This evening I was channel surfing while avoiding any sense of adulthood responsibility & stumbled upon my favorite Saturday afternoon guilty pleasure, the Chiller channel. Tonight's horror fun was the Chiller 13: Great American Slashers, http://www.chillertv.com/shows/chiller-13-great-american-slashers. Overall I agreed with the list and found it to not only entertaining, but it reminded me of some of my favorite movies. There were a couple issues I had with two of the slashers that were on the list. The biggest problem I found with not only Sweeney Todd, but also with Pinhead was their Britishness. How can they be in a list of American Slashers, if they aren't even from this country? I am not disputing the merits either have in the horror genre. Sweeney Todd is one that I wouldn't have thought of for the list, coming from a musical background as I do, I wouldn't have even picked him as a slasher. Though given the method of his killings and amount of killings, I can very much see it. As for Pinhead, he is a classic horror icon who can't be disputed as a dream haunter for most of my generation. But once again, he's fraking British! If it hadn't been touted as the "Great American Slashers" the thought would have never crossed my mind.
I love a good slasher flick as much as the next girl. Ok, maybe not as much as the next girl, since they usually go to the movies and hold on for dear life to the boy next to her who is hoping to get a handful of under the bra action after the movie. While I on the other hand, have a bad habit of not only thoroughly enjoying the killings but sometimes even cheering on the slasher because let's face it, teenagers in the woods are dumb.
Something I had forgotten until I was watching was the allure of Norman Bates. Norman was everything we women think we want in a man. He's kind of boyish with his full face smile, charming, hard worker, loves his mother, well spoken & a snappy dresser. All of that is great, until you realize he's a damned killer who keeps his mummified & taxidermied mother in the attic, he's also running around killing the guests of his business while dressed as said mother! It's probably a read flag that not only did I see this, but so did the women being interviewed for the special.
One of the most amusing things about the show was one of the men on the panel. Not only was he well spoken and nonthreatening, but after a second his name popped up and I literally gasped out loud. Leatherface, one of the ultimate slasher icons looks like Santa! He's this sweet looking grey haired, bearded, chubby man who looks like he would play kickball with a brood of grandchildren. Yes, Gunnar Hansen was born in Iceland so technically he shouldn't be on the list either, but I am willing to make an exception for such a classic American horror film. I don't know if the next time I watch Texas Chainsaw Massacre I will be able to think of anything but the now jolly looking
Hansen. I want to show a picture of him to everyone who was ever scared of him. Maybe I'll start with my mother as my seriously misunderstood 17 year old father though that Massacre would be a great first date! And my mother wonders where I get my love of all things horror. All things except Freddie Kruger, that guy still freaks me out! And yes, he was #1 on the list.
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