Friday, December 13, 2024

Tag: articles

The State of Black Horror: Get Out and Beyond
Today, the status of African Americans in horror films is tied intrinsically to the status of African Americans in cinema as a whole. That is, it has come a long way since the wild-eyed tribesmen of King Kong and has even seen notable advances just within the past decade,...
White Fright; Or, Why Are There No Black People in Haunted House Movies?
Ever since 2009's Paranormal Activity wrested the horror crown away from the Saw franchise, fright films featuring ghosts or demonic entities have ruled the genre, churning out hit after hit -- from the Paranormal Activity films to The Haunting in Connecticut, The Devil Inside, Mama, The Last Exorcism and...
Interview with the Black Guy
Originally published on MadAtoms.com You've seen him in every horror movie since 1984: the black guy who hangs out with a group of white people he has nothing in common with, whose only purpose, it seems, is to die first. He's been sliced into pieces in Resident Evil, de-armed in...
The Green Pile: The Steaming Racial Dynamics of The Green Mile
Originally published on PopMatters.com Have you ever met someone that you instantly hated? I mean, with a passion; not a mild distrust or a 'don't-drop-the-soap' hesitation, but a deep-seated gut instinct that this person should be pushed down a flight of stairs in order to save humanity. For me, that person...
The Black Die Young: The Internal Struggle of a Black Horror Movie Fan
Originally published on PopMatters.com I have a secret passion; the less addicted of you might call it an addiction. I like to watch. I rent base, filthy movies and slip them into brown paper bags so no one can tell. I sit alone in seedy, near-empty theaters, pleasuring myself with...
Scary Sistas: A Brief History of Black Women in Horror Films
Originally posted on Pretty-Scary.net Black women in cinematic history have long faced the double-barreled Hollywood stigma of race and gender "otherness," their fleeting moment of glory coming in the '90s when "You go, girl!" was introduced into the popular lexicon. On the more formal level of Oscar recognition, meanwhile, the...
Snakes on the Brain: Racial Representation in Snakes on a Plane
Like every other Internet gnome trolling the Web for treasure, I traced the progress of the film Snakes on a Plane for months, drinking in the online parodies and speculating on the possibility of sequels (Giraffes on a Speedboat) or even prequels (Dodos on a Frigate). I cheered when...
Black Death: A Brief History of Black People Dying in Horror Movies
"No way. I've seen this movie. The black dude dies first." - Professor Harry Phineas Block (Orlando Jones), Evolution "Ooh, I'm done! Brothers never make it out of situations like this!" - Sherman "Preacher" Dudley (LL Cool J), Deep Blue Sea "Did you know that the black guy doesn't always die first?" -...