Female Villains in Horror Films

Unlike many other genres, horror films have not been very hospitable to the concept of female heroes, let alone female villains. Many of horror's protagonists have been women, but in addition they have also been victims. The rarity of strong female leads may be due to the stereotype and common misconception that women are weaker and more vulnerable than men and need a male companion in order to feel safe and secure. It is also for this reason that there are little female villains.

In our horror film, Maisie, our protagonist and villain is a female called Maisie Sedna, who has been betrayed and hurt by men her entire life and seeks revenge on every man she encounters.

I will be researching some of horror's most famous female villains in order to get a better understanding of how they are portrayed and their characteristics, so we can incorporate some of the features into the opening minutes of our teen horror film.

Misery
Misery is a 1990 American psychological horror film, starring James Caan and Kathy Bates. The film is based on acclaimed novelist Stephen King's book of the same name. Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is a best- selling novelist, on his way home from Colorado after completing his latest book when a blizzard causes him to crash his car. He is found with critical injuries by former nurse Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), who takes her back to his remote house in the mountains.

 

Annie claims to be his 'number one fan'. Paul soon discovers that Annie is unusual and overbearing; she orders him to burn his latest manuscript after reading that her favourite character dies. Paul also unravels more about Annie's past and is terrified as he tries to escape. But there's one problem. No one knows where Paul is.

 

This particular female victim is clearly struggling with mental issues and obsessions, which lead her to become deranged and unhinged. Annie Wilkes is one of our inspirations for our character, Maisie.

 

Carrie

Carrie is a 1976 and 2013 American supernatural horror film, starring Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie (1976) and Chloe Grace Moretz and Julianne Moore (2013) as Carrie and her deeply religious mother Margaret respectively. The film is based on Stephen King's 1974 novel Carrie.

 

Carrie an unconfident and painfully shy teenage girl, who suffers abuse from her extremely religious mother at home and is bullied by her peers at school. After Carrie is humiliated publicly by her class mates in the girls changing room, she becomes increasingly more frantic and distressed and suddenly a light bulb bursts in the shower. This is the first sign we see of Carrie's...uniqueness.

 

 



 

One of Carrie's tormenters has a change of heart and regrets her actions toward her. She urges her boyfriend to ask Carrie to Prom as a way of apologising. However, another popular cliquey teenager is not prepared to let Carrie have her moment in the spotlight and plots a horrific prank. Everyone is unprepared for the catastrophic consequences.

 

 

Unlike Annie Wilkes in Misery, Carrie can be considered a victim rather than a villain. Carrie implores a different approach; it explores supernatural elements as opposed to mental illness and obsession Bullied and tormented her whole life, her powers manifest when she becomes distressed. Carrie causes havoc with her telekinesis and in the process kills many of her fellow pupils. However, she is the female protagonist who extracts revenge on her schoolmates and also her mother through murder; whether she is in control of her powers or not is unclear.

 

Orphan

Orphan is a 2009 American psychological horror film starring Isabelle Fuhrman, Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard. Husband and wife, John and Kate, recently lost their baby and decide to adopt a child. They visit an orphanage where their attention is quickly captured by the polite and charming Esther.

 

 

Kate becomes of suspicious of Esther when she displays maturity and knowledge beyond her years. As she tries to reveal and learn information about her past, Esther becomes increasingly more violent, especially toward Daniel, Kate and John's son. Kate's distaste for Esther becomes more and more evident as she begins to see her darker and less innocent side. In a dramatic and unexpected plot twist, the race is on for Kate to stop Esther destroying her entire family.

 

 



Orphan, like Misery, deals with the psychological aspect that is often explored in horror films. As the film progresses, Esther's past is unravelled and her mental instability becomes more obvious. However, unlike Carrie, Esther is fully aware and in control of her actions and plots with great consideration how and who she kills next.