Comparing more modern slasher films to their slasher icons.
Overview
Having previously reviewed five classic slasher franchises, I’ve moved on to compare several slasher series from the late nineties onward, namely Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Saw, and Hatchet. One thing of note moving into this era of slashers is that, with the exception of Hatchet, they tend to take more of a mystery slant to the films. In the classics, the viewer almost always knew who the slasher was, and the characters usually either didn’t realize for a while that their friends were being picked off, or they knew exactly who was responsible in the case of several sequels. For these newer movies, many of them are mysteries, even for the viewer as the slasher mantle is frequently passed to other people. The characters themselves typically know something is up from the start and have to piece together the mystery along the way as well. So for this comparison, I’m going to add in the category of Best Mystery.
**CONTENT WARNING: Violence, death, graphic images**
**Spoilers below.**
Best Series
Nominees (this and following sections listed from worst to best fit)
Scream
I can appreciate that Scream was trying to do something fairly unique. It’s a semi-satire of the slasher genre that deliberately plays off of the “rules” of slashers throughout the films. I just don’t think Wes Craven pulled it off very well. Between this series and New Nightmare (1994), I get the impression that Craven thought homage and meta were the two coolest concepts in the world, but just didn’t understand how to do them properly. Blatantly name dropping movies isn’t clever, and having a character stand up in front of everyone and list out the exact rules is honestly pretty lame. Especially in the third movie, where Randy (Jamie Kennedy), who was killed in Scream 2 (1997) turns out to have taken time out of the ensuing horror to sit down and record himself explaining the rules of the final movie in a trilogy just in case this happens one more time. Riiiight. Now, they did sometimes justify the references in a way that worked, such as when discussing movies in an actual film class or while playing one of Ghostface’s “trivia games.” But quoting a popular movie, and then citing your source? Not a good example of homage. Having said all that, I do look forward to the upcoming film knowing that it will have a different director.
Saw
Of all the series, Saw definitely wins as far as gruesome violence goes. The traps are always inventive and intense, and usually relevant to some characteristic about the victim in the trap itself. Unfortunately, the films rarely deliver on the core premise: Jigsaw’s original intent of putting people through harrowing situations in order to give them a drive to live and new appreciation in life. In many of the movies, especially in the first half of the series, there are hardly any survivors, which kind of defeats the purpose of the traps. How are they supposed to appreciate life if they’re all dead? Furthermore, several times throughout the series, the victims were either blatantly lied to about how the traps work or were killed even if they accomplished what they were supposed to. They excused this away by blaming all of these instances on Jigsaw’s various apprentices, not Jigsaw himself, but it was still frustrating that actual survivors were few and far between (not including victims who are alive when the credits roll, but still stuck in traps, which happens a lot). Of those who do survive, one cheated and one the audience doesn’t even see get out, we just see him afterwards where it’s implied that he was assisted in getting out by one of Jigsaw’s assistants. All I wanted was for people to actually follow the rules and survive, and maybe even find that new spark for life that Jigsaw wanted. That really shouldn’t have been too much to ask.
One thing that Saw does pretty well, though, is the gradually expanding background. More so than any of the other franchises, classic or modern, Saw continually adds pieces to the puzzle that you didn’t always know were missing, filling in details about who helped Jigsaw with certain traps seen in past movies and such. It doesn’t always work, but the effort is impressive, and some of these added insights are really cool.
I Know What You Did Last Summer
I actually quite liked this series, at least the first two of the three. It always sounded rather lame to me, but ultimately I found it to be engaging and mysterious. It’s a really good blend of slasher and mystery, and I had a hard time guessing the endings. There are some moments where characters make stupid decisions or have bizarre reactions to things, but overall I enjoyed it enough to look past those parts.
And the winner is…
Hatchet
The most true-to-form slasher series, Hatchet really reminded me of the classics. I enjoyed most of the movies, and even the worst in the series has redeeming qualities. While Victor Crowley himself wasn’t necessarily my favorite of the slasher icons, you can tell creator Adam Green truly cared about the slasher genre. It’s also the best at homage (looking at you, Scream) and has a rich cast of former horror/slasher actors including two Jasons, a Freddy, a Leatherface, a Michael, a Candyman, and two of my favorite survivor girls from the Halloween and Texas Chainsaw Massacre series. And that’s just to name a few. Plus I love the running gag with Parry Shen, the Carmine of the series, showing up as different characters in each of the first three movies.
My one complaint about Hatchet is the name, which is the same complaint I had about Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Yes, there is a rather important hatchet in it, in that Crowley was killed by a hatchet, but I went into the series expecting a lot more hatchet deaths. At least there were quite a few, but the ratio was still a bit low. Half the time Crowley just ripped people apart with his supernatural strength, unarmed, and his most memorable weapon was the belt sander, not the hatchet.
Best Slasher
Nominees
Ghostface
Ghostface is an interesting icon because in three out of the four movies, it’s actually two people sharing the role, and in all of the movies the current Ghostface or two die at the end—and they don’t come back from the dead like the classic slashers always did. While some of the other slashers, like Jigsaw, also pass along their mantles occasionally, it’s never to the frequency of Ghostface. This keeps you constantly guessing who is behind the mask. The series also does a decent job at making it difficult to guess the true identity as well. However, I didn’t always care for the result. Most of the people wearing the mask did it for the fame, which at least is a more unique motivation that some of the generic slashers, but a shockingly large number of people are willing to coldly and brutally murder several people in their lives just to get fifteen minutes in the limelight.
Jigsaw
Jigsaw, the real, true Jigsaw, is actually pretty neat. Tobin Bell does a great job, and his core motivation is at least unique and more complex than just “I’m evil, I’ll kill you.” Unfortunately, his assistants are always messing up his plans, so his intention doesn’t often play out properly. He’s also a huge hypocrite, claiming he doesn’t condone murder while constantly forcing his players to murder others, often by their own hand, in order to get free. He also punishes Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg) for finding that drive to protect his son’s life, rather than hanging back and remaining calm. That’s literally the type of reaction he’s trying to spark in his victims, so why would he punish someone for reacting that way?
Victor Crowley
Victor Crowley is basically Jason Voorhees, and I’m not just saying that because he’s played by Kane Hodder. His backstory is very similar, although the method of death was different, and in the present day he both looks and behaves a lot like Jason, though with Leatherface’s aggressiveness. But while it’s cool that they essentially recreated one of the classics, why did they have to pick Jason? He was my least favorite of the classic slashers. I wish they would have gone more of a Michael route with it instead. In any case, he, of all of the slashers in this group, most embodies the idea of being supernaturally unkillable. The Fisherman has that to some degree, but not quite the same way that it was done in the classics, while Victor truly feels like a classic.
And the winner is…
Fisherman
For a slasher I had never really heard of before, I quite enjoyed the Fisherman (Muse Watson). He’s ominous and cunning, and he goes to great lengths to get his revenge. His aesthetic is great, with the dark slicker and hook, though his greatest weapon is psychological torture. He doesn’t hesitate to kill those close to his intended targets in order to cause them further suffering before ultimately closing in for the kill. He doesn’t talk often, so he has that eerie silent effect, and then when he does finally talk at the end of some of the movies, his performance still matches that eeriness level.
Best Overall Movie
Nominees
Scream 2 (1997)
While still following the formula of all the other Scream movies, Scream 2 simply manages to pull it off the best. It helps that some of the characters are film students, justifying most of the references to other movies. They play with the idea of whether Sidney’s (Neve Campbell) boyfriend is involved or not, which instantly made me assume he wasn’t the killer, but it did make Sidney’s journey more interesting. Plus, I found Cotton Weary (Liev Schrieber) to be absolutely fascinating.
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1998)
I did not expect to like this one as much as I did. I thought the trip to the Bahamas would feel like they were jumping the shark, but instead it provided a claustrophobic/trapped vibe that upped the danger. There were less instances of people reacting strangely (that was mostly an issue I had with the townsfolk in the first movie) and the twist at the end truly surprised me. Obviously the Fisherman himself was back, but I thought for sure his partner in crime would turn out to be Nancy (Jennifer Esposito) due to an expression she made when Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt) began freaking out during karaoke. Instead, it was someone I did not expect whatsoever, which honestly should have been a clue in and of itself. Plus, it goes to show just how dedicated the Fisherman is, infiltrating Julie’s life for months and gaining her trust in order to set up an elaborate trap. Also, Jeffrey Combs is so much fun in this.
Saw: The Final Chapter (2010)
This one has several survivors, which I definitely appreciate. It also finally reveals what happened to Dr. Gordon (Cary Elwes) who I thought for sure bled out after crawling out of the room in the original Saw (2004), since he clearly never led the cops back to the room he was in. The core premise is the most interesting, following Bobby (Sean Patrick Flanery) who pretended to be a survivor of Jigsaw’s traps in order to get fame, which I could totally see people doing in real life. So when he’s forced to actually participate in the traps for real, it’s quite poetic, especially his final test where he has to see if he can truly accomplish the one trap he’s always claimed he passed. Additionally, the traps themselves are some of my favorites, and Chester Bennington’s cameo is absolutely gnarly. Most importantly, this one had an ending that felt truly satisfying.
And the winner is…
Hatchet (2006)
For a low budget movie, this one is really impressive. The effects actually look surprisingly fantastic and there was clearly a lot of heart and soul put into this film. I was surprised at how funny it is too! It had me cracking up several times. The ensemble cast is also super interesting. I mean, how often do you see a group that includes both aspiring porn stars and a middle-age Wisconsin cheese couple? All of the characters in the tour group are engaging, and each has a secret. My personal favorite is Shawn, Parry Shen’s character in this iteration. He’s both funny and keeps you guessing about who he really is. While I enjoy his returns as other characters throughout the rest of the series, none of them quite live up to Shawn.
Scariest Movie
Nominees
I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
While I enjoy this series in general, it isn’t necessarily the scariest of the group, and the first two are pretty close in rank as far as scariness goes. I’m giving this nominee to Still, mostly due to the added intensity of the claustrophobia from being trapped on the island, with all the other personnel on the island getting slaughtered around them.
Scream 3 (2000)
As with IKWYDLS, all the Scream movies are also roughly the same level of scary, but I picked this one because of the use of film sets for some of the stalking scenes, as well as the recurring haunting of Sideny’s mom. Also in this film, Ghostface frequently uses the voice modulator not just to generically disguise his voice, but to mimic the voices of other characters, so anytime someone gets a phone call, you can’t trust anything being said.
Hatchet (2006)
Despite being low budget, the deaths in this one are the most interesting and intense. In the other movies, the body counts all start blurring together and lose impact. Part of the problem is that we don’t know many of the characters within the other three series group casts, so their deaths don’t hold as much weight. In the first Hatchet movie, we actually care about every character, so it’s more distressing when they all die, and I feel like more time is spent on each death.
And the winner is…
Saw: The Final Chapter (2010) (aka Saw 3D)
While all of the Saw movies have incredible traps, this one in particular had the ones I liked (hated?) most. The fish hook trap is intense because it causes pain, but if she screams in pain, it makes the trap harder to win. But the worst (best?) trap is Evan’s (Chester Bennington). Other traps had me gasp or wince, but that one had me cringing away. There’s just something more horrifying about having to rip your own skin off than other traps, like getting shot or even cutting off a limb.
Best Mystery
Nominees (Note: Hatchet does not have a mystery element in the series)
Scream 4 (2011)
Overall, I’m not a big fan of Scream 4, but more on that later. The one kudo I will give it is that it’s the one that gave me the hardest time guessing the identity of Ghostface. In the other movies, I usually had correct suspicions of either the person behind the mask or their motivation, even if I couldn’t figure out the entire thing. In this one, I was way off in all of my speculations and it actually quite surprised me to learn who one of the killers was.
Saw (2004)
Unless the ending was spoiled for you, it’s almost impossible to guess. Dr. Gordon and Adam (Leigh Whannell) spend the entire movie speculating about why they are here and who is responsible, only to learn in the end that it was the man the thought was dead the whole time. I still don’t really understand why Jigsaw decided to play dead for several hours, especially since he drugged himself in order to do so, which kind of defeats the purpose of being in the room to personally spy on them. But as a mystery, it is a good one. The red herring of Zed (Michael Emerson) is a nice touch, because even though suspicion is cast towards him before his reveal, in the end it turns out he’s not an apprentice but another player coerced into doing Jigsaw’s bidding. Honestly I would have loved a story following such a character, but we only got a glimpse of that in Saw 4 (2007).
And the winner is…
I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
IKWYDLS in general is more heavily skewed towards the mystery genre than the others. While Still has a nice twist at the end, the original has the better mystery overall. I did wonder at one point if the man they killed was truly dead, since they seemed to have had such a hard time fully killing him the first time around, but they still managed to keep me questioning everything until they finally confirmed the truth thanks to the use of misdirection surrounding the retrieval of the victim’s body. Although, man, the Fisherman is really angry about almost dying, to take it out so heartily on everyone involved – and then some.
Best Survivor
Nominees
Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt)
Julie is pretty good, albeit a tad generic as far as Survivor Girls go. There’s not a whole lot to differentiate her from Sidney or Marybeth, but those two each have a bit more going for them. Although Julie is the only one who tends to scream at the sky.
Dr. Gordon (Cary Elwes)
Saw does not play by the standard Survivor Girl trope like other slashers. Most of the survivors are minor characters or in on the whole thing. The only survivor girl we really follow start to finish, Brit (Julie Benz) in Saw 5 (2008), is just ok. So I’m giving this one to the less common Survivor Guy, Dr. Gordon. He ultimately cuts off his own foot to survive and save his family, but refuses to murder someone else for his own gain. And who doesn’t love Cary Elwes? Dr. Gordon later becomes one of Jigsaw’s apprentices, and he’s the only one that makes sense to me. Amanda (Shawnee Smith) and Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) are too unreliable for me to believe Jigsaw willingly picked them and kept them on, and Logan (Matt Passmore) was only awake for like two seconds of his trap before Jigsaw broke his own rule and saved Logan from it. Dr. Gordon actually endured the entire trap, then afterwards became completely loyal to Jigsaw, assisting with many of the procedures we saw throughout the series without us ever realizing he was the one aiding Jigsaw with them.
Marybeth (Amara Zaragoza in Hatchet and Danielle Harris in Hatchet 2-3)
Marybeth comes close to winning because of her intensity, and because I love Danielle Harris so much and was very glad to see her again. She has an amazing scene in Hatchet 3 (2013) where she walks into the police station in a daze, covered in blood and holding a rifle and Crowley’s scalp. Hatchet 3 might not have been my favorite of the series, but her performance throughout is spectacular.
And the winner is…
Sidney (Neve Campbell)
Sidney, Julie, and Marybeth are fairly similar characters. They are all fearful but brave and willing to go the final mile when constantly put into dangerous situations. All of them also succeed in killing their attackers. But ultimately, Sidney wins for me because she kills most of the Ghostfaces throughout the series, and those she doesn’t, she still puts a bullet in their head just to be safe. When I think of her, the word that comes to mind is fierce. Plus, I think it’s cool that she uses her experiences to become a women’s crisis hotline operator to help other women through their own horrible experiences.
Worst Movie
Nominees
Victor Crowley (2017)
First of all, the opening is so bizarre and uncomfortable that it immediately turned me off of the film. However, there were still some good aspects throughout the movie that somewhat redeemed it. I like the intensity of the group being trapped in an enclosed space for much of the film, while one of their members is stuck and at risk of drowning. It’s also interesting to see how the events of Hatchet 3 impacted Andrew’s (Parry Shen in this iteration) life in the following decade, and I am glad that one version of Parry Shen survived—twice, at that!—but I also missed him coming back as a totally different character, as per tradition. Still, the series got progressively less funny as it went along, and this one in particular utterly failed in that department with all the jokes falling flat. There were even moments where I thought, “Is that a joke? It feels like they meant it to be, but it doesn’t play like a joke.”
Scream 4 (2011)
Each Scream movie is supposed to play off a certain structures, like sequels or the final movie in a trilogy. This one is supposed to be playing off of the rules of a remake, but despite this constant claim, it really doesn’t feel like a remake because it follows all the same characters. So when Ghostface’s motivation and betrayals turn out to be a rehashing of the original movie, it just doesn’t work well. Besides, it’s frustrating that Dewey (David Arquette) keeps shutting out Gale (Courteney Cox) even though he knows her better than anyone in the world and must realize that she’s going to keep investigating on her own if he forbids her involvement. Plus the triple fakeout opening is a disaster because by the third iteration, I no longer trusted anything I saw and completely lost interest. I would have much rather stuck with the middle opening, where Kristen Bell randomly stabs Anna Paquin to death.
I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer (2006)
This movie is pretty bad all around, but the ending is where it really got awful. It’s one thing for the slashers to supernaturally seem to be unkillable, or even be cursed to return from the dead. But in this case, after following along with the mystery and trying to figure out who could be copying the Fisherman’s MO, in the end it turns out that the group of teens apparently inadvertently basically summoned him back from the dead as a relatively conscious zombie? I’m so confused. How did they even manage that? It’s not like they cast a spell like in Victor Crowley. It was more like they brought him back by sheer belief in him or something. Also, why would you take a story that hinges around an aquatic themed slasher and move the setting from the coast to the dead center of America? It wasn’t even near a lake or anything, it was in the middle of the Colorado mountains.
And the winner is…
Jigsaw (2017)
This one is a bit of a toss up for me, because Saw 2 (2005) also has the aforementioned issues with Matthews’ unfair ending and his son’s assisted escape, plus the numbers on the player’s necks never panned out. But ultimately Jigsaw has some issues that I simply can’t get past. In a series filled with crazy scenarios, this is the one that actively forced me to suspend disbelief multiple times. How did someone dig up a grave in a short amount of time in broad daylight and switch out a body without a single person noticing? How did Jigsaw know exactly how the players were going to play out the scenario? What if Anna (Laura Vandervoot) hadn’t survived the first round, or Ryan (Paul Braunstein) didn’t go towards the wrong door? It’s already difficult enough to have predicted these the first time around, but somehow apparently Logan managed to duplicate the first three kills exactly? I’m not buying it.
Final Tally
Hatchet: Best Series, Best Overall Movie
I Know What You Did Last Summer: Best Slasher, Best Mystery
Saw: Scariest Movie, Worst Movie
Scream: Best Survivor Girl
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