Misc
WHAT’S YOUR PLEASURE, READERS?: The Results Of Our Queer Icons In Horror Survey Are Here!
Channeling all our queerest fans’ power like a bolt careening into Dr. Frankenstein’s lightning rod (no double entendre there, surely), we’ve tallied the results of our last survey! Here are our top five icons according to our dear readers:
- THEODORA CAIN (The Haunting of Hill House (2018))
When Hill House burst onto the scene back in 2018, one of the biggest highlights of the show discussion-wise about the Netflix original was the instantly popular Theo, who from the very get-go is revealed to be lesbian.
While I didn’t hop on the H.H.H. train when it first hit streaming, I’ve since become a big fan of the show, and Theo in particular. Played by the ever-charming Kate Siegel, a regular on Mike Flanagan’s productions, she brings excellent acting to a storyline built around a young gay woman’s complex relationships with her identity, her family, her powers, and herself.
And where is this most effective and memorable but in the third episode “Touch”? This psychic’s relationship with her abilities not only serves for some great visuals and storytelling but also makes up a touching metaphor for the isolation many young queer people face (see: the gloves that made me tear up a bit when I got what they meant). The way Theo’s story ends also speaks to hopefulness for escaping that isolation through love.
- PINHEAD & HIS GASH (Hellraiser Franchise)
No seriously, their gang is called a gash. Does your squad of gays have a cool euphemistic name? Didn’t think so. Start brainstorming before all the good ones get taken, gang.
Creator Clive Barker, an openly gay horror writer himself, gave us a complex and grotesque creation that strikes a funny balance between bloody and beautiful, which you must admire due to the difficulty of pulling off making a legendary symbol of horror.
If you need any more evidence, look to the glamorous novella Pinhead. More plainly androgynous in the story, with a “light and breathy [voice]–the voice of an excited girl”. This, along with the fact “every inch of their head had been tattooed with an intricate grid, and at every intersection […] a jeweled pin driven through to the bone”, just makes me think becoming a cenobite is a fancy process of yass-ification. They’re a bedazzled, murderous, pretty enby, which I appreciate.
Many fans, including a few anonymous submissions on our survey, expressed delight over the new casting of trans actress Jamie Clayton who will take up Doug Bradley’s mantle: “Pinhead is just iconic, and I’m so excited for the new movie to come out, and to have a trans woman play the character.”
The gash would be proud, in more ways than one.
- JENNIFER CHECK & ANITA “NEEDY” LESNICKI (Jennifer’s Body)
THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT! IF YOU DON’T PUT SOME RESPECT ON DIABLO CODY’S NAME RIGHT NOW!
Ahem. Sorry, got a little passionate there.
I feel like everyone who watches Jennifer’s Body gets enthralled by the clever and fang sharp writing, the gruesomely good visuals, and most importantly, the tragic and incredibly sapphic romance between leads Jennifer and Needy, who steal the show with their onscreen chemistry. It evokes feelings familiar in many viewers: one of our fans mentioned in their response that “Needy and Jennifer’s relationship captures that undisclosed desire amongst my friends I had in high school.”
Fear Queers podcast host Beyza Ozer (@finalbeyza) also felt strongly about this queer rep: “It wasn’t until recently when queer women started becoming more validated in horror and taken more seriously—[…] hopefully more accurate, inspiring, and empowering stories come out in the next few years!”
If you’ve seen this film and don’t think that Megan Fox and Amanda Seyfried work off each other brilliantly in their romance, I have to assume like Miss Check herself says: you’re just totally jello. You’re lime green jello and you can’t even admit it to yourself.
- DR. FRANK-N-FURTER (Rocky Horror Picture Show)
When you cross a legendary performance from Tim Curry, a name with heavy innuendo, and one of the best soundtracks of any musical out there, could you really get anything other than gay icon status?
Rocky Horror is a film that speaks to queer youth especially, in a unique and beautiful way. As someone whose high school had a “Rocky Horror Incident” on Halloween, causing some waves with the faculty, and who has seen the film with audiences ranging from a living room to a theatre full, there’s an undeniable energy that this movie brings out of people.
Twitter user @KalDaHomo told us in their response that Dr. Frank-N-Furter “helped them realize that sexuality is fluid and I can wear whatever I damn well please!”, and I think that experience is really telling of the kind of freeing fun everyone has when they watch Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Don’t dream it, readers. Be it.
- ELVIRA, MISTRESS OF THE DARK
Undoubtedly the most boisterous and unforgettable of the horror hosts we’ve ever seen, there was no other option for our fans clearly as Elvira rounds out the top of the list, edging out her competitors by a very large margin.
When people found out last September that Cassandra Peterson had been in a long-term relationship with another woman, LGBTQ+ Twitter had it trending like Halloween had come early with bisexual flag t-shirt cannons and free money. But it was a no-brainer as to why everyone was hyped.
Elvira has been a fierce icon in the queer community from the get-go, with a long-running camaraderie to the drag scene in particular; That’s not even mentioning that she believes if there ever is another Elvira to take her place (if anybody could fill in those shoes!) that it should be a drag queen to become the next Mistress of the Dark.
And aside from all that, it’s just a plain old heartwarming experience to see an icon of the horror community share their true self with the world—and to see the world greet that identity with open arms.
Our editor-in-chief James-Michael had this to say about Elvira: “She’s a bonafide icon. From tv to comics, she’s been on every conceivable form of media and continues to transcend barriers. Not to mention, you could never meet a cooler person. I love her so damn much.”
We hope you got to see your favorite icons in the top 5 spots, and we’ll see you gorgeous ghouls again in the next article! Sweet screams!
Ah, Urban Legend…the plucky younger sibling franchise to Scream. If this is the first time you realize that it’s a franchise at all, that is totally fair. The cult classic slasher’s only theatrical sequel was a critical and box office flop. The third film, Bloody Mary, was direct-to-video. The film has an interesting comparative pitch to Scream. While Scream is a meta-slasher toying with the rules of horror, Urban Legend has its killer basing its slice-and-dicin’ off of famous urban legends…and then they just basically did a version of Scream 3 for its sequel. It’s a fascinating trilogy, particularly in how the movies connect. In Final Cut, the first film exists as an urban legend itself. Bloody Mary, however, is a complete standalone that could be read as an urban legend within the universe of the first entry.
The Urban Legend Franchise Ranked From Worst to Best
So…how do these three films rank against each other? Are the sequels worth checking out at all? Pull up a chair, relax, and start mixing your Pop-Rocks and soda; this is the worst-to-best ranking of the Urban Legend trilogy.
Urban Legends: Bloody Mary (2005)
Unsurprisingly, the straight-to-video, nearly completely forgotten supernatural entry is last. Directed by Mary Lambert of Pet Sematary acclaim, the movie is a straightforward supernatural horror. Three teen girls say “Bloody Mary” three times into a mirror, and it resurrects a vengeful spirit.
The movie is not terrible by any means. It is just pretty standard, with some good moments of schlocky, 2000s fun. For those that grew up in this era, it can be a goofy little nostalgia trip! The cheesy SFX, hilariously awkward teen acting, and cinematography of a Coke commercial make it a really easy watch. It’s almost like a much bloodier Goosebumps episode! However, for those not fans of this divisive era of TV-horror, it can be a bit of a slog.
The idea of making a movie that feels in-Universe to the first film is clever. However, it is unclear whether that was the exact intention. Despite this critic’s personal, nostalgic love of this film, it is not connected to the franchise at all. Even if this was a masterpiece, this detail makes it hard to put it anything above last place. Sorry Bloody Mary, I still love you.
Urban Legend (1998)
Ready the guillotine. Light up the torches. Find the IP address this article was written on-but let me explain. Yes, it is controversial not to put this one in first place. Still, it is really more of a tie than second placement. This and Final Cut are vastly different, which makes the franchise interesting, nearly incomparable. They each succeed in their own sub-genres…but this one misses the mark.
Urban Legend is a cult classic for a reason. It is completely itself as a late-90s, teen campus-slasher. The movie takes a simple premise, combining it with a likeable cast and a gothic, dark-academia setting. It feels like it was made for slumber parties and sleepovers. A combination of 80s slashers and campfire tales? Amazing. Plus, the soundtrack is killer.
That being said, the mystery, story, and characters are all just okay. The answers to the mystery (spoilers…?) fall in line with I Know What You Did Last Summer, and many films from the 80s. Prom Night, April Fool’s Day, and The Burning all come to mind. If this came out before Scream, this would be number one, for sure. It is probably, technically, the best film of the franchise, if I had to be objective. However, it just doesn’t reach the levels of originality the final film on this list does.
Urban Legends: Final Cut (2000)
Urban Legends: Final Cut is fantastic. No, really. It’s great, and one of the most underrated slashers of its time. While Scream picked apart the slasher genre in a meta-horror classic, this movie picks apart the horror film industry. The film has a lot of commentary on toxicity in the industry, and it is matched by an on-brand mystery.
A big issue with movies is finding a decent throughline. Look at the first Urban Legend, for example. The reason the killer kills has nothing to do with urban legends themselves-it is just a creepy MO. However, the killer in Final Cut has a motive rooted in filmmaking itself. The movie stays on brand, delivering on its promise. It is distinctly different from Scream, while still being perfect for fans of that franchise.
Without spoiling, the mystery is great. While the final reveal is somewhat predictable, the twists and turns of the story itself are great. For fans of lost media horror like Red Rooms or Cigarette Burns, the mystery veers into that. One part of the film involves a student film with a mystery splice in the film spool. While the movie is funnier than it is scary, and somewhat outdated at points, it still feels the most rewatchable of all three movies.
The Fly Movies Ranked
#5 The Fly II (1989)
#4 Curse of the Fly (1965)
#3 Return of the Fly (1959)
#2 The Fly (1958)
#1 The Fly (1986)
