Introduction
The film industry considers the horror genre in cinema, especially in Hollywood, as a staple because it draws a sizeable audience that consequently makes horror movies highly profitable (Hantke, 2010, p. viii). At least, this was the case during the 19th and 20th centuries since the state of the horror genre has changed over time. At present time, filmmakers would confess that horror films today are not as profitable as they were in the past. According to Hantke (2010, p. viii), we can attribute the so-called slump in the horror genre, especially in Hollywood, to its decline as a result of the formulaic and repetitive nature of horror movies released for the audience (Nowell, 2011, p. 4). “As one subgeneric cycle followed another with ever-increasing rapidity, the genre on the whole was in decline” (Hantke, 2010, p. viii). For this reason, the audience and critics alike, including Hantke, think that the film industry truly does not make horror movies like filmmakers in the 19th and 20th centuries do. As argued by Hantke, “As the 1980s came to a close, the American horror film seemed locked into an endless loop of formulaic repetition” (2010, p. viii). Conrich (2010) also defined the horror genre as “saturated, imitative, and lacking progression” (p. 1).
The formulaic nature of horror movies eventually became incongruous, thereby, becoming the subject of contempt and jest (Dyer, 2007, p. 132). Nevertheless, this idea constitutes one side of the argument about horror movies. A more positive perspective about the horror genre is that horror movies follow a formula because the standards are based on classic plots and twists that made old horror movies successful and iconic. Hence, views or perspectives about the horror genre could be positive and negative. Consequently, these perspectives bring about styles in horror filmmaking, such as pastiche and parody. While pastiche is a film style that imitates other texts out of deference to the latter, parody imitates other texts or contents to mock it. Remakes are examples of pastiche because filmmakers recreate old horror movies to pay homage to these classics. Furthermore, pastiche equates to reflexivity on the part of the filmmaker, such that the process of creating or remaking a film is thoughtful and reflective of other concepts or approaches in previous works (Dyer, 2007, p. 92). On the contrary, humor is characteristic of parodies.
Essentially, pastiche and parody are two different styles of work that imitates styles or approaches in other works or texts. These two styles are different because while pastiche imitates another work or text as a means of commemorating it, parody, on the contrary, imitates another work or text through humor and by mocking them (Dyer, 2007, p. 98). Pastiche and parody allude to intertextuality since these relate to other works or texts. Essentially, intertextuality means the process of understanding one text by relating it to another text. Hence, the analysis of pastiche and parody films necessitate the study or understanding of the works or texts that these were based on. Research in this discussion constitutes the study of pastiche and parody in film, particularly in a film genre. For this discussion, the selected film genre is horror. Since pastiche and parody suggest intertextuality, the following analysis of the film Scream (1996) relate to an earlier horror film, Halloween (1978), as well as to common, even cliché, conventions in the horror genre. Through an exploration of these conventions in genre, we conclude that the humor in pastiche and parody emanate from the cliché and predictable conventions in horror movies (Nowell, 2011, p. 245). Furthermore, these styles in film help define contemporary genre films such as the horror genre.
The Horror Genre
Genre in any discipline, including film, refers to kinds of work with pre-established standards and broad practices that are definitive of the genre. Hence, horror as a genre in film refers to broad traditions such as fear, tragedy, gore, and the grotesque, among others. Horror as a film genre is also characterized by a menacing atmosphere, dark and bizarre undertones, unsettling situations and sceneries, and more specifically the existence of monsters, grotesque creatures, hauntings, and violence attacks (Saricks, 2009, p. 114). The existence of these standards and tropes limit the way that filmmakers explore and develop films in the horror genre. Unlike other genres that are flexible when it comes to plot development, the horror genre is bounded by broad practices in the genre. Consequently, due to these limitations, horror movies tend to be repetitive and cliché (Nowell, 2011, p. 245). The absurdity in the way that filmmakers develop horror movies brought about the application of various treatments to filmmaking in the genre such as pastiche and parody.
Pastiche and parody contribute to the definition of genres (Dyer, 2007, p. 97). In the horror genre, pastiche and parody define the horror genre because they highlight characteristics, standards, or tropes that characterize this genre. Although these features or qualities are evident in serious horror movies, pastiche and parody highlight them, and therefore, help in defining the horror genre because these films are more explicit in showing this genre’s characteristics. In Wes Carpenter’s Scream, for instance, classic or common standards, tropes, and broad concepts in the horror genre were repeatedly referenced by the characters.
As previously noted, pastiche is a reflective means of filmmaking. Aside from this, we should similarly note that pastiche is a self-aware means of creating or recreating films. Dyer (2007, p. 132) defined pastiche within this context by equating self-awareness in filmmaking to a thoughtful process, such that filmmakers are introspective in the way that they develop films, especially when it comes to remaking horror films. In pastiche, filmmakers do not merely imitate the plot, design, and pace, among others, but go about it in a manner that would enhance the original movie (Dyer, 2007, p. 132). Hence, the filmmaker is also thoughtful of the story-telling process instead of merely narrating what happened in the original movie.
McRoy discussed film remakes by focusing on nostalgia as one of the factors that make these films successful. Carpenter’s Halloween is one of the films that was remade or adapted several times in the horror genre. According to McRoy (2010, p. 221), one of the precursors of pastiche and parodies of old horror movies is the marketability of nostalgia. As a movie gets older, it attracts less attention from the audience, particular from the younger generations. Remakes influenced by pastiche and parody styles, therefore, play a role in allowing filmmakers to reintroduce classic and iconic horror movies to younger generations.
Pastiche and Parody in Scream (1996) and Halloween
Scream is a parody not only of Halloween but also of other horror movies that adopted cliché conventions of this genre. Although Scream is a thoughtful movie (Dyer, 2010, p. 132), it subtly mocks other horror movies. In the same way, Scream is also a pastiche because adopting the cliché conventions of horror movies made it a successful one. Part of the reasons why critics praised Craven’s Scream is because of the way that the movie blends horror genre standards and tropes in an honest and yet humorous manner that has certainly entertained critics and viewers alike (Dyer, 2010, p. 132).
Scream is a parody of horror movies like Halloween because it mocks or criticizes predictable conventions that make these films foolhardy. For one, when victims in horror movies call the police to ask for help, they always seem to arrive late, sometimes even towards the end of the movie. While Casey talks to the anonymous caller (the killer) on the phone, the latter says that even when victims call the police, the latter do not make it in time. Scream also criticizes the way that protagonists in most horror movies make bad decisions. When the killer knocks on the door and Casey asks “Who’s there?”, the killer tells her not to ask such questions. These questions are often asked in old horror movies whenever protagonists hear a knocking on the door or other sounds inside the house. The killer equates it to a “death wish”, which means that in old horror movies, characters that ask “Who’s there?” are usually the ones who get killed.
Scream heavily references other horror movies. In the beginning of the movie, Casey (Drew Barrymore) receives an anonymous call. During the conversation, she references the film Halloween, describing it as a film about a man that wears a white mask and stalks his prey, usually a babysitter. In horror movies such as Halloween, killers wear masks, which is why Scream imitated this trend in the genre. During a conversation between Sidney (Neve Campbell) and Tatum (Rose McGowan), the latter even mentions movies directed by a certain Wes Carpenter. “Wes Carpenter” is a reference to Wes Craven, the director of Scream and known for his work in several other horror movies, and John Carpenter, the director of Halloween. Dewey Riley (David Arquette), Tatum’s older brother and a police officer, also mentions another a film he once saw about “a killer in Texas”, which is a reference to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. While going over a list of movie titles at a party, Sidney asks why Jamie Lee Curtis, known for her roles in horror movies, starred in movies such as The Fog, Prom Night, and Terror Train. While talking to Sidney about her issues with her mother who was murdered a year earlier, Billy then talks about Sidney’s similarities with Jodie Foster’s character in Silence of the Lambs, another iconic film that is revered in the horror genre. Later on, when it was revealed that Billy and Stuart (Mathew Lillard) were the killers, Billy tastes the blood on his shirt and tells Sidney that it is corn syrup, the same ingredient that filmmakers used in Carrie to make the pig’s blood. Carrie is another iconic film that was recently remade. Overall, the references in Scream appears to be an homage to all the classic movies that define the horror genre.
Randy (Jamie Kennedy), one of Sidney’s friends who works at a video store, also talks about various horror movies throughout the film. Randy is familiar with several horror movies and the way that he talks about them throughout the movie illustrates pastiche and parody in Scream. Randy, for instance, talks about various cliché conventions in horror movies that make them predictable. For one, Randy talks about formulaic horror movies. He says there is a standard in horror movies – a simple structure that aims at a target audience. Randy also says that horror movies are formulaic and simple because these appeal to the target audience. “If it’s too complicated, you lose your target audience.” Randy also later tells his friends that there is a formula in horror movies. One particular formula is that everybody appears to be a suspect, which is one of the standards inherent in Craven’s Scream. In a way, Craven and Williamson’s Scream is a thoughtful and self-aware adoption of old classic horror movies such as Halloween because the filmmakers were aware about the formula of these movies (Dyer, 2010, p. 132). Craven and Williamson did not merely adopt horror genre tropes but did so in a way that highlights these standards in the genre.
In one scene, Randy and some of his friends from high school were watching a horror movie. One of the boys criticized the movie for being predictable. Randy then continues by discussion common conventions in horror movies. Randy says that there are certain rules followed in horror movies. These rules allow the protagonists to successfully survive until the end of the horror movie. Randy says the first rule is that no two characters should have intercourse because when they do, they become the next victims. This horror genre trope is observed in Halloween. The second rule is that the characters should never drink or do drugs. The third rule is that the characters should never say, “I’ll be right back”, because when they do, they never really come back. Later on, while Randy and his friends are watching a horror movie, he points out common conventions in the horror genre as they happen in the movie. Consequently, as Randy points these out and calls them “obligatory shots”, the same scenes happen in Scream. As Randy is watching the movie, he warns the girl to turn around. While he does this, the killer is also behind him.
Parody films build on the audience’s expectations of these films because of pre-established plot themes in the genre. In the horror genre, for instance, some of common and therefore expected practices is the victimization of high school students and babysitters, and the anonymity of the killer. Hence, the killer is always wearing a mask and usual victims are babysitters. In Halloween, one of Mike Myers’ victims after escaping a mental institution was one of the protagonist Laurie’s friends, Lynda. Lynda was babysitting a neighbor’s child when she was killed. In Scream, the killers also wear a mask. The objectification of women is also an expectation in the horror film genre. As argued by McRoy (2010, p. 191), often, horror movies are influenced by pornography. While on the phone with the killer, Sidney says that she does not watch scary movies. Sidney criticized horror movies by pointing out that they share similarities and that often, actors are mediocre and filmmakers only hire them because of their physique. The “big-breasted girl” that Sidney mentions is Scream is a staple in horror movies and often, nudity becomes part of the narrative involving this character. Horror films then objectify women by portraying them as beautiful objects for display, and later on, subjecting them to violence including rape or gruesome murder (McRoy, 2010, p. 192-193).
Another common practice in the horror genre is the open-endedness of movies, thereby, allowing a sequel. This means that by the end of horror movies, the killer dies but conveniently resurrected in sequels. Stuart, one of the killers, says, “Everybody dies but us. We’re gonna carry on and plan a sequel because these days you gotta have a sequel”. Stuart’s statement in this scene shows trends in the horror genre, such that horror films often have many sequels because of the way that these movies end (Abbott, 2010, p. 28).
Conclusion
The foregoing discussion proves that Craven’s Scream is a genre film – the horror genre – that is both a pastiche and parody not only of Carpenter’s Halloween but also of other classic horror movies. Scream is pastiche because the filmmaking process was thoughtful. Kevin Williamson, the screenwriter of Scream, did not merely cram horror genre standards or tropes in the movie but did so in a way that elevated the movie. Scream came out not only as a parody but a thoughtful pastiche that sought to mock but also celebrate or honor classic tropes in horror movies including Halloween. Scream is pastiche because it pays homage to classic horror movies that have defined the horror genre. All the films referenced in Scream, including Carpenter’s Halloween are iconic horror movies known not only for classic tropes in the genre but also for these films’ novelty.
Pastiche and parody help define contemporary genre films, including the horror genre because these styles highlight the standards or tropes that similarly define these genres. This idea is evident in Scream. In the movie, the screenwriter Williamson has successfully written in various horror genre tropes such as serial killers victimizing babysitters, protagonists not knowing the killer is behind them, and the objectification of women in these films, among others. As a result, these references in the film helped define common practices or tropes in the horror genre, and therefore, more recognizable to the audience. Overall, based on the foregoing discussion, the role of pastiche and parody in contemporary genre films is not only to define a genre but also to imitate other texts or contents as a means to pay homage to the latter. Pastiche helps filmmakers go about the filmmaking process in a thoughtful and self-aware manner while parody contributes to humor and entertainment value.
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