Strong Women of Horror
When it comes to strong women in horror, there seems to be a lot of them. After all, the slasher sub-genre has the perpetual “final girl.” She’s the smart one who doesn’t drink or have sex, and stands up to the big, bad scumbag at the end of the film – and wins.
Strong women can also be tough women out of the gate in horror, but like their male counterparts in the action genre, they don’t come across as genuine. That’s because they’re “too tough” or seemingly have eyes in the back of their head or can see an enemy coming a mile away. Worst still, they seem to think ten moves ahead when they have no clue what’s going on, and that’s ridiculous.
However, there are two strong women of horror that resonate with audiences because they don’t hide their vulnerabilities, they overcome them.
Vengeance is Hers
As strong women in horror cinema go, we’re not looking at those lead characters out for revenge. In I Spit on Your Grave, Jennifer (Camille Keaton) is a women brutally raped by four heartless deviants. This horrific nightmare transforms Jennifer from a battered and beaten individual into a reborn soul hellbent on revenge.
The problem is that Jennifer becomes some sort of person twisted to the point where she loses herself. In a way, her attackers have created a monster. In that sense, Abel Ferrera’s crime thriller Ms. 45 also comes to mind. Thana (Zoë Lund) loses the humanity within herself to become “the other” – the unlikely persona on a mission to kill, kill, kill. Both women, as well as other men and women in films of this ilk, lose their identities, the elements that once made them wonderful and productive human beings.
Tough Enough
In the sci-fi/horror sub-genre, two characters stand out as “strong women.” Each women wants to survive, help others along the way, and take out their alien adversary – even though they’re scared as hell.
In Ridley Scott’s Alien, Lt. Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), is the third officer in charge of the mining ship Nostromo. When an alien presence comes on board and starts taking out the crew, it’s up to her to save the day – or just herself.
Many moons later, Tank (Nicole Alonso) leads a team with a “package” that must be kept safe and delivered to “point B.” But when her team goes underground and a creature attacks them, she has to Crawl or Die in director Oklahoma Ward’s first feature.
Ripley and Tank
The reason Alien and Crawl or Die both work so well is due to the mix of strength and vulnerability within both characters.
Ripley has a bit of sass to her and when things get ugly, she does her damnedest to solve the problem. Tank also does the same thing. Unlike Ripley who can talk a good game, Tank is a women of few words: She gives an order and sets the standard.
Both women work to keep people safe around them, but not in the traditional motherly sense. These women are officers in charge of others and must lead by example, regardless of gender or self-identity.
Facing Fears
Ripley and Tank must over-ride their own fears to win the day. This is the reality heroes face. Unless you have your amygdala removed (the gland in your brain responsible for fear), you’ll have to conquer yours in order to win the day.
Both women do just that. On the Nostromo, Ripley combats her fears of isolation, lack of control, and lack of physical superiority to take on the xenomorph. She is out-classed by a superior, brutal presence and must force herself to use logic to defeat the monster.
In Crawl or Die, Tank has to fight through claustrophobia as she goes deeper underground and into the unknown – with a hungry alien on her heels. Tank must convince herself to soldier on in the face of pure dread. She may feel like giving up, but in the face of pure terror, Tank keeps going as if waiting for an opportunity to turn things around on her own terms.
Fighting to Win
Both women must contain their fears to win the day. The beauty of Ripley and Tank is that they’re not afraid to be afraid, but they don’t succumb. Instead, they prove to be vibrant leaders who can face a nightmare with logic while suppressing base emotions. They’re not superheroes and they’re not soulless robots with only winning on their minds.
They’re strong women. Strong people. And the only way for them to survive is to fight on in the face of fear.
Horror certainly needs more characters like this: One’s that are well-rounded and believable. People we can imagine as being real, which only adds to the suspense and tension of the films they inhabit.
In the meantime, another Alien prequel has been announced sans Ripley.
Bur check out Crawl or Die to find out more about the Crawl or Die II sequel reprising Alonso’s role as Tank.
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Billy Crash
Also known as William D. Prystauk, he loves great, in-depth characters and storytelling in horror, and likes to see heads roll, but if you kill a dog on screen he’ll cry like a baby. Crash, an award-winning screenwriter and novelist, co-hosts THE LAST KNOCK horror podcast on iTunes, and can also be found on Twitter, LinkedIn, IMDb, Amazon, Behance, YouTube, and Instagram. He’s currently in pre-production on a dramatic horror feature while working on the third novel in his crime thriller series.
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(Tank image from Backyard Films and Ripley image from 20th Century Fox.)