HOOP-TOBER 8
8 Different Decades (1960s)

Often cited as "the first slasher", I don't know if I would necessarily put it in that same category as it is more like a serial killer film than a slasher. With that being said, this is quite a beautifully shot film. The color is gorgeous, but Michael Powell uses light and shadow so wonderfully, with characters moving in and out of light to build suspense or highlight expressions.

I mean, there are some interesting things that this film is trying to say between voyeurism and cinema. Whether or not Peeping Tom is trying to say that they are one and the same is probably debatable, but I do think that it's trying to speak to our enjoyment of watching characters die on film.

As a horror fan and a big fan of slashers, I often find myself smiling at the various clever ways in which a filmmaker will off their characters. Much like Mark, I find myself revisiting these films and relishing the craftsmanship that makes these kills so visceral and exciting (in this case, he's relishing in his own work rather than the work of another). So really, when you think of it, are we all that different?

The question then moves to, who are the true villains in a horror film? Is it the monster or the killer? Or are they simply just an appendage of the filmmaker themself that is inflicting this pain upon the cast of characters. Someone wrote these films that punish teenagers in brutal bloody ways, so how different really are they from the very killers that pursue them?

I guess this is just turning into random thoughts rather than a review, but excellent film. A true pioneer of a future age in horror.