Notes from Malta Comics Expo 2014
Dr. Krista Bonello R. Giappone and writer Lara Schembri discussed women in horror at Malta Comics Expo 2014. Schembri and Giappone talked about their favorite films and the tropes that are typical to the horror genre when it comes to women.
The vamp, the virgin and the mother are typical female roles and have become shorthand that writers and directors can play with.
“Games need stock characters,” says Schembri who is writing for video games.
“So it’s not completely and entirely a bad thing,” says Giappone.
The Haunting and The Haunting of House Hill has the two character types of virgin and her counterpoint the vamp who is sexually free.
The Werewolf
The additional hair and lunar cycle are just two ways that the werewolf myth is parallel to the female coming of age story.
According to Schembri, werewolves create one channel to think about what it is like to become a woman. She also says that “the werewolf is often associated with homosexuals.”
Giappone says that the transformation involves a loss of control.
The Films
The films mentioned include:
The Soska Sisters are “actively marketing and promoting themselves as lifelong” horror fans and filmmakers.
“I never get bored during a horror film,” says Giappone about why she likes horror films.
The Guts and the Gory is a Facebook group for Maltese horror fans.
The vamp, the virgin and the mother are typical female roles and have become shorthand that writers and directors can play with.
“Games need stock characters,” says Schembri who is writing for video games.
“So it’s not completely and entirely a bad thing,” says Giappone.
The Haunting and The Haunting of House Hill has the two character types of virgin and her counterpoint the vamp who is sexually free.
The Werewolf
The additional hair and lunar cycle are just two ways that the werewolf myth is parallel to the female coming of age story.
According to Schembri, werewolves create one channel to think about what it is like to become a woman. She also says that “the werewolf is often associated with homosexuals.”
Giappone says that the transformation involves a loss of control.
The Films
The films mentioned include:
- The Descent
- Sightseers
- The Awakening
- Pet Semetary directed by Mary Lambert
- American Psycho directed by Mary Harron
The Soska Sisters are “actively marketing and promoting themselves as lifelong” horror fans and filmmakers.
“I never get bored during a horror film,” says Giappone about why she likes horror films.
The Guts and the Gory is a Facebook group for Maltese horror fans.