Colin McMahon

Dear NetherRealm: Please Make a Slasher Fighting Game!

Posted on October 24, 2014 by Colin McMahon

Some things just go together. There are plenty of essential combos like peanut butter and jelly, cake and ice cream, and NetherRealm Studios and video game violence. For those out there who don’t know, NetherRealm Studios is essentially the old Midway Games: the makers of Mortal Kombat. Mortal Kombat is a fighting game series famous for three things – gore, fatalities, and this incredible 90’s theme song:

Seriously guys, please include an updated version of that song in Mortal Kombat X.

Yet fighting games have struggled recently. The genre appeal grows more narrow. Really of the last five entries in the serious, only 2011’s Mortal Kombat was a serious hit and a critical success. The game featured a return to the series’ roots. Gone were the gimmicks, back were the classic fighters and tight fighting mechanics. It was a really fun game to play, and one of the downloadable characters was a tantalizing tease.

The nightmare master himself, Freddy Krueger. Even the fact that they used the design from the crappy remake did not do much to reduce the awesomeness of this appearance. It just made sense, like the appearance of Kratos in the PlayStation 3 version of the game. Where else did slashers like Freddy belong if not in the most gory video game series out there. And if NetherRealm was thinking Freddy for Mortal Kombat, could they not be thinking more slashers… like say a game’s worth?

But it did not materialize. Instead, NetherRealm moved onto the DC heroes and brought gamers Injustice: Gods Among Us. For the record, this was also a pretty enjoyable fighter. That said, the marriage was not perfect. NetherRealm had to drastically tone down the level of hyper-violence it is known for, and things like interactive environments played a much larger role. It was good but, well – slashers would be cooler.

Think of it: classic characters like Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, Leatherface, Chucky, Ashley Williams, and Pinhead face off against newcomers like Victor Crowley, Sam, and Jigsaw. The roster practically creates itself. Heck even the first two downloadable content bundles are easy to think of. First, the sci-fi slasher bundle including the Alien, the Thing, and the Predator. Then, the Universal Monster Classic pack. Jason Voorhees vs. the Creature from the Black Lagoon? Yes, please.

And the wonderful thing about slashers is that they each have their own unique location. This makes coming up with stages a breeze. NetherRealm could even bring back their interactive environments to help add variety to each level.

But the best part is: no need to turn down the gore. Every slasher would have a complete list of fatalities. They would simply be a best-of combo from all their movies. Just look at this:

How perfect an idea is this? Indie developers have already created Terrordrome (free download guys, get it) while waiting for NetherRealm to get on board.

Now, the only obstacle would be in obtaining the rights. Not all of these characters are owned by the same company. That said, quite a few of them are – Freddy vs. Jason is proof of that. Also, who is Hollywood kidding, slashers are not as popular as they once were. NetherRealm could probably acquire most of these characters for cheap on the basis of brand promotion.

Would it have the immediate wide appeal of a game like Injustice: Gods Among Us: no. That said, it would actually likely sell better. As mentioned before, fighting games are an increasing niche market. With the exception of Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros., no fighting game will top this year’s list of bestsellers. The trick is to appeal to the fighting game fans out there.

Frankly NetherRealm, a new Mortal Kombat with new characters made fresh on the heels of 2011… may not be what fans really want.

Just look at all the favorite characters added from recent entries... all two of them. — Just look at all the favorite characters added from recent entries… all two of them.

Release a slasher fighting game in time for October and see what happens.

Picture this... but a lot more so. — Picture this… but a lot more so.

Horror Clichés: The Monster One-Up

Posted on October 22, 2014 by Colin McMahon

The horror genre has a plot cliché unlike any other. While every type of film suffers from its own potential to do predictable and over-tired forms of set up, very few are as catching as the “monster one-up.” What I mean by that is: the film overtly states the superiority of its monster by having it destroy another monster from a previous movie. Most of the time, this event occurs in horror films that are… less than stellar. That said, any technique can be done the right way. This article will examine two examples from horror films. Movies that do this sequence the right way… and movies that do it less so.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt wears a familiar looking hockey mask in his Halloween H2O cameo. I know what you're thinking: JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT was in that movie - why?????? — Joseph Gordon-Levitt wears a familiar looking hockey mask in his *Halloween H2O* cameo. I know what you’re thinking: JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT was in that movie – why??????

USING IT POORLY: JAWS vs. Orca: the Killer Whale vs. Jaws 2

First off, Jaws did nothing wrong. It is the classic being emulated in the two later films mentioned. Obviously, when Steven Spielberg‘s monster blockbuster hit, it spawned a plethora of copycats and clones. Piranha, Barracuda, Suckers, The Beast… the list goes on and on. Seems like Hollywood had no idea that the ocean could be such a dangerous or profitable place before Jaws came around. If there is anyone out there unfamiliar with this famous creature feature: the plot is essentially that a killer great white shark terrorizes Martha’s Vineyard. Obviously, the basic premise of Jaws is not what makes it the incredible piece of film-making that it is.

Fast-forward two years and along comes Orca: the Killer Whale. I doubt I have to say any more than the title for you to know exactly what kind of movie this is. Like so many others, Orca was attempting to succeed Jaws. The film contains quite a lot of hype about killer whales. There’s even a “scientist” who talks them up to the point of living aquatic godhood. Obviously whales are smart – but she would have the audience believe that killer whales were psychics of the animal kingdom. But anyway, apparently having a character who didn’t think Free Willy went far enough wasn’t all the movie wanted to do.

The film starts with a sequence where before-mentioned character is threatened by a great white shark, a twenty-five foot long great white shark to be precise. Sound familiar – huh? HUH? Anyway, then this happens:

Apologies for the small pictures. Apparently no HD snapshots of Orca exist. What a shame, internet, what a shame. — Apologies for the small pictures. Apparently no HD snapshots of *Orca* exist. What a shame, internet, what a shame.

Yes, Orca shows up to destroy the great white. It demolishes the shark and allows for the characters to continue to talk up how wonderfully kick-ass killer whales are. The only problem is that this sequence is long and has virtually nothing to do with the rest of the movie. Its main function is to be the monster one-up. Suck it, Jaws – our monster is better. Of course, a year later Jaws 2 responded:

And guess what? Jaws 2 used this to have a whole scene talking up how incredible their shark must be to kill a killer whale. Blatant use like this is essentially a Hollywood dick-measuring contest. It is stupid and does not serve much point other than to try and make the audience feel more intimidated.

“Look at how scary our monster is! It killed that other monster… are you scared yet?”

Let’s look at it done right.

USING IT WELL: JAWS vs. The Hills Have Eyes vs. The Evil Dead

What’s up with Jaws being involved in both of these? The key here is subtlety. Here is how The Hills Have Eyes one-upped Jaws:

If the audience isn’t looking for it – they likely will not notice it. Yes, that is a Jaws poster in the background. It is slashed in two after the cannibal attack on the trailer. There is no scene devoted to showing how cannibals are scarier than a shark (although that might have been wonderful to see), it just happens. By doing this, director Wes Craven did not have to deviate time from his script to explain why his horror is more frightening than Spielberg’s. He accomplished a lot with a simple background change.

Steven Spielberg never responded to this in a movie (so far as I know), but Sam Raimi did.

Yeah, Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead rips The Hills Have Eyes poster to shreds in similar fashion. Again, this is not something the average audience member would have time to notice. It is a subtle gesture, just something to very quickly establish a one-up and move on.

By including a whole scene, scriptwriters are essentially telling the audience that they need some filler. The story is not good enough to stand on its own. Neither Hills Have Eyes or Evil Dead has time to do such things, because they are busy being effective with their own original material. Horror hopefuls take note – your terror should be so scary that it does not need to one-up anyone else’s.. not overtly at least. Show the audience that your movie is scarier, do not have a whole sequence telling them about it.

Hallo-what? How Michael Myers Became a Jason Voorhees Knock Off

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Colin McMahon

Right now all the horror buffs out there read the title and exclaimed: “Impossible! Halloween came out two years before Friday the 13th, and Jason wasn’t even the killer until Friday the 13th Part 2!”

First off: calm down.

Let the lines be drawn. Which silent psychopath is the best?

Secondly, yes it is true. While Michael Myers began the modern-day slasher genre of films, he did not have the personality or the ability to adapt the way Jason Voorhees did. This is a similar scenario to the Gobots (1983) and the Transformers (1984). While Gobots did it first – Transformers created the characters that audiences remember.

For the record, Michael Myers still enjoys a standard that Jason Voorhees has never really come close to. John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978) is a classic that established a genre. It is a really well-made film that showcases the importance of tension, presence, and use of soundtrack. In this movie, Michael Myers has his own style. He is the boogeyman, seemingly everywhere at once. His kills are not gory, in fact there is barely any blood in the first film. What makes them far more effective (than kills in virtually any other slasher film) is the build-up. The audience knows what is coming, and we all still cringe.

Michael Myer's mask was not the only thing to get bloodier in subsequent films. — Michael Myer’s mask was not the only thing to get bloodier in subsequent films.

The problem was that this minimalist style ended with the first movie. Halloween II (1981) brought Myers back… but he was not the same boogeyman. The kills were gorier, and the body count was far higher than the original. It was a different kind of film.. one very similar to a series that began in 1980 (and had its first sequel released in 1981).

Yes, even though Jason Voorhees did not take center stage until Part 2, Friday the 13th began as a series heavy on the gore and light on the character development. People just appeared onscreen to die, with the kills always involving creativity and gore.

Kevin Bacon getting killed by arrowhead through the bed in Friday the 13th Part One. Gory and creative. — Kevin Bacon getting killed by arrowhead through the bed in *Friday the 13th Part One*. Gory and creative.

The style of killing was not the only thing to change in the Halloween series. Michael Myers was also known as “the Shape” in Carpenter’s Halloween, one of the actor’s is listed as such in the film’s ending credits. That “shape” would change substantially as the series progressed. Here is the shape in the first film:

Here he is Halloween: the Curse of Michael Myers:

Incidentally, he fights a very young Paul Rudd in this movie. Don't get your hopes though, that is not nearly as fun as it sounds. — Incidentally, he fights a very young Paul Rudd in this movie. Don’t get your hopes though, that is not nearly as fun as it sounds.

“The Shape” sure filled out over the course of four sequels (Myers is not in Halloween III: Season of the Witch). He got bigger, stronger, and more brutal. Sound familiar?

By the time Curse of Michael Myers rolled into theaters in 1995, there were already nine Friday the 13th movies released. Jason had long been established as the hulking immortal brute with a thirst for killing teenagers. Michael Myers was years late to that party.

The last comparison I personally feel is the most tragic. Michael Myers became more like Jason Voorhees in motivation. There was a reason for his killing sprees. Jason always existed as the vengeful ghost of Camp Crystal Lake: a drowned child who watched as teens decapitated his insane mother. It made sense for him to return to destroy any who disturbed the lake.

In the original Halloween, Michael Myers was the boogeyman. He was evil in human form. He did not have reason for the horrible things he did – he simply did them. It added to his terror and made Michael truly unpredictable. However, in the first sequel, Myers’ motivation was established. The random killing spree in the first film was not random at all! Rather, Myers was looking to kill all of his family, with the last surviving member being the Jamie Lee Curtis character, Laurie Strode.

Really.

Talk about reducing the fright factor. Psychopaths don’t need motivation – it is part of what makes them psychopaths. Monsters don’t need motivation either. Myers would carry that family-driven desire throughout every sequel to follow, and into the reboots. Since when would absolute evil care about relations? While one killer murdered to avenge his family, the other killed to finish his off.

For the love of god people, stop going here!

So yes, it is sadly true. While Carpenter created the slasher genre, his creation could not keep his unique personality. Myers became both a mockery and a parody of his original self. Michael Myers (in everything except the original film) is nothing more than the poor man’s Jason Voorhees… and that is really saying something.

Author: Colin McMahon