From the sacred to the profane, a look at history and the various factors that contribute to the endless fascination for these compulsive killers in the novels as well as in the movies; With all the serial killers with catchy names
From the sacred to the profane, a look at history and the various factors that contribute to the endless fascination for these compulsive killers in the novels as well as in the movies; With all the serial killers with catchy names
woomorally ambiguous dahmer , Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Brings back the question of our fascination with serial killers. Jack the Ripper, believed to be responsible for a series of dastardly murders in London’s East End in 1888, hits the nail on the head with his apocryphal quote giving birth to the 20th century (apart from the unfortunate he fell apart)” In his ‘From Hell’ letter.
The killings coincided with the mass production of newspapers and there is a theory that the letter signed “Jack the Ripper” was coined by a journalist to promote circulation – some things never change. And thus the tradition of a catchy name for a serial killer was born. The fact that the murders were not solved has kept alive the legend that spawned an entire industry of books, television shows, movies and walking tours.
bleak beginning
One of Alfred Hitchcock’s first films, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) based on the 1913 novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes, the LodgerInspired by Jack the Ripper. a critical and commercial success, the Lodger Set the template for future works of the Master of Suspense.
Hitchcock returns to serial killer cinema with a celebrity psychoanalyst (1960) and his final film, the lesser regarded frenzy (1972). psychoanalyst Based on the 1959 novel by Robert Bloch, which in turn is inspired by the heinous crimes of a serial killer Ed Gein ‘Plainfield Ghoul’.
inspired casting
Although in the novel, Norman Bates, the murderous owner of the Bates Motel, isn’t very attractive, by casting Anthony Perkins as Bates, Hitchcock indulges in an inspired bit of counter-casting. The audience has full sympathy for the young man who is being harassed by his fearful mother. And it made the final fruit cellar revelation all the more shocking besides the fact that the star, Janet Lay, dies early in the film’s famous shower scene.
Bernard Herrmann’s soundtrack, close-ups and extreme close ups, razor sharp cuts and final drain-to-eye fractures, along with the jumble of string instruments (appropriately called ‘Murder’), made the scene three of the most iconic made one. Minutes in the movie.
scream queen
psychoanalyst Also considered as laying out the template for all slasher movies to follow. Coincidentally Leigh’s daughter, Jamie Lee Curtis, made her debut in a John Carpenter film fighting another iconic serial killer, Michael Myers. Halloween (1978). Curtis plays babysitter Laurie Strode, who is targeted by Myers in her expressionless mask. Curtis still plays Strode in the 13th installment of the franchise, halloween endsWhich is releasing soon.
While slasher films are primarily about sex, sadism, and savagery, there are also puzzle-type films where law enforcement officers must solve elaborate clues set by the killer to save the final victim. It’s a variation of the Final Girl theme, where the good, virtuous girl screams and escapes while the naughty girls are bitten and bitten in a variety of interesting ways.
The serial killer movie like Paheli offered double thrill as the hunter was also being hunted.
famous five
the silence of the Lambs (1991) changed things once again for the slasher flick. By winning all five major Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director (Jonathan Demme), Best Actor (Anthony Hopkins), Best Actress (Jodie Foster), and Best Adapted Screenplay (Ted Talley), the film added a patina of honor. Searching for a serial killer.
An adaptation of the 1988 novel by Thomas Harris, the silence of the LambsIt has not one, but two serial killers. Buffalo Bill (catchy name Alert), who skins his female victims to make himself a new skin, and Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Hopkins), a psychotherapist and cannibalistic serial killer in captivity.
Hannibal the Cannibal offers to help rookie Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent, Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) track down Buffalo Bill who has kidnapped a senator’s daughter (Final Girl). Incidentally, the silence of the Lambs Released on 14 February 1991, i.e. Valentine’s Day – must have been a fun date movie.
sabotage galore
even as the silence of the Lambs A flood of serious serial killer movies, which always featured a tortured, traumatized and inspired detective, and increasingly complex clues, was Wes Craven. the Scream (1996), which depicts killers breaking the rules of the genre. There I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997) with the murder of youth by another masked serial killer.
the Scream The franchise is going strong with the fifth installment coming out earlier this year and the sixth installment is in the works. I Know What You Did Last Summer has been turned into an unrelated streaming series.
Vidhu has been a part of Vinod Chopra’s serial killer in Hindi cinema. silence (1985) With a killer on the sets of the film and Anurag Kashyap’s Beyond Disturbing Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016) To show off R Balki’s vaguely Quiet: Revenge of the Artist About a serial killer targeting film critics playing in a theater near you.
The good, the bad and the ugly (all horrific torture movies fall into this category) are serial killer movies and now streaming shows also project the serial killer genre. Presenting that they present a heady cocktail of danger and a path made by rebels and outsiders, they probably stand a chance for a walk on the wild side before quickly returning to the quiet comfort of home.