I totally agree with the notion that increased violence in horror films tends to indicate a shift towards conservatism and a heightened cultural fear of the other, and not to like make your videos any longer, but I would've loved a little bit of film theory just kinda stuck in wherever you can, that's my shit. keep up the good work!
Hi Jane! I am a subscriber and I love your reviews. Keep up the good work. You put a lot of thought into the analysis of your movie reviews. I was wonder if you perceive homophobic themes in vampire movies? I was born in 1970s and my father was born in the 1920s. His father was born in the 1870s. My father was homophobic and I suspect he learned this in part from his Victorian age father. My father viewed gays and vampires who preyed on straight men and boys. They objective was to turn straight men and boys gay, kind of like vampires lust after people's blood and if you are bitten you become a vampire too. I am not as articulate as you are, but can you see the similarity? Like Rob Zombie said in your video, horror movies play into the fears of people and the themes change from decade to decade as people's fears change.Once again, keep up the good work and I look forward to your next video.
Hello, Lewis! Thanks for watching. That's a complicated question because I sort of think horror is engaged with very differently than other genres. I actually think accepting horror as a largely reactionary genre can lead to a greater appreciation of it. This is more or less what Clive Barker (director of Hellraiser and author of the source novel, and gay man) thinks too. Barker once said "Horror fiction tends to be reactionary. It's usually about to return to the status quo - the monster is the outsider who must be banished from the sanctum. [...] I've created monsters who come from the outside and who call out to somebody to join them in the sanctum." There are ways of playing with genre to comment on contemporary cultural fears but even Barker doesn't stray too far from the tenets of the genre. He knew exactly what he was doing by tying homosexuality to the inferno. We fear what we don’t understand and so horror gives us an outlet to identify and engage with our cultural fears. On the subject of vampires specifically, something I came close to mentioning (though didn't for the sake of relevancy) I think Nosferatu's Count Orlock in many ways reflected Germany's relationship with the growing antisemitic hysteria, even though it's not actively about that. At the end of the twentieth century, vampires became more gay coded in cinematic and literary fiction thanks to Anne Rice among others. I think works from this time reflect the AIDS crisis. I'm not convinced horror doesn't ever reinforce cultural bigotry, but I think more than anything it spotlights taboos and fears through metaphorical and representational means. That was actually Carpenter (director of the original Halloween), not Zombie who I sampled in my video's opening by the way. Maybe I should have made that clearer.
great video! i've always been hearing from cool people that these were actually great movies (despite the more common view that they suck) but i've never actually learned why that is exactly until now. i'm finally convinced that i have to watch them!
Great video, Jane. This is probably the essay I was the most excited to see on your channel, and it didn't disappoint. Having recently gone through all of Rob Zombie's films for the first time, I think it's safe to say that they usually range from decent (3 From Hell, The Munsters) to good (House of 1000 Corpses, Halloween, 31) to great (The Devil's Rejects, Halloween II, The Lords of Salem), and don't deserve the hate they get. Halloween II in particular stands out for me as being his best movie. It is unlike any other horror movie I've ever seen. It's a mainstream slasher movie sequel, a thoughtful exploration of psychological issues like an artsy A24 horror film and a brutal 70s horror throwback all at once while also having the looks of a surreal music video. It's both beautiful and hard to watch. I can totally see why someone would hate Halloween II, but they are wrong. So, so wrong.
Wow, this is phenomenal. Probably my favorite analysis on these films. I love both of these, especially H2. Thanks for sharing the good word on Zombie’s Halloween films.
Excellent analysis on these often polarising but insightful films. The point about societal conformist gender roles is something I've felt is often overlooked and misunderstood by many critics that you've contextualised here in a way that makes it clear from your own perspective. I've read that article you've shared here sometime last year after checking out the director's cut of Zombies H2 and other recent articles discussing it. There's another video by another channel who discussed these and how they deal with trauma in a deep, profound way that avoids being superficial and pretentious. But anyway great video!
Phenomenal analysis, once again proving how valuable your voice is in the film analysis space. Horror isn't really in my wheelhouse, so I haven't seen these films, but the concept as you've presented it is compelling.
recently this halloween season I found myself very interested in Rob Zombie's halloween movies and how people see them in comparison to the others. it was really exciting for me to see that you covered these
From what I've observed, Rob Zombie in general is pretty polarizing. Audiences and critics weren't kind to his Halloween films especially. Halloween fans are pretty polarized by them. They have their supports of course as they're cult films. I've also noticed a number of LGBT+ cinephiles really like them. Personally, I think the the first one is mostly good and the second one is great. That said, I'm not actually the biggest on Carpenter's original film.
Wow. What a brilliant and insightful video into these films! I had a general idea of the artistic themes and vision Zombie was trying to implement into the films, but I never realized how deep they went. And the opening point about how horror reflects different societal fears over the years is something I never considered lol. Perhaps I grossly underestimated what the horror genre as a whole has to say. I kind of always saw it as quite cheap, exploitative and quite negligent in its depiction of sex, violence, and women, but there is truly more than meets the eye. And you hammered home the Freudian themes of the film concerning the Oedipus complex. I can't look at the story the same again. I don't think I'm aware of any other film which has explicitly explored that concept save perhaps for Robert Zemeckis 'Beowulf'. Kind of disappointed now that Zombies followup 'Halloween 3D' wasn't made, as it would have been interesting to see what he would have explored next. I think it would be kind of cool to see a film tackle the Elektra complex on a thematic level too (though Freud was not in favour of it), as I feel as if it's psychoanalytical intrigue is overshadowed by Oedipus complex. Anyway, fantastic video. 😁👍
For what it's worth, I don't think Zombie ever really wanted to make a third installment. I see the two as two contrasting and complementary forces: Yin/Yang, dark/light, masculine/feminine, and natural/supernatural sort of way. I also don't want to claim everything I bring up in my analysis is necessarily actively intended by Zombie because I can't really be sure of those things unless there is a record of him saying so.
@@styleissubstance I guess he probably didn't when you consider how the directors cut played out compared to the theatrical release. And I agree that the two films work well enough on their own in regards to the story they tell and the ideas they present. Two halves of the same coin. I still think your reading of the film is delightfully refreshing compared to many of the other things I've heard people say, where they simply dismiss the films as 'edgy', 'pretentious', or just 'background noise'.
Im sorry, but as a Carpenter fan. I preferred the original, arguably the father of American Slasher films, I didnt like how they went into the backstory, etc. Curious if you would do a video on another Carpenter film, They Live. One of my favorite films, its based and rowdy roddy piper pilled. Liked the vid overall though btw
Still hate robs Halloween.. both of them actually First one it's a bunch of screaming rednecks Second was some bs artsie shartsie white horse crap Never had an issue with his music though Top tier👌
Horror is the console game of film. The best ones get praised just for not being abject failures, and for respecting (arduously, even begrudgingly) only the most basic standards. Horror fans and Dork Rolls fans even resembling each other in more than superficial ways. The purportedly subversive quality of Horror and the purported difficulty of Dork Rolls are equally laughable, the former being as brain-dead as repeatedly pressing the roll button.
I grew up with Halloween (2007) and I still highly enjoy it But I can say with full confidence that Halloween 2 (2009) is the worst movie I’ve ever seen lmao
![Rob Zombie’s Halloween & Halloween 2 - Panel [2018 Halloween 40 Years of Terror Convention]](/img/n.gif)
I totally agree with the notion that increased violence in horror films tends to indicate a shift towards conservatism and a heightened cultural fear of the other, and not to like make your videos any longer, but I would've loved a little bit of film theory just kinda stuck in wherever you can, that's my shit. keep up the good work!
Hi Jane! I am a subscriber and I love your reviews. Keep up the good work. You put a lot of thought into the analysis of your movie reviews. I was wonder if you perceive homophobic themes in vampire movies? I was born in 1970s and my father was born in the 1920s. His father was born in the 1870s. My father was homophobic and I suspect he learned this in part from his Victorian age father. My father viewed gays and vampires who preyed on straight men and boys. They objective was to turn straight men and boys gay, kind of like vampires lust after people's blood and if you are bitten you become a vampire too. I am not as articulate as you are, but can you see the similarity? Like Rob Zombie said in your video, horror movies play into the fears of people and the themes change from decade to decade as people's fears change.Once again, keep up the good work and I look forward to your next video.
Hello, Lewis! Thanks for watching. That's a complicated question because I sort of think horror is engaged with very differently than other genres.
I actually think accepting horror as a largely reactionary genre can lead to a greater appreciation of it. This is more or less what Clive Barker (director of Hellraiser and author of the source novel, and gay man) thinks too. Barker once said "Horror fiction tends to be reactionary. It's usually about to return to the status quo - the monster is the outsider who must be banished from the sanctum. [...] I've created monsters who come from the outside and who call out to somebody to join them in the sanctum." There are ways of playing with genre to comment on contemporary cultural fears but even Barker doesn't stray too far from the tenets of the genre. He knew exactly what he was doing by tying homosexuality to the inferno. We fear what we don’t understand and so horror gives us an outlet to identify and engage with our cultural fears.
On the subject of vampires specifically, something I came close to mentioning (though didn't for the sake of relevancy)
I think Nosferatu's Count Orlock in many ways reflected Germany's relationship with the growing antisemitic hysteria, even though it's not actively about that. At the end of the twentieth century, vampires became more gay coded in cinematic and literary fiction thanks to Anne Rice among others. I think works from this time reflect the AIDS crisis. I'm not convinced horror doesn't ever reinforce cultural bigotry, but I think more than anything it spotlights taboos and fears through metaphorical and representational means.
That was actually Carpenter (director of the original Halloween), not Zombie who I sampled in my video's opening by the way. Maybe I should have made that clearer.
great video! i've always been hearing from cool people that these were actually great movies (despite the more common view that they suck) but i've never actually learned why that is exactly until now. i'm finally convinced that i have to watch them!
Great video, Jane. This is probably the essay I was the most excited to see on your channel, and it didn't disappoint.
Having recently gone through all of Rob Zombie's films for the first time, I think it's safe to say that they usually range from decent (3 From Hell, The Munsters) to good (House of 1000 Corpses, Halloween, 31) to great (The Devil's Rejects, Halloween II, The Lords of Salem), and don't deserve the hate they get.
Halloween II in particular stands out for me as being his best movie. It is unlike any other horror movie I've ever seen. It's a mainstream slasher movie sequel, a thoughtful exploration of psychological issues like an artsy A24 horror film and a brutal 70s horror throwback all at once while also having the looks of a surreal music video.
It's both beautiful and hard to watch. I can totally see why someone would hate Halloween II, but they are wrong. So, so wrong.
I feel like the Rob Zombie Halloweens were much grimmer and more sad than the previous films, with Michael’s childhood and also the lives he ruins!
Really love the analysis of the movies. 🎉
Wow, this is phenomenal. Probably my favorite analysis on these films. I love both of these, especially H2. Thanks for sharing the good word on Zombie’s Halloween films.
Jason is better
Excellent analysis on these often polarising but insightful films. The point about societal conformist gender roles is something I've felt is often overlooked and misunderstood by many critics that you've contextualised here in a way that makes it clear from your own perspective. I've read that article you've shared here sometime last year after checking out the director's cut of Zombies H2 and other recent articles discussing it. There's another video by another channel who discussed these and how they deal with trauma in a deep, profound way that avoids being superficial and pretentious. But anyway great video!
dear jane, this is a fantastic take as usual. keep up the good work
Phenomenal analysis, once again proving how valuable your voice is in the film analysis space. Horror isn't really in my wheelhouse, so I haven't seen these films, but the concept as you've presented it is compelling.
16:20 lol nice perspective
9:08
19:12
19:56
Okay, I'm going to re-watch
them ...
Stay style is substancized
recently this halloween season I found myself very interested in Rob Zombie's halloween movies and how people see them in comparison to the others. it was really exciting for me to see that you covered these
From what I've observed, Rob Zombie in general is pretty polarizing. Audiences and critics weren't kind to his Halloween films especially.
Halloween fans are pretty polarized by them. They have their supports of course as they're cult films. I've also noticed a number of LGBT+ cinephiles really like them.
Personally, I think the the first one is mostly good and the second one is great. That said, I'm not actually the biggest on Carpenter's original film.
@@styleissubstance what do you think of the Blum house films? 2018 kills and Ends?
Wow. What a brilliant and insightful video into these films! I had a general idea of the artistic themes and vision Zombie was trying to implement into the films, but I never realized how deep they went.
And the opening point about how horror reflects different societal fears over the years is something I never considered lol. Perhaps I grossly underestimated what the horror genre as a whole has to say. I kind of always saw it as quite cheap, exploitative and quite negligent in its depiction of sex, violence, and women, but there is truly more than meets the eye.
And you hammered home the Freudian themes of the film concerning the Oedipus complex. I can't look at the story the same again. I don't think I'm aware of any other film which has explicitly explored that concept save perhaps for Robert Zemeckis 'Beowulf'.
Kind of disappointed now that Zombies followup 'Halloween 3D' wasn't made, as it would have been interesting to see what he would have explored next.
I think it would be kind of cool to see a film tackle the Elektra complex on a thematic level too (though Freud was not in favour of it), as I feel as if it's psychoanalytical intrigue is overshadowed by Oedipus complex.
Anyway, fantastic video. 😁👍
For what it's worth, I don't think Zombie ever really wanted to make a third installment. I see the two as two contrasting and complementary forces: Yin/Yang, dark/light, masculine/feminine, and natural/supernatural sort of way. I also don't want to claim everything I bring up in my analysis is necessarily actively intended by Zombie because I can't really be sure of those things unless there is a record of him saying so.
@@styleissubstance I guess he probably didn't when you consider how the directors cut played out compared to the theatrical release.
And I agree that the two films work well enough on their own in regards to the story they tell and the ideas they present. Two halves of the same coin.
I still think your reading of the film is delightfully refreshing compared to many of the other things I've heard people say, where they simply dismiss the films as 'edgy', 'pretentious', or just 'background noise'.
Im sorry, but as a Carpenter fan. I preferred the original, arguably the father of American Slasher films, I didnt like how they went into the backstory, etc. Curious if you would do a video on another Carpenter film, They Live. One of my favorite films, its based and rowdy roddy piper pilled. Liked the vid overall though btw
The original John Carpenter Halloween is a classic film, regardless of genre. Rob Zombie later rebooted Halloween isn't even a cult classic!
Still hate robs Halloween.. both of them actually
First one it's a bunch of screaming rednecks
Second was some bs artsie shartsie white horse crap
Never had an issue with his music though
Top tier👌
You know nothing about abusive families and trauma then. That was the most relatable two movies I've seen in my life
@@dahannes6739 lmao shut tf up😂
A movie doesn't have to be relatable to be good and you know nothing of my childhood.
@@dahannes6739 you know nothing about me or my life, and a movie doesn't have to be relatable to be a good movie.
@@KingShark47 but it's a better movie if it's realistic🤯
Horror is the console game of film. The best ones get praised just for not being abject failures, and for respecting (arduously, even begrudgingly) only the most basic standards. Horror fans and Dork Rolls fans even resembling each other in more than superficial ways. The purportedly subversive quality of Horror and the purported difficulty of Dork Rolls are equally laughable, the former being as brain-dead as repeatedly pressing the roll button.
I grew up with Halloween (2007) and I still highly enjoy it
But I can say with full confidence that Halloween 2 (2009) is the worst movie I’ve ever seen lmao
Thanks for loving h2 as much i do. I could hear you talk positively about rob zombies halloween for hours 😢