bullshit.
@@glauciamsq I hear you on this point so very hard!
I definitely think you managed to capture the conflicting elements of not just the trope, but the lens we all need to utilize when watching each movie alone.
I'm really glad they touched upon race and the social upheaval that our society is undergoing for the betterment of true progress.
Sometimes its just plain dumb and asking for a death wish to play as the hero. Realistically the one who runs away as far as possible from the danger will be generally the smartest and the safest living to tell the tale. People even say that in self defense, only do so it enough to allow your attack to let you escape and run the hell away since fighting to the death is too risky. Pacifist girl is fine, not all girls need to fight physically to be considered strong. She is the one who is alive so she calls the shots over the one who goes back and most likely dies. Better to be alive and a subjective “weak” female character than one who died in vain. Especially after getting out the first time only to go back without a good reason or backup
I think Sally from Texas Chainsaw Massacre fits this. While she’s not as badass as Laurie or Sidney, she still holds her own: she overcomes witnessing the death of her friends and little brother, being terrorized by the Sawyers, and manages to escape twice! She threw herself out a window twice! Sure, she failed the first time, but the sheer fact she held out as opposed to giving in must have been badass at the time. And it’s the tenacity and endurance to survive that saves her in the end.
"Unlike her friends, this girl isn't into sex or even dating." Like I know it wasn't the creators' intention at all, but this makes me think.... "So that's where the asexual/aromantic representation has been hiding" :)
Ya, I always liked these types of characters because I could relate.
Ikr 😍
Yayyy (I‘m bi but it’s good that u guys get representation u honestly need more)
Shoutout to the aces for surviving and outlasting the rest of us. 💀
I thought the same, myself. The ACE up their sleeves.
please do the gay best friend trope video:)
Yes
yasssssssss
Yes please! 💖I know that they've covered the "Best Friend" Trope, but I'd love for them to tackle the Gay Best Friend stereotype in more detail!😍
Yasssss
How about the mean and non reliable gay character trope? Ugh, It's so annoying.
Please analyse the "Broken Bird" trope, in which an embittered woman copes with a tragic past by donning a Cynical, stoic exterior. Examples may include Veronica Mars or The Bride. 💜
Also the Ice Queen who, to the annoyance of viewers and the story, is a aloof introvert and enjoys it.
Sansa Stark comes to mind, as well. Particularly with her "transformation" in s6, and s7 onwards
Makes me think of miss havisham
Or Meg from Hercules!
Any excuse for them to talk more about Veronica Mars, I'm here for it
I have to say I find the old-fashioned final girls easier to relate to. If I were in a dangerous situation where a crazed killer was stalking me, I don't think I would "find the power within myself" to take control. I think I'd be more likely to panic and start desperately swinging anything that looks like it could be used as a weapon. The "modernized" final girls are almost like superhero origin stories. They're the kind of empowerment that we only fantasize about.
I think you have to look at context like in most of the movies they fight back they usually try running away first but have no other choice but to fight back that's usually the character development that happens
That’s the point of it I believe, it’s taking full power back killing off the evil or becoming the evil for good instead of surviving then becoming damaged by it for life. It’s giving the power back to the women symbolically and literally, it’s not necessarily realistic but neither is most horror films
it depends on how you were conditioned to react in scary situations.
Yeah, honestly as tough as I want to be, I have to admit I'd most likely end up screaming and crying, running away, or frozen in fear
Fwiw, i would be inclined to resist the "evolution" of agency and empowerment they are trying to sell us here. Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween are film classics; I'm guessing 30 years from now no one will still be talking about the new Black Christmas or Assasination Nation films. And I would argue the reason why is Laurie Strode, in the original Halloween, is a really complex character that resists the over simplified argument presented here, and "agency" as sold to us by neoliberals who just want us to continue to consume as they offer us fantasies that don't impact anything in the real world will be exposed for what they are: full of empty rhetoric. The same people who try to sell you the new Laurie Strode as an example of agency (she is actually portrayed a terrified gun nut in the film, living in her self-made survivalist bunker) will also try to tell you that everything is fine, just keep buying Coke (or Pepsi) and eating MacDonald's while the world burns...
I don't think Dani's end was a very empowering one. She traded one abusive situation for another. The cult played on her most obvious insecurities and gave her the illusion of belonging, choice and power while controlling everyone else with drugs, sex or something along those lines.
Exactly
Oh no that absolutely was a bad ending. It’s been pretty much confirmed by the director. What makes it so terrifying if how we aren’t sure at first if it is a bad ending or not. She was trapped by her grief at the beginning of the movie, and now, she’s trapped by everything else.
@@WinxMagicalHero to some, it's empowering...I guess. Context is important. Becoming propped up by a cult or possessed by a diety removes agency from the "hero." Her body survived, but not her soul
Maybe in the main character's point of view, she had a happy ending. But in the obeserver ( me ) point of view, rather like she sold her soul to evil type situation. So yeah, i question if she ever got freedom especially she got into a cult.
Something interesting I read recently about Halloween and Laurie Strode. John Carpenter stated that it was never his intention to use the "sex = death" trope or push some conservative attitude towards sexuality. Rather, Carpenter said he utilized sex as a way to distract the characters and make them oblivious to the red flags around them. He also said that Laurie's virginity was meant to make her comparable to Michael as he saw them both as sexually frustrated characters who struggled with their lustful feelings. Laurie actually has a desire for dating/sex (she mentions being interested in her classmate, Ben Tramer) but is very repressed. Carpenter said that, at the end, when Laurie fights back, stabbing Michael, that it was her releasing her pent up sexual frustration.
It always kind of annoyed me that Halloween has been blamed for creating the "sex = death"/pushing conservative values and that Laurie was painted as an asexual character because it was never the intention of the creators.
Always the final girl who had to endure the most trauma
Mostly due to the fact that she’s usually the only one breathing by the end of the show
Watch "68 KILL" if you'd love a Great Twist on this Genre Trope🗡 ...EDIT: "68 KILL" ...Previously i wrote "86" lolz
PTSD ( ╹▽╹ )
@Manophere. com i don’t know what your trying to say but if you dont care about what women go through, why are you here bro? You comment the most out of everyone who watches the channel.
@Manophere. com I’m pretty sure most women care, except for the twitter women
Honestly I think Sidney is probably the best one, obviously she survived more than most but she also subverts stereotypes and is her own person with a good character and someone u actually root for
THIS CHANNEL NEVER FAILS TO DELIVER
AGREED
@Manophere. com man go read a book or something
@Manophere. com you make no sense and you’re extremely wrong
@Manophere. com The crazy thing about true feminism is that is cares about violence regardless who is the victim. However, your statistics are absolutely incorrect and you clearly have some issues against women or you would see the true force of misogyny that fuels a huge % of violence against women. And, as I said before, I care about all violence, but the majority of violence (including rape) towards men is by other men. So there are some much deeper problems with gendered violence, that has to be fully accepted before moving into a realm where Feminism can truly become intersectional. I really hope you can find that at some point.
they did in this video; they failed to include Erin from You’re Next
As an avid horror fan this trope has always fascinated and annoyed me
SAAME
Right?! I'd love a horror comedy bordering on slapstick that's just the woman who was meant to be the first victim just both lucking and scheming out of each attempt to murder her because the monster/killer done underestimated her. Like, he thinks he's killed her, tries to move on to other victims, but when he finds out she survived the attempt he just hyperfocuses on killing her because she's not sticking to the rules, goddamnit! She's supposed to die first! >:(
@@pLanetstarBerry THIS
I agree with the first part
can we get a final guy?
Great video, as always! I just realized something about this trope. The final girl often embodies conservative values when it comes to how girls/women "should" be. The girl/woman is usually a virgin, doesn't drink, doesn't party, and seems repressed in other ways. The girls/women who do engage in the above-mentioned things often die whereas the final girl doesn't. It can send the message that women who "play by the rules" are worthy of living/being saved and women who do not adhere to those conservative "rules" aren't worthy of living their lives/being saved.
@Manophere. com omg another incel saying sexism and misogyny isn’t real 🙄
@Manophere. com dude. i can’t even understand your horrible “points” and arguments because your grammar is so bad. take an english class before you start spitting lies.
In their movies, conservatives kill anyone that doesn't fit in their rules. Years ago community call out this. Conservatives were scarring youth's mind, and them calling those children, snowflakes.
Me before I was 20/21....I'm 22 now....heh....but, this was by my own decision.
I wanna see a final girl who is all sexual and shit
Always found it interesting that in movies with nudity and sex, it punishes the characters for being sexual
The age old rule of horror films- no sex
When the slasher films of the 70s became popular, America was very conservative. Sort of to counteract the ideology of "free love" that became pervasive during the 60s. Growing up in a time when deviating from the social norm ie premarital sex had to be stamped out .
Only it doesn't. You clearly do not watch or understand these movies. Or you have only seen Friday the 13th.
@@theunknown5386 ew, don’t be that guy. I’m ace and even I still think it’s really weird to punish people for doing naughties in films. It’s a normal thing a lot of people do. Also a lot of the time it’s emphasised on women doing it, so also kind of misogynistic half the time.
@@theunknown5386 …I have no words. Other than that I don’t think you got the message of the movie.
The final girl, ganddaughter of the Gothic Novel Heroine. It's a very long line of damsels in horror fiction ranging from victims to a more empowered set of characters
Ah the range of traumatized characters
@@sarroumarbeu6810 Luckily the final girl in modern times does not get fainted as often as Emily St Aubert in "The Mysteries of Udolpho" (1794).
@@lucasgagliardi433 ngl I'd read that for the comedic effect of so many fainting spells XDDD thank you for the rec kind internet stranger 💗
@@lucasgagliardi433 Wait, they weren't just a made up series by Jane Austen for Northanger Abbey!
@@sarroumarbeu6810 you're welcome.
That's why one of my favorite horror films is Night of the Demons because the black guy lived at the end. This was rare for a movie that came out in the 80's.
Same with House on Haunted Hill (the remake). Taye Digg's character makes it to the end.
"missing woman syndrome" feel like you missed an opertunity to mention Amy Dunne from Gone Girl who literally weaponised that very trope in order to frame her husband and would have suceeded too lol
Missing white woman syndrome
I just noticed the horror movies I have seen where the POC’s are the final girl/black man lives in the end, are in movies made by Jordan Peele. I’m not saying there aren’t more out there, but those two were the first ones that immediately came into my mind.
It's because he's the most recent. We have avp, 28 days later
Final black guy in predator 2. There's plenty out there but peele made a huge name for himself and is "about black" films so his is notable. There are movies with a more mixed cast that has black survivors. I should do a list of my favorites one day!
Damn first time I've seen respect for BC 2019. But I wanna see more black and Asian final girls, heck, I know there are loveable jocks who end up as the secondary survivor but I'd love to see a kind hearted sensible black girl or black guy as the main final survivor
Agreed.
Peele might give us more (✷‿✷)
I believe House on Haunted Hill (1999) had a black guy survive.
most producers/directors wont do that because movies with black protagonists doesnt do well internationally, unless its from a big franchise.
Japan and Korean market are big money makers in movie industry but they are not very fond of movies with black lead except Marvel franchise ofc.
most producers/directors wont do that because movies with black protagonists doesnt do well internationally, unless its from a big franchise.
Japan and Korean market are big money makers in movie industry but they are not very fond of movies with black lead except Marvel franchise ofc.
The fact the final girl seems pure, virginal or innocent, it's because the final girl innocence represents being a child. But then she fights runs survives, sees death and becomes a woman. Harsh, cunning, strong, with emotional scars. A Different kind of woman. I like that nowadays the final girl aren't virgin, is just the one that fights back and survives because intelligence.
Logical, after all we’re talking about a survivor type character.
The Final Girls is such an underrated gem. A lot of heart, warmth, thrills, and silliness all in one. Glad it's getting some love here :-)
*please do the other woman trope*
YES
Concurred, I loathe how, 90% of the time, the "Other Woman" is depicted as a self centred homewrecker who doesn't care one iota about how her actions affect everyone around her. 😒
@@trinaq Fatal Attraction anyone?
Like John tucker must die?
and the completely opposite the wife/fiancée trope.
Cult horror also has some great examples of Final Girl subversions. Jeryline of Tales From the Crypt's Demon Knight gets to be a Black woman with a criminal record and zero interest in social niceties. The innate subversiveness of horror comedy - which is predicated upon shifting cinematic modes reliant on the element of surprise - is super overlooked, especially with works considered "low-brow". Sometimes the low-brow stuff is most ahead of its time because it doesn't have studio heads breathing down filmmakers' necks. Anyway it's really great to see misogynoir being addressed in the conversation about the Final Girl trope.
I forgot about that movie! It's a good one. Wasn't that Jada Pinkett Smith?
Just saw this comment after I posted but yes!!! Jada Pinkett Smith was definitely a "Final Girl" didn't fit the usual trope..which could be seen as problematic in a way (feminine & race, etc.) But I guess it works because all the other characters weren't necessarily saints.
@@malakcanvas Right! Like YMMV on how progressive her characterization was but within the context of the extremely pulpy story and the rest of its characters, as well as the context of the Christian lore, it's a fitting and deliberate choice to make a complex, nuanced, untraditional FG.
Brandy in "I Still Know What You Did Last Summer," was the closest to a black final girl in a slasher film.
Don't forget Kelly Rowland, who was second-to-last-girl in "Freddy vs. Jason."
@@ashleyhathaway8548 she died, sacrificing herself for the real white final girl, she's not a final girl
Taylor Russell is the Final Girl in the Escape Room movie.
Anyway, I believe the prevalence of the final girl in horror movies is in part because she is supposed to be an audience surrogate, and the assumption is that a female character will work as a better cinematic shorthand for projecting the vulnerability that the audience is supposed to feel. What I find a little disheartening is that you rarely see a male survivor in such films display his vulnerability like that. Think back to the end of Predator, where Schwarzenegger hitches a ride to safety in a helicopter, looking perhaps a bit exhausted and worn out, but not much else. If a woman had been in this role, it would practically be a requirement to show her shaking and crying by the end. We should be allowed to see men like that, too.
I was literally thinking about this trope yesterday. What are the odds you would do a video immediately the day after? Considering Halloween is just around the corner, very high actually.
I am always thiking about this trope. Terror lover
I love that you think about this on a regular day!!
I did that with a different video that mentioned it briefly, but the topic was about people turning to Satanism to get past abortion laws in America.
I completely disagree with your read of Midsommar. I think the word "abusive" is a strong word to use with the protagonist's boyfriend. I don't want to belittle the fact that he does gaslight her when she suspects something is wrong, but to me they are both compliantly dragging themselves through a codependent relationship that gives them no happiness, because neither is ready to face their individual need for growth.
Also she is not the only one who is suspicious about something being wrong in that place. She actually stays longer than she should because, just like everybody else, she is much too centered in her internal struggle to be fully aware of what's going on in the surroundings. Her trauma and her inability to grief the loss of her family in a healthy way that allows her to let go, make her the easy target for being brainwashed, and thus becoming a death cult queen killer, not because she's fighting some rightful cause.
The only ones who don't, the couple who leave, or at least try to, from the very moment things get "death-worshippy", are the only people who have their shit together and can actually see things for what they are.
I also think that they are presented as an icon of true healthy love, which is only possible precisely because they are independent people with a critical mind who value life above any "I respect it because it's cultural" bullshit.
Can you do the fat person trope?
Can you do one for The Chosen One trope?
One person chosen by fate and destiny to protect the world from evil. Or in some cases turn to the dark side.
Buffy Summers and Faith Lehane.
Anakin Skywalker.
Neo.
John Conner.
Harry Potter.
Sam and Dean Winchester.
oooh that’s a good one
The Chosen One, is a story literally as old as time. It would be interesting if they did a video about that. IDK it might be to controversial, since Chosen Ones first appear in religious text.
Jesus Christ
I want the "Exotic girl" trope, please ❤️
I don't care what anyone says, Neve Cambell in Scream 1 is the ultimate final girl.
I would say the girl from Nightmare on Elm street because Scream is a parody of her
tbh I'm not even the main character of my own life sooo..
Same I’m always like the supportive friend in everyone’s lives and I feel obligated to be so. Quite literally the supportive black friend. (I’m black irl if that wasn’t already clear)
I am a background character of my own story.
Then change that. Become the main charcter of your life.
@@sabrinac8453
Change is hard. I’ve suffered through decades of depression and nothing seems to help. I’ve never attempted suicide but I’ve been tempted. I’m hanging by a thread as it is. Being told to just change it doesn’t work.
What does it matter if I change things if it doesn’t make any difference? I still wouldn’t feel better about life. Maybe I’ll get a short reprieve but then it’s back to the misery.
XDD
I need to look at Midsommer because it looks like a fresh bowl of crazy.
It is. I really liked the movie, but it's trippy as all hell. You really need to pay attention when watching it. Not anywhere near as straightforward as Hereditary, but still great and quite creepy, despite taking place in the daytime.
Its fantastic. Trippy, crazy and fantastic. Director Ari Aster is a master when it comes to creating horror that just crawls under your skin.
It’s great! Watch it TODAY
“Introducing Sidney the victim, Sidney the survivor, Sidney...the STAR!”
Did they just forget Brandy in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer as one of the final two girls? She was the highlight of that movie.
The final girl from You're Next is my favorite! she isn't the survivor just because she's a girl but because she's strong. She made sure that killers are dead before moving!!!
I think Lifetime movies are pretty much built around this trope.
Women in Jep
Love the quality of this channel. Cited research and great analysis every single time alongside well thought out commentary. The best film & TV critique team on the Tubes.
the latest era of the Final Girl is one that I'm still getting used to. Even though the 70s & 80s era Final Girls were before my time, characters like Sally (TX chainsaw massacre), Laurie (Halloween), & Nancy (Nightmare on elm street) are simply iconic & transcend time. those characters still hold up well today, IMO. Sidney Prescott was the Final Girl of my generation, & she definitely represented a chancing/evolving of the Final Girl trope. I also like Erin ( You're next), she totally surprised me & was not at all what I was expecting, that character made a huge impression on me.
I definitely can see where some people can find this trope problematic and sexist, but overall I'd say from the 70s on, when the trope was first noted, I feel that it has been and can be seen as a very empowering pro-feminist trope. For example, in Halloween, even though Laurie is saved by a man (Loomis) she still was very formidable force to get Michael to the more weakened state he was in. Her efforts weren't for nothing. Loomis saving her was more of a deus ex machina moment rather than Laurie being helpless and only being able to be saved by a man. It only temporarily got her out of harm's way, as no one can truly defeat Michael. I also kind of challenge the aspect of the trope saying how female characters are stereotypically very emotional and men are seen as more calm and strong and how it's problematic. Like part of the reason why that trope is the way it is is because you need to feel sympathy for the final girl. If she was just super strong and didn't show any fear, then you wouldn't feel any fear yourself for her safety. It definitely works when the female character is really strong and does not allow herself to be controlled or saved by men. Erin in You're Next is a great example for more modern movies and the trio of Trish, Valerie, and Courtney from The Slumber Party Massacre are great example from the heyday of the slasher movie subgenre. But again, in the former ,you don't really feel any fear for Erin's safety, you just feel excitement for how great of a final girl she is!! Just look at Jesse from A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge. He is a male final girl. He is scared the entire movie and fits into the super emotional stereotype. I just feel it's more based on that you want to feel fear for the main character, as it wouldn't be as much of a horror movie if they were emotionless and capable the whole movie. That obviously works in some contexts, however, a majority of the time, I feel that it's more based on wanting to stay close to the formula that worked for Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Halloween rather than trying to reinforce that female characters are emotional wrecks incapable of saving themselves and only can be saved by the help of a man.
The best final girl: Cindy Campbell
No final girl was ever final-girled so many times
No one is better then Sidney Prescott.
Cindy Campbell is just a knockoff character of Sidney
@@arielperez3613 Obviously.
I really cannot begin to explain how much and thoroughly I love this channel! I always walk away feeling as though I’ve been gifted the supreme privilege of a free education, as well as getting the chance to deep dive into how media impacts us. I’m grateful for y’all. Thank you!
Very well done. Beautiful in-depth analysis of the origins and evolution of the "Final Girl" trope.
Finally, a trope I actually studied in school XD
It would be interesting to see a Black woman or just a woman of color, who stars in a horror film and ends up being the final girl. Most of the final girls mentioned in this video, who are women of color, are still seen as sidekicks/secondary characters to the main white character. The only exception to that is Adelaide/Red in Us
@@Chris-rg6nm first time hearing of that movie, I searched up the plot online, and maybe it fits? But it also came out in 2003, I would love to see more recent films
@Black Ninja any recommendations?
Go watch “Tales from the crypt: Demon Knight” it’s helmed by a Black Director too 😉
Exactly
it would be nice to see..but I mean ...a black girl, not one drop rule biracial girl...I don't feel like it's too much to ask to be honest...
Ripley from Alien was in control, her character was written for a man originally. Also Jada Pinker Smith was a final girl in the 90's in the movie Demon knight from Tales from the krypt. None of these final girls were the typical final girl for their time or for now.
"Midsommar" is presentation of love-bombing period of being in cult. Dani's horror/story is yet to come - she survives, because the cult decided so, not because of any strenght or positive inner quality.
Well, you can analyse it in that way...or thinking that what keeps her alive is her capacity to feel. She is clearly the most sensitive character in the film and this capacity of feeling is what keeps her alive because sensitivity is very valuable for them. They experience the same pain, joy or sorrow.
In this point, you can read it in two ways: an extremely dark way of portraiting feelings - as Dani finally decided to focus on her feelings and get revenge for all the pain she has experienced due to his insensitive boyfriend - or a dark but "empowering" way. Emotions have been always seen as a feminine thing, as women are too delicate that they can not control if they cry, shout or enter in panic. In Midsommar, by giving so much power to emotions, they are giving power to a "feminine thing", they are giving the message that it does not matter how logic, intelligent or able to ignore negative feelings you are, feeling emotions is something natural, nor feminine neither masculine.
Women have been always portrait as been "too feely" as it was something negative to express your emotions. When we see a girl shouting or crying in a horror film, we usually feel pity for her. However, in Midsommar, the girl that cries, shouts and suffers is the most powerful of all the characters.
Of course, portraying that those strong emotions can lead you to order the death of someone is a very extreme way of explaining the power of them, but it is a very interesting one. The girl who cries, who is dismissed by her emotions is, finally, the last survivor. The one who looks the weakest by traditional standards is the strongest because feelings and being sensitive are not a sign of weakness but of strength.
That’s why I don’t understand why people call it a happy ending. Her own loneliness was used to manipulate her
@@andymorgade7137 What keeps her alive is merely her youth. And the movie suggests she might not last long, as there's an image of a woman that looks like Dani sitting serene in flames.
I never realized the final one is a girl because people don't like to see men crying, still love this trope though
Sorry for english, i'am brazilian
Br na área lol
literally the best slasher trope. reading "Men, Women and Chainsaws..." by Carol J. Clover helped me understand the story behind it. my top fave has got to be sally hardesty. she fought like hell to escape leatherface and his cannibal family.
Does it strike anyone else wrong that they claim they want to see strong women, but then try and say that women who show strength are "phallicized"? It's not a choice between feminine or strong, and it doesn't sit right that women standing up for themselves is being portrayed as the un-feminist thing to do
Period
Shout out to Sanaa Lathan for being the final girl in Alien vs Predator! That movie stood out to me for that very reason lol
Assassination Lation has a Black final girl, and a Trans final girl and is SO underrated. It's by Sam Levinson of EUPHORIA
They said this in the video
@@OppositeofHATE7 i didn't get to tht part yet
Yeah but then he can’t even put a single black woman with two black parents in euphoria
@@Fedha-dm1up oop. Wake tht up!!! I hear Lovie Simone will be in Season 2. And will be with Lexi. Im all for Black gay girls but can we also get BLACK COUPLES??? Why they all white or in interracial relationships??
@@JaiProdz same
I’m so glad that you talking about race within this trope.
I love this channel it’s super inclusive
Do the stepford smiler trope! I think it'd be a fun topic, especially if you included the theme of mental health in it!
I can't believe how much research goes into those videos
Please do a "it girl" trope explaintion.
They did
@Isaak no I think she means like Blonde popular pretty girl who sort of flies through life and has a lot of attention amongst people and social media usually. Maybe
@Isaak No dear!
sidney prescott is the best final girl in my mind
Brandy survived I still know what you did last Summer
Thank you for doing this!! ♥️ as a big horror movie lover, it’s nice to see a discussion about the “final girl”.
I can't believe how cool your channel is, the content is INCREDIBLE
Besides Adelaide from the movie "Us" I can't think of a non-white final girl. I'm sure I'm forgetting a few but it shouldn't be this hard to remember them. 🤔 PS: I wrote this comment before I saw the video and I'm disappointed I was right. 🥺
Yara Zhayd recently uploaded a video which mentioned another non-white final girl. I’m not into horror and hadn’t seen the movie so don’t remember off the top of my head
I don’t know if you watch American Horror Story but their 1984 chapter actually had 2 final girls, one of which was black and in real life, a trans woman. I was pleasantly surprised!
The Invitation features a black final girl, along with 2 other survivors. I'd recommend it, it's a good movie.
Honestly
Alien Vs Predator tho
@@cristinarivera5707 I was going to say this. Angelica Ross's character shared the title with Emma Roberts. I believe Brandy was a final girl in also survived in "I Still Know What You Did Last Summer".
I've been secretly waiting for a video like this, super happy !!! Thank you
Great video! You should have mentioned Jesse Walsh from A Nightmare on Elm Street 2. He is the ultimate male "final girl"
I wouldn't consider Laurie to have been 'phalicized" for having used penetrated weapons.
6:15 Knitting needles at the time would have been associated with femineity. Hangers could have even been considered more feminine due to how women are often depicted as being "obsessed" with fashion and the knife she uses is one you'd find in the kitchen. While she may be using penetrating weapons, they are ones that are associated with pastimes that would have been seen as feminine ones. While anyone can knit, wear clothes, or cook, women are often depicted having a greater interest.
The Menu is a cool horror movie, especially with Anya Taylor's addition of female rage
Totally Killer is also a good one.
Neve's Sidney definitely changed the game and let's give an honorable mention to Brandy in "I Still Know" being one of the rare Black characters to not die in a horror film.
Could the next trope be "The middle child"
How media portrays the middle sibling as the no one really cares like Meg from family guy, Sue from the Middle or even Jan form The Brady Bunch
Could you do another parks and rec video? I love your channel!
I always hear the 'black guy dies first' joke, but besides the second Scream movie, I can't remember any other horror movie where a black guy indeed dies first.
i paused the video and watched assassination nation. Made me cry alot. really shows violence against women with how illogical toxic masculinity in combo with misogyny can be.
This video should be 90min! For all intent and purposes, the final girl was born at the same time as the horror genre, even in cinematic term.
If I was ever a final girl I wouldn't save my friends I don't want em that bad.
loved this one, girls! and ok, I NEED a list of all these movies mentioned! i’m a little surprised y’all didn’t mention the revenge aspect of horror (like I spit on your grave).
I don''t even like horror movies but i found this video interesting.
these videos have been so good lately even by your normal standards 😭😭 keep it up!!!!
i feel like they often make the final girl a virgin is bcos she’s suppose to be pure and innocent a polar contrast to the cold hearted evil killer yea in a way they’re fantasizing these holy ladies but I really like the trope it’s kinda fun to watch her fight back
I was NOT ready for that screenshot of the Grudge haha ! Thanks.
Love this series. Such interesting topics. You should start listing the movies you plan on spoiling in each episode though.
I am hooked on these videos! I have a degree in psychology and these analyzations are spot on!
No. They are not spot on. Not at all. They leave out vital information.
I hope you can make a video about the dead mother trope. I'm obsessed with these videos!
05:20: 'In a genre that so readily indulges in violence against women, this (woman as final girl) can be read as a small step forward, forcing men to transport themselves into the psyche of a victimized woman.'
Now that's interesting. I haven't tought about it like that. This makes me rethink the whole horror genre.
Why can men only empathize with virginal women? I wish you had addressed that. Maybe another video?
My take on 'the virgin survives' is because she's not expecting her boyfriend to show up and save her, but must save herself - just like a man. We're just not ready for a male character to be captured, screaming and crying, and then the girlfriend kicks down the door, shoots the bad guys in the head and then carries him out to safety.
you gave me so many ideas for my next horror movie night! and now i'll watch them with a critical eye
And this is why I like Hell raiser. The final girl survives with a feminine symbol (the box) and not a phallic symbol (knife or gun). Kirsty survives without needing to let go of her femininity.
Great observation!
Laurie in the 2018 halloween is one of my favorite characters ina movie. She’s strong and smart, but she’s scared and hurt and traumatized. And I love that they let her look old
you should totally do a video about the "bad bitch" trope!
It's about time you did a video on this trope!!!!
So basically final girl has hyper vigileance that might be due to trauma reinforcing their survival aspect
“It was the boogeyman.” Laurie Strode/Halloween
Love that quote, I love how Laurie grew into a strong confident slayer over the course of the franchise! 😎
@@trinaq It is true.
"As a matter of fact, it was."
My cousin loves the Final Girl and says it is the only heroine from yesteryear that is still around today. She says the FG is a badass to survive and/or takes out the slasher. I find this to be the view of a new generation somewhat. My generation was hit with criticisms by our college professors. Tomaytoe, Tomahtoe?
Horror is also often based around an incompetent 'hero' in the face of an overpowering 'monster.' That's what makes it different from regular action or even a thriller (according to some authors I heard talking about it once). This may be easier to communicate with female leads who we assume to be physically weaker. Notably, horror more often seems to happen to ordinary people and often involves young people with literally no expertise in anything.
I can only think of one example of an African-American girl being a final girl with Jennifer Love Hewitt, is Brandi in "I still know what you did last summer". They both survived in that film.
Of all the tropes I’ve heard of this one was new. I enjoyed it!!
OBJECTION! The first final girl was Mina from the 1933 Dracula!
Which was also the deal first horror movie.
I just recently watched this movie and realized it did have many aspects of the trope. Lucy being promiscuous and dying while the chaste Mina lives. It’s interesting
This is definitely one of my more favourite types of girls in TY and film