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[suspenseful music plays]
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♪
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00:00:20,020 --> 00:00:23,719
[Robert Englund] As America
entered the 1980s and '90s,
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00:00:23,849 --> 00:00:27,505
popular culture was as inundated
with violence and death
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00:00:27,636 --> 00:00:30,378
as it had ever been.
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00:00:30,508 --> 00:00:34,686
But now, the advent
of 24-hour news on cable TV
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delivered an endless cycle
of these disturbing stories.
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[reporter] They call it the work
of the Green River Killer,
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00:00:42,433 --> 00:00:44,609
probably one man who has
murdered 13 young women
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near Seattle, case unsolved.
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Coverage of violent
crime was sensationalized
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00:00:50,789 --> 00:00:54,532
and seemed to suggest peril
around every corner,
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while new terrors emerged
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as a mysterious disease
was introduced,
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00:00:59,885 --> 00:01:04,934
adding yet another layer
of worry and dread.
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00:01:05,065 --> 00:01:09,330
Manicured suburbs were filled
with anxious teenagers
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and their stressed-out parents.
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There seemed to be
no safe place to hide.
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Motive-less, random killings,
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sometimes thousands
of miles apart.
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A Justice Department
investigator calls it
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"terrifying, an epidemic."
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They're known as serial killers,
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and according to
law enforcement officials,
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there are at least 35 of them
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roaming the country now,
stalking victims.
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Teenagers processed
the onslaught of news
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as kids will do--
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feeling vulnerable, alone,
and insecure about everything--
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from their place in the world
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to their awakening
sexual feelings.
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Audiences were subjected
to a seemingly endless cycle
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of exploitative news,
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presenting threats
from every angle,
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suggesting a dangerous world
for new modern terrors.
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00:02:01,121 --> 00:02:05,125
The horror genre became
dominated by slasher films
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where sexualized teenagers
were killed
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by merciless, inhuman monsters
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punishing them
for their transgressions
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and while neither they,
their helpless parents,
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nor the police were able
to protect them
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from these seemingly
unstoppable monsters.
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♪
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[film reel clicking]
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♪
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♪
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♪
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♪
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00:03:07,448 --> 00:03:16,674
♪
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[Williamson]
I was a teen in a small town.
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I had the typical
small-town upbringing,
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and so the things that scared me
were the idea
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that someone could break
into your house
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and get you when you're asleep.
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I was scared of the dark.
I was scared--
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I always thought
someone was under the bed.
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I thought there was
someone in the closet.
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And I wasn't necessarily
scared of monsters
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and ghosts and aliens
as a child.
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I was more scared
of the serial killers.
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I grew up in the '80s,
when not only
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were serial killers
in our movies,
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like in Halloween
and Friday the 13th,
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but they were also in our world.
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♪
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You know, with Bundy and Gacy
and Dahmer
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and all of those, you know--
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serial killers became
household names back then.
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[reporter] The assailant
entered a house in a quiet,
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00:04:03,243 --> 00:04:05,723
middle-class neighborhood
in the predawn hours on Sunday
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through an unlocked window
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and attacked the couple
while they slept.
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It just terrifying to me
'cause I lived in a small town
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where we didn't lock our doors.
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And that scared me
'cause it was real.
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[director] Stand by. Ready?
Three, take three. My cue.
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Ready, camera three.
One center up.
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Good evening.
I'm David Walker.
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And I'm Lois Hart.
Now here's the news.
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CNN started broadcasting
in the 1980s,
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and the '80s were packed
with sensational stories
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about serial killers.
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Like the trials of Ted Bundy,
John Wayne Gacy,
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the Hillside Stranglers,
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and the capture
of Henry Lee Lucas.
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They started getting
great ratings
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showing all of the murders
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that were happening
in your neighborhood.
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[Walker]
In New London, Connecticut,
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police say a man apparently
upset over a family problem
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went on a shooting spree
aboard an Amtrak train
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en route from Washington
to Boston.
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The brand-new network that was
suddenly in everyone's homes
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telling you what was happening,
and what they were showing you
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is that the world you live in
is unsafe
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because killers are out there.
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They're in your neighborhood.
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The serial killer next door
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had become all too real.
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In one gruesome case alone,
26 victims' bodies
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were carried out of
John Wayne Gacy's home in 1978.
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In all,
Gacy had sexually assaulted
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and murdered 33 young men
and boys
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over a six-year period.
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And as always, the horror genre
reflected real-life fears
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as filmmakers incorporated
this national obsession
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with psychotic killers
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by perfecting
the modern slasher movie--
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90 minutes of teenagers
being chased by a relentless,
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enraged, usually masked killer.
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The stalker classic Halloween
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00:06:02,927 --> 00:06:06,931
and films like Friday The 13th
and Nightmare on Elm Street
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sent teens flocking
to the movies
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and launched horror franchises
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that dominated the multiplexes
throughout the '80s.
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And that's kind of what '80s
horror movies were all about.
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They personified evil
with this omniscient force
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that could not be
fucking stopped.
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You can throw bullets
at these fuckers, man,
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throw them off roofs and shit.
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Like, they can't be stopped.
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Like death, they're relentless.
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So, you know,
it was a wonderful metaphor
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for a young Catholic kid
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who was already fucking obsessed
with death
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that like, you know, even--
I didn't need CliffsNotes
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to understand, like,
oh, we all die eventually.
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With the advent
of cable television
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and the emergence
of video stores,
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viewers could channel surf
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between real monsters
and imaginary killers.
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[screams]
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[Blum] The first horror movie
I ever saw
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was Friday the 13th.
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And for whatever reason,
I was left alone
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in front of the television
when I was too young.
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I was eight or nine years old.
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And it was definitely
one of the worst,
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scariest nights of my life,
and I didn't see a horror movie
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for about two or three years
after that.
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But it had a great effect on me
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and clearly informed me
in later years.
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I had been working
on a couple children's shows,
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and they got put on hold.
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I came up with the title
Friday the 13th,
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and I took out
a big ad in Variety saying,
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"The most terrifying film
ever made.
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Friday the 13th, coming soon."
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And I didn't have anything.
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I got a bunch of distributors
and countries
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where they wanted
a piece of something
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called Friday the 13th.
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[gurgling]
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♪
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When we first came up
with this notion
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of Friday the 13th,
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00:08:01,916 --> 00:08:04,788
it was like all these
strange little deaths.
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Who was gonna go next,
and who's gonna survive?
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So when we were trying
to figure out an ending,
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00:08:10,011 --> 00:08:13,231
and there were-- [chuckles]--
this took some doing.
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I decided that the killer
was gonna be Jason's mother.
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Betsy Palmer has a public image
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of being the nicest person
in the world.
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So I thought that
we could get
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at least a few moments
of people relaxing.
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"Oh, Betsy Palmer's here.
We know she's nice."
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Did you know that
a young boy drowned
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the year before
those two others were killed?
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The counselors weren't
paying any attention.
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They were making love
while that young boy drowned.
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His name was Jason.
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You wouldn't question
that a mother would,
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you know, seek revenge
for the death of her kid.
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So the first movie is
definitely horrific,
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but, like, it also had
this fucking great twist
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where it's like,
oh, this lady is the killer?
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That's kind of crazy.
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00:09:00,365 --> 00:09:04,935
And then the very next movie,
suddenly a star is born.
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00:09:05,066 --> 00:09:07,068
But they found a way to make
Friday the 13th continue
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by being like,
"Oh, never mind the killer mom.
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The boy-- he lived.
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He's the fucking bad guy
from now on.
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And we're gonna put
a fucking bag on his head!"
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Not real great marketing.
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But then they got
to the third movie,
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put a fucking hockey mask
on him,
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and that changed everything.
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Aaah!
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Oh! [grunts]
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[gasping]
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You see that on a little icon,
you're like, "That's a horror."
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[Greer] My first horror movie,
like, besides Gremlins,
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was Friday the 13th Part III
in 3D.
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And it was coming out
in the movie theaters,
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00:09:47,325 --> 00:09:49,893
and I wanted to see it
more than anything.
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[announcer] Friday the 13th
Part 3 in 3D.
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00:09:54,158 --> 00:09:57,901
- Aah!
- A new dimension in terror.
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I begged my parents.
I begged and begged and begged.
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00:10:00,077 --> 00:10:01,862
And they were like, "No, no, no.
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00:10:01,992 --> 00:10:04,038
Under no circumstances
can you see that movie.
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00:10:04,168 --> 00:10:05,996
You're too young.
You'll have nightmares forever."
202
00:10:06,127 --> 00:10:10,348
Because these are
Jason's woods.
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00:10:10,479 --> 00:10:13,917
And nobody leaves them alive.
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00:10:14,831 --> 00:10:18,269
So they were going away on a ski
weekend with their friends.
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00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:20,271
And they had
my babysitter, Jill,
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00:10:20,402 --> 00:10:22,447
who lived across the street,
stay with me.
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00:10:22,578 --> 00:10:25,320
And I remember very vividly
them, like, giving Jill
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00:10:25,450 --> 00:10:27,322
the rundown of, like,
"Here are the rules.
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00:10:27,452 --> 00:10:29,890
Here's the food and some extra
money" and yada, yada, yada.
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00:10:30,020 --> 00:10:32,370
And they were like,
"One last thing.
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00:10:32,501 --> 00:10:34,285
She's gonna try to get you
to take her
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00:10:34,416 --> 00:10:35,939
to see Friday the 13th."
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00:10:36,070 --> 00:10:38,159
[announcer] In 3D.
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00:10:38,289 --> 00:10:41,989
"Under no circumstances--
and I mean no circumstances--
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00:10:42,119 --> 00:10:44,078
is she allowed
to see that movie."
216
00:10:44,208 --> 00:10:46,254
And Jill's like,
"Okay, like, how hard is it
217
00:10:46,384 --> 00:10:48,169
to not take a kid to a movie?"
218
00:10:48,299 --> 00:10:51,128
Like, pretty easy.
We have a super-fun night,
219
00:10:51,259 --> 00:10:53,217
watch TV, have popcorn,
listen to Madonna.
220
00:10:53,348 --> 00:10:57,047
We go upstairs and go to bed,
and I hear talking downstairs.
221
00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:04,098
And I snuck downstairs,
and I see Jill on the couch
222
00:11:04,228 --> 00:11:08,406
wearing my mom's nightgown
with her boyfriend
223
00:11:08,537 --> 00:11:12,193
underneath the quilt
that my grandmother made!
224
00:11:12,323 --> 00:11:17,067
And I was like, "Oh, we're gonna
go see that movie."
225
00:11:17,198 --> 00:11:19,374
[laughs]
And the next day I said to Jill,
226
00:11:19,504 --> 00:11:22,203
"I'm gonna tell your parents
and my parents
227
00:11:22,333 --> 00:11:25,032
if you don't take me to see
Friday the 13th in 3D
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00:11:25,162 --> 00:11:26,207
in the movie theater."
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00:11:26,337 --> 00:11:28,296
And she was like...
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00:11:28,426 --> 00:11:31,908
So, sure enough,
Saturday matinee.
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00:11:32,039 --> 00:11:33,954
[up-tempo music plays]
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00:11:34,084 --> 00:11:37,348
♪
233
00:11:37,479 --> 00:11:40,482
It was the scariest--
Am I allowed to swear?
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00:11:40,612 --> 00:11:42,353
[gasps]
235
00:11:42,484 --> 00:11:45,269
The scariest fucking thing
to this day
236
00:11:45,400 --> 00:11:47,968
I have ever, ever seen
in my life.
237
00:11:50,405 --> 00:11:52,886
I won't go see 3-D movies
at all now,
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00:11:53,016 --> 00:11:54,061
at all, because of it.
239
00:11:54,191 --> 00:11:55,323
It was so fucking scary.
240
00:11:55,453 --> 00:11:57,934
My parents were 110% right.
241
00:11:58,065 --> 00:12:00,197
I should never have seen
that movie.
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00:12:00,328 --> 00:12:02,156
I mean, still to this day,
I have nightmares.
243
00:12:02,286 --> 00:12:04,854
But I never told my parents
why I was having nightmares.
244
00:12:04,985 --> 00:12:07,944
[screams]
245
00:12:08,075 --> 00:12:10,991
Fucking hockey mask, man.
246
00:12:11,121 --> 00:12:13,210
♪
247
00:12:13,341 --> 00:12:16,213
I swear I felt like I was born
to play that character.
248
00:12:16,344 --> 00:12:18,215
It felt so natural,
even from the beginning.
249
00:12:23,264 --> 00:12:25,962
Villains are so scary
behind a mask.
250
00:12:26,093 --> 00:12:28,399
It has to be the unknown.
251
00:12:28,530 --> 00:12:30,314
I mean, that has to be
a factor to it,
252
00:12:30,445 --> 00:12:33,013
that you're looking at someone,
you don't really know
253
00:12:33,143 --> 00:12:34,144
what they really look like.
254
00:12:36,494 --> 00:12:38,932
And not that you'd
necessarily want to,
255
00:12:39,062 --> 00:12:41,369
but just that mystery of,
256
00:12:41,499 --> 00:12:44,328
"Who could possibly be
behind that mask?"
257
00:12:44,459 --> 00:12:48,463
and the expressionless-ness
of it,
258
00:12:48,593 --> 00:12:51,422
whether it's Michael Myers
or Jason,
259
00:12:51,553 --> 00:12:53,207
it never changes.
260
00:12:53,337 --> 00:12:59,430
So it's just a scary,
unknown entity,
261
00:12:59,561 --> 00:13:02,216
I think, is what makes it
so terrifying.
262
00:13:02,346 --> 00:13:04,479
The truth is,
Friday the 13th started out
263
00:13:04,609 --> 00:13:07,612
with a reality-based killer,
more or less.
264
00:13:07,743 --> 00:13:11,312
You know, it has turned
into this sort of iconic story
265
00:13:11,442 --> 00:13:16,839
about this abused kid, Jason.
266
00:13:16,970 --> 00:13:19,494
And I think that inside
of that story is something
267
00:13:19,624 --> 00:13:24,194
that's so irresistible
to a lot of people.
268
00:13:24,325 --> 00:13:27,154
It's like Revenge of the Nerds
on steroids, you know,
269
00:13:27,284 --> 00:13:29,243
and you get to kick ass
270
00:13:29,373 --> 00:13:31,593
all these people
that are bugging you.
271
00:13:31,723 --> 00:13:34,161
And I think
it is very dependable.
272
00:13:34,291 --> 00:13:36,119
If you're gonna go see
a Friday the 13th movie,
273
00:13:36,250 --> 00:13:38,469
you know at this point
what you're gonna get.
274
00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:41,298
And we always try to deliver
on that, and then a little more.
275
00:13:41,429 --> 00:13:45,041
Probably the biggest thing
about Jason
276
00:13:45,172 --> 00:13:48,131
that the audience fears
277
00:13:48,262 --> 00:13:52,744
is the unstoppable nature
of the character.
278
00:13:52,875 --> 00:13:57,401
No matter what you do to stop
that guy from coming after you,
279
00:13:57,532 --> 00:13:58,925
it doesn't work.
280
00:14:00,187 --> 00:14:02,015
You light the guy on fire,
281
00:14:02,145 --> 00:14:03,930
you blow him up,
282
00:14:04,060 --> 00:14:06,236
you stab him,
283
00:14:06,367 --> 00:14:09,196
you hack him with an ax...
284
00:14:09,326 --> 00:14:10,240
[screams]
285
00:14:10,371 --> 00:14:11,459
...he still keeps coming.
286
00:14:14,766 --> 00:14:16,116
[Cunningham]
After Friday the 13th,
287
00:14:16,246 --> 00:14:18,248
it looked like
these little movies,
288
00:14:18,379 --> 00:14:20,555
you know,
relatively low-budget movies
289
00:14:20,685 --> 00:14:24,037
that featured a lot of blood
and special effects
290
00:14:24,167 --> 00:14:25,690
were going to be successful.
291
00:14:25,821 --> 00:14:29,303
[Englund] The success
of this new wave of genre films
292
00:14:29,433 --> 00:14:32,349
attracted
exciting young filmmakers
293
00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:36,310
and inspired them to make horror
films infused with fresh ideas,
294
00:14:36,440 --> 00:14:40,096
creative storytelling,
innovative cinematography
295
00:14:40,227 --> 00:14:43,360
and spit-and-glue
special effects
296
00:14:43,491 --> 00:14:46,015
to get the biggest bang
for their buck.
297
00:14:46,146 --> 00:14:47,451
[screams]
298
00:14:47,582 --> 00:14:49,366
[whimpering]
299
00:14:51,891 --> 00:14:55,503
The only reason we ever got
into horror in the first place
300
00:14:55,633 --> 00:14:57,418
for my first film, Evil Dead--
301
00:14:57,548 --> 00:15:00,203
we were terrified of losing
the investors' money.
302
00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:08,559
And we knew that horror films
was a staple that was out there.
303
00:15:08,690 --> 00:15:10,213
You could get them
into drive-ins.
304
00:15:10,344 --> 00:15:12,172
You didn't have to
get in fancy theaters.
305
00:15:12,302 --> 00:15:14,304
You could use no-name actors
306
00:15:14,435 --> 00:15:17,090
wearing regular clothes,
driving regular cars.
307
00:15:17,220 --> 00:15:19,092
Nothing had to be that fancy.
308
00:15:19,222 --> 00:15:20,049
[snarls]
309
00:15:20,180 --> 00:15:22,182
[screaming]
310
00:15:22,312 --> 00:15:24,706
[demon voice] Why have you
disturbed our sleep,
311
00:15:24,836 --> 00:15:28,492
awakened us
from our ancient slumber?
312
00:15:28,623 --> 00:15:33,280
Sam I met in eighth grade.
313
00:15:33,410 --> 00:15:35,499
I was walking down the hallway,
West Maple Junior High School.
314
00:15:35,630 --> 00:15:37,632
He's sitting in the middle
of the hallway
315
00:15:37,762 --> 00:15:40,461
dressed like Sherlock Holmes,
playing with dolls.
316
00:15:40,591 --> 00:15:43,072
[laughs]
I was like, "Oh, man.
317
00:15:43,203 --> 00:15:44,595
I'm going around that guy."
318
00:15:44,726 --> 00:15:46,467
I mean, he really left
an indelible mark.
319
00:15:46,597 --> 00:15:47,729
I'm like, "People don't do that.
320
00:15:47,859 --> 00:15:49,687
They don't dress like
Sherlock Holmes."
321
00:15:49,818 --> 00:15:51,863
And he claimed later
he was making a movie.
322
00:15:51,994 --> 00:15:53,430
I'm like,
"I didn't see a camera.
323
00:15:53,561 --> 00:15:55,258
I didn't see it anywhere.
324
00:15:55,389 --> 00:15:56,956
I think you were just being
a little whack job."
325
00:15:58,609 --> 00:16:02,744
Oh, God. Look at this.
326
00:16:02,874 --> 00:16:07,618
Sam Raimi took a class
and read about the Necronomicon.
327
00:16:07,749 --> 00:16:10,578
It was like
the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
328
00:16:10,708 --> 00:16:13,276
And he thought,
"Hey, that's cool.
329
00:16:13,407 --> 00:16:16,410
Like, that's just this weird
book that has conjurings,
330
00:16:16,540 --> 00:16:19,282
and once you conjure them,
like, what happens?
331
00:16:19,413 --> 00:16:20,631
I don't know."
332
00:16:20,762 --> 00:16:22,416
So that was really
intriguing to him.
333
00:16:22,546 --> 00:16:24,722
And so I think
he brought that up
334
00:16:24,853 --> 00:16:27,203
when we decided
to make a horror movie.
335
00:16:28,204 --> 00:16:30,250
[man] This guy was a real turd,
you know.
336
00:16:30,380 --> 00:16:32,339
Everybody hated him. Everybody.
337
00:16:32,469 --> 00:16:33,470
Like you, kinda.
338
00:16:33,601 --> 00:16:35,472
Released in 1981,
339
00:16:35,603 --> 00:16:38,475
The Evil Dead is the story
of a group of friends
340
00:16:38,606 --> 00:16:42,653
that unleash an ancient curse
conjured from a Sumerian text.
341
00:16:42,784 --> 00:16:44,655
The film did what horror
does best--
342
00:16:44,786 --> 00:16:48,268
created a meta world
with layers of subtext.
343
00:16:48,398 --> 00:16:50,400
You never see the villain.
344
00:16:50,531 --> 00:16:53,577
The evil spirit possesses
these kids one by one.
345
00:16:53,708 --> 00:16:55,405
As one critic put it,
346
00:16:55,536 --> 00:16:58,278
"The monster is
the camera itself
347
00:16:58,408 --> 00:17:00,541
and whoever is behind it."
348
00:17:00,671 --> 00:17:03,283
In other words, the viewer
is part of the scene,
349
00:17:03,413 --> 00:17:05,459
whether they want to be or not.
350
00:17:05,589 --> 00:17:07,852
You hear an incantation.
Something comes up.
351
00:17:07,983 --> 00:17:11,465
It possesses you, you know,
and has malevolent intent.
352
00:17:11,595 --> 00:17:14,337
So you open--
you opened the wrong book, man.
353
00:17:14,468 --> 00:17:17,166
And so I think Sam kind of
ran with it from there.
354
00:17:17,297 --> 00:17:18,341
And Evil Dead came along.
355
00:17:18,472 --> 00:17:21,388
[screaming]
356
00:17:21,518 --> 00:17:28,873
♪
357
00:17:29,004 --> 00:17:31,659
Evil Dead is the most
simplistic plot ever,
358
00:17:31,789 --> 00:17:34,662
and it's one that we see
to come over and over--
359
00:17:34,792 --> 00:17:37,491
group of kids go to a cabin,
360
00:17:37,621 --> 00:17:39,406
they find
some fucked-up shit there,
361
00:17:39,536 --> 00:17:40,885
and then the movie
just keeps going.
362
00:17:41,016 --> 00:17:43,497
But what Evil Dead did
is at a time period
363
00:17:43,627 --> 00:17:45,455
where if you were going
to a cabin,
364
00:17:45,586 --> 00:17:48,632
you were going to encounter
a maniacal redneck killer.
365
00:17:48,763 --> 00:17:51,461
Instead, the entire house
is demonic.
366
00:17:51,592 --> 00:17:53,768
Everything is cursed around it.
367
00:17:53,898 --> 00:17:57,554
And just by being there,
you're getting the curse, too.
368
00:17:57,685 --> 00:17:59,861
[Campbell] Our special effects
were very crude.
369
00:17:59,991 --> 00:18:01,428
Tom Sullivan's like,
"I know how to make these
370
00:18:01,558 --> 00:18:02,864
special, cool molds.
371
00:18:02,994 --> 00:18:04,605
We'll make a mold
of the actor's face,
372
00:18:04,735 --> 00:18:05,910
and then you can sculpt it
373
00:18:06,041 --> 00:18:08,652
and then put an appliance
on their face."
374
00:18:08,783 --> 00:18:11,873
Right?
So we'll use plaster of Paris.
375
00:18:12,003 --> 00:18:14,267
Well, anyone who's used
plaster of Paris knows
376
00:18:14,397 --> 00:18:17,618
it heats up and as it dries.
377
00:18:17,748 --> 00:18:20,273
Well, okay, so we put
a light coating of Vaseline
378
00:18:20,403 --> 00:18:21,709
on Betsy Baker's face.
379
00:18:21,839 --> 00:18:23,841
She was the first guinea pig.
380
00:18:23,972 --> 00:18:26,801
This thing starts to heat up.
She's like, "How much longer?"
381
00:18:26,931 --> 00:18:29,499
So finally like five minutes
later, we go,
382
00:18:29,630 --> 00:18:30,892
"Okay, Betsy, no problem, we're
gonna get you out of that."
383
00:18:31,022 --> 00:18:32,720
So all you have to do
is lean forward, right?
384
00:18:32,850 --> 00:18:36,332
'Cause the weight of it,
of the plaster of Paris,
385
00:18:36,463 --> 00:18:37,986
will pull it off your face.
386
00:18:38,117 --> 00:18:40,684
So it did-- went right off
her face, right into her hand.
387
00:18:40,815 --> 00:18:43,426
She looks into the mask,
and all of her eyelashes
388
00:18:43,557 --> 00:18:45,950
were in the mold.
389
00:18:46,081 --> 00:18:48,953
It pulled all of her eyelashes
off of her face.
390
00:18:49,084 --> 00:18:52,609
And she said, in the most
kind of remarkable way--
391
00:18:52,740 --> 00:18:55,525
she was like more fascinated--
she goes,
392
00:18:55,656 --> 00:18:57,832
"Those are all my eyelashes."
393
00:18:57,962 --> 00:18:59,834
We're like,
"Yeah, Betsy. Sorry."
394
00:18:59,964 --> 00:19:01,140
And that was just the beginning.
395
00:19:02,532 --> 00:19:05,274
[snarls]
396
00:19:05,405 --> 00:19:07,146
[screaming]
397
00:19:10,714 --> 00:19:12,586
And then when it finally
did come out,
398
00:19:12,716 --> 00:19:15,371
we started to get some
pretty bad reviews.
399
00:19:15,502 --> 00:19:16,807
A paper in Atlanta called it
400
00:19:16,938 --> 00:19:19,941
Evil Dead:
The Sickest of the Sick.
401
00:19:20,071 --> 00:19:23,597
Sam Raimi took every bad idea
he's ever had..."
402
00:19:23,727 --> 00:19:25,860
Ever had.
He only made one movie.
403
00:19:25,990 --> 00:19:29,211
"...and put it into
a low-budget blender."
404
00:19:29,342 --> 00:19:32,432
I'm like, "What a dick.
What a dickish thing to say."
405
00:19:32,562 --> 00:19:34,521
But this new kind
of filmmaking,
406
00:19:34,651 --> 00:19:36,523
one that threw in everything
407
00:19:36,653 --> 00:19:38,873
audiences come to love
about horror films--
408
00:19:39,003 --> 00:19:41,702
the campy special effects,
ham-fisted dialogue,
409
00:19:41,832 --> 00:19:43,834
and handsome action hero--
410
00:19:43,965 --> 00:19:46,489
impressed the one guy
that mattered.
411
00:19:46,620 --> 00:19:48,622
Enter Stephen King.
412
00:19:48,752 --> 00:19:50,624
He sees it
at the Cannes Film Festival.
413
00:19:50,754 --> 00:19:52,626
It's a horror movie.
Let's go see it.
414
00:19:52,756 --> 00:19:56,630
And he writes an article
in Twilight Zone Magazine
415
00:19:56,760 --> 00:19:58,849
and calls it
"the most ferociously original
416
00:19:58,980 --> 00:20:00,808
horror film of the year."
417
00:20:00,938 --> 00:20:03,376
We spit our coffee.
We're like, "Wait a second.
418
00:20:03,506 --> 00:20:04,812
Stephen King said that?"
419
00:20:04,942 --> 00:20:06,857
And I don't even know
how we tracked him down.
420
00:20:06,988 --> 00:20:10,034
But, "Sir, could we please--
please, can we use that quote?"
421
00:20:10,165 --> 00:20:11,819
He goes, "Yeah."
422
00:20:11,949 --> 00:20:13,690
We were like, "Oh, my God."
423
00:20:13,821 --> 00:20:16,215
So that's on the poster
to this day.
424
00:20:16,345 --> 00:20:19,218
Stephen King--
I mean, what an endorsement.
425
00:20:19,348 --> 00:20:21,394
Evil Dead was banned
in most countries
426
00:20:21,524 --> 00:20:22,699
and slashed by censors.
427
00:20:22,830 --> 00:20:25,006
It was also on
the video nasties list.
428
00:20:25,136 --> 00:20:28,357
Sam Raimi made Evil Dead
as this homespun,
429
00:20:28,488 --> 00:20:30,751
guttural exploitation film,
430
00:20:30,881 --> 00:20:32,579
and it's really freaking scary.
431
00:20:32,709 --> 00:20:35,059
We forget about how scary
the original Evil Dead is
432
00:20:35,190 --> 00:20:37,453
in light of Evil Dead II
and Army of Darkness
433
00:20:37,584 --> 00:20:38,715
and everything to come.
434
00:20:38,846 --> 00:20:41,544
But that first film
was horrifying.
435
00:20:41,675 --> 00:20:43,067
It's violent.
436
00:20:43,198 --> 00:20:46,070
The decision to make
a completely carnage-filled
437
00:20:46,201 --> 00:20:50,553
horror movie was also
a business decision of like,
438
00:20:50,684 --> 00:20:51,815
"We don't want to get lost
in the shuffle.
439
00:20:51,946 --> 00:20:53,991
We have to--
This has to be, like,
440
00:20:54,122 --> 00:20:55,689
something people
remember when they watch it."
441
00:20:55,819 --> 00:20:58,779
Aaah!
442
00:20:58,909 --> 00:21:00,607
[growls]
443
00:21:01,869 --> 00:21:04,872
[growls]
444
00:21:06,265 --> 00:21:07,831
The Evil Dead was a hit.
445
00:21:07,962 --> 00:21:09,920
Audiences ate it up,
446
00:21:10,051 --> 00:21:13,794
and Sam Raimi had a franchise
on his hands.
447
00:21:13,924 --> 00:21:15,839
My theory is that horror works.
448
00:21:15,970 --> 00:21:18,625
It's one of the few genres
that can get
449
00:21:18,755 --> 00:21:21,889
an audience to react viscerally.
450
00:21:22,019 --> 00:21:24,108
You know, after we put
the first Evil Dead out,
451
00:21:24,239 --> 00:21:28,287
we would sit in movie theaters
to watch it play with audiences.
452
00:21:28,417 --> 00:21:29,897
And we didn't care about
the movie after a while.
453
00:21:30,027 --> 00:21:32,073
It was, we just watched
the audience.
454
00:21:32,203 --> 00:21:35,685
You'd see a couple, they got
a jacket over their head,
455
00:21:35,816 --> 00:21:36,860
and they're screening the movie
456
00:21:36,991 --> 00:21:38,949
through their sleeve
of the jacket,
457
00:21:39,080 --> 00:21:41,952
'cause they only want to see
parts of the screen.
458
00:21:42,083 --> 00:21:44,912
They love that feeling
that they got of like,
459
00:21:45,042 --> 00:21:47,741
"I'm dead. I'm gonna be dead."
460
00:21:47,871 --> 00:21:49,917
And then after the movie,
"I'm not dead."
461
00:21:50,047 --> 00:21:53,747
It's probably very cathartic,
why horror works.
462
00:21:53,877 --> 00:22:01,145
♪
463
00:22:01,276 --> 00:22:03,713
As if teenagers didn't
already have enough to fear
464
00:22:03,844 --> 00:22:05,628
in their waking hours,
465
00:22:05,759 --> 00:22:07,195
Wes Craven came up
with something
466
00:22:07,326 --> 00:22:11,112
even more terrifying
to torture their subconscious.
467
00:22:11,242 --> 00:22:11,939
We think of
Nightmare on Elm Street
468
00:22:12,069 --> 00:22:13,854
as being mainstream now,
469
00:22:13,984 --> 00:22:16,465
but it was a bit alternative
back in the day.
470
00:22:20,948 --> 00:22:24,604
I think the original fans
were dorm rats
471
00:22:24,734 --> 00:22:26,736
passing around
the same old video
472
00:22:26,867 --> 00:22:28,303
and heavy-metal kids
473
00:22:28,434 --> 00:22:29,826
and then their brothers
and sisters
474
00:22:29,957 --> 00:22:31,785
or their younger brothers
and sisters,
475
00:22:31,915 --> 00:22:33,090
and then, you know,
it just began
476
00:22:33,221 --> 00:22:35,919
to permeate the entire culture.
477
00:22:36,050 --> 00:22:39,009
The idea for
A Nightmare on Elm Street
478
00:22:39,140 --> 00:22:41,969
came to Wes Craven
after he read stories
479
00:22:42,099 --> 00:22:44,972
about healthy young adults
screaming incoherently
480
00:22:45,102 --> 00:22:48,758
before dying in their sleep,
a mysterious disorder
481
00:22:48,889 --> 00:22:53,023
that came to be known
as Nocturnal Death Syndrome.
482
00:22:53,154 --> 00:22:55,983
Craven conjured up
the story of a villain
483
00:22:56,113 --> 00:22:58,681
that terrorizes you
in your sleep.
484
00:22:58,812 --> 00:23:01,858
And if you die in your dream,
you're done for.
485
00:23:01,989 --> 00:23:04,034
While writing the script,
486
00:23:04,165 --> 00:23:07,777
Craven named the nightmare
killer after a childhood bully,
487
00:23:07,908 --> 00:23:09,388
Fred Krueger.
488
00:23:09,518 --> 00:23:11,390
Nightmare on Elm Street
started on a Friday.
489
00:23:15,002 --> 00:23:17,047
And I couldn't get anyone
to go see it with me,
490
00:23:17,178 --> 00:23:19,049
'cause I wanted to see it,
like, at noon
491
00:23:19,180 --> 00:23:20,137
and nobody would go
and see it with me.
492
00:23:20,268 --> 00:23:22,009
So I had to go see it by myself.
493
00:23:22,139 --> 00:23:23,010
And, of course,
who's in the theater at noon?
494
00:23:23,140 --> 00:23:24,968
Nobody. Me. Just me.
495
00:23:25,099 --> 00:23:26,709
So I'm sitting
in the theater by myself,
496
00:23:26,840 --> 00:23:28,537
and I'm in Greenville,
North Carolina.
497
00:23:29,146 --> 00:23:31,845
[gasps]
498
00:23:31,975 --> 00:23:33,890
And I start watching
this movie,
499
00:23:34,021 --> 00:23:35,675
and I get so scared...
500
00:23:35,805 --> 00:23:36,937
Shit.
501
00:23:37,067 --> 00:23:38,068
...and I get a cramp
in my leg.
502
00:23:38,199 --> 00:23:39,635
I had to walk up and down
the aisle
503
00:23:39,766 --> 00:23:40,854
'cause I wouldn't
leave the theater.
504
00:23:40,984 --> 00:23:42,508
I had to see
what was gonna happen.
505
00:23:42,638 --> 00:23:46,468
[laughing]
506
00:23:46,599 --> 00:23:49,079
And I changed seats
and I moved closer to the exit.
507
00:23:49,210 --> 00:23:52,300
And, I mean, I was terrified.
That movie really scared me.
508
00:23:52,431 --> 00:23:54,824
It actually scared me
the first three times I saw it.
509
00:23:54,955 --> 00:23:56,739
I had to go back
and see it again,
510
00:23:56,870 --> 00:23:59,089
and it scared me almost more so
than the first time
511
00:23:59,220 --> 00:24:00,700
because I knew
what was gonna happen,
512
00:24:00,830 --> 00:24:02,832
so I was scared
before it happened.
513
00:24:02,963 --> 00:24:04,921
That movie was awesome.
514
00:24:05,052 --> 00:24:08,838
Nightmare on Elm Street
is about a serial killer,
515
00:24:08,969 --> 00:24:13,016
Freddy Krueger, who haunts you
in your dreams, you know?
516
00:24:13,147 --> 00:24:16,933
And he is-- he's taken revenge
on the children of Elm Street
517
00:24:17,064 --> 00:24:18,152
for something
that their parents did.
518
00:24:18,282 --> 00:24:19,980
And he comes to them
in their dreams,
519
00:24:20,110 --> 00:24:21,938
and if you die in your dreams,
you die for real.
520
00:24:22,069 --> 00:24:23,113
Dreams are a safe place.
521
00:24:23,244 --> 00:24:24,898
Dreams are where
fun things happen.
522
00:24:25,028 --> 00:24:27,770
Dreams are where you wake up
and it's over.
523
00:24:27,901 --> 00:24:30,338
And the idea that
whatever taunts you
524
00:24:30,469 --> 00:24:33,123
and stalks you in your dreams
can come to reality,
525
00:24:33,254 --> 00:24:35,343
or if you die in your dreams,
you die for good--
526
00:24:35,474 --> 00:24:37,606
I mean, that's beyond
your control. That's terrifying.
527
00:24:37,737 --> 00:24:41,915
♪
528
00:24:42,045 --> 00:24:46,397
As a horror theme
and as a trap,
529
00:24:46,528 --> 00:24:49,966
the nightmares-- the dream,
the bad dream, the gimmick--
530
00:24:50,097 --> 00:24:51,707
it's universal.
531
00:24:54,014 --> 00:24:56,146
To have also it inhabited
532
00:24:56,277 --> 00:24:59,759
by this man
that lives in that world...
533
00:25:03,110 --> 00:25:06,505
this boogieman
that inhabits the dream,
534
00:25:06,635 --> 00:25:07,897
once you've heard of him,
you know,
535
00:25:08,028 --> 00:25:08,942
he can get to
your subconscious...
536
00:25:09,072 --> 00:25:10,944
Who are you?
537
00:25:11,074 --> 00:25:13,773
...and take you down,
down the stairs
538
00:25:13,903 --> 00:25:15,949
into the nightmare
boiler room.
539
00:25:18,081 --> 00:25:20,997
That movie had
such a deep impact on me.
540
00:25:26,046 --> 00:25:27,526
Took place in the suburbs.
541
00:25:27,656 --> 00:25:30,180
I grew up in the suburbs,
newly integrated suburbs.
542
00:25:30,311 --> 00:25:33,053
So there was sort of a feeling
of unease.
543
00:25:33,183 --> 00:25:34,968
You didn't know how
your neighbors felt about you.
544
00:25:35,098 --> 00:25:36,535
You didn't know
what would pop off.
545
00:25:36,665 --> 00:25:38,232
We had people throwing tomatoes
against our house
546
00:25:38,362 --> 00:25:40,147
and all kinds of stuff.
547
00:25:40,277 --> 00:25:42,715
So the suburban horror feel
had me from hello.
548
00:25:42,845 --> 00:25:44,978
Wes wanted that.
549
00:25:45,108 --> 00:25:48,938
He wanted this sort of
damaged suburbia.
550
00:25:49,896 --> 00:25:52,942
And he was making the adults
in these movies
551
00:25:53,073 --> 00:25:55,205
vulnerable and flawed.
552
00:25:56,206 --> 00:26:00,559
That meant the kids were sort of
without adults for advice.
553
00:26:02,299 --> 00:26:03,866
It really dealt with the sins
of our fathers.
554
00:26:03,997 --> 00:26:05,085
I mean, these children
were pretty innocent.
555
00:26:05,215 --> 00:26:06,521
It was what their parents did
556
00:26:06,652 --> 00:26:07,957
that they were
being punished for.
557
00:26:08,088 --> 00:26:09,132
It was out of their control.
558
00:26:09,263 --> 00:26:10,873
This man was coming for them
559
00:26:11,004 --> 00:26:12,396
because of something
their parents did.
560
00:26:12,527 --> 00:26:14,311
So that sort of
"sins of our father" theme
561
00:26:14,442 --> 00:26:17,227
that ran through that movie,
I thought was really scary.
562
00:26:17,358 --> 00:26:20,361
There's something about the way
Freddy moves
563
00:26:20,491 --> 00:26:23,973
that's animal-like,
that's cat-like,
564
00:26:24,104 --> 00:26:26,236
that's even reptilian at times.
565
00:26:26,367 --> 00:26:28,282
And I think that
that's what I bring
566
00:26:28,412 --> 00:26:32,112
to sort of Freddy's
scare factor.
567
00:26:32,242 --> 00:26:36,116
The claw with the knife fingers
568
00:26:36,246 --> 00:26:38,988
on the old gardening glove--
569
00:26:39,119 --> 00:26:42,905
that not only manifests great
in silhouette and shadow,
570
00:26:43,036 --> 00:26:46,213
but it's something about it
extending evil
571
00:26:46,343 --> 00:26:50,043
or amplifying the evil
that is just Freddy.
572
00:26:50,173 --> 00:26:52,262
That is the scariest thing--
those knives,
573
00:26:52,393 --> 00:26:56,266
the taunting nature
of his attacks.
574
00:26:56,397 --> 00:26:59,966
Freddy Krueger definitely
was my scariest villain.
575
00:27:00,096 --> 00:27:06,450
♪
576
00:27:06,581 --> 00:27:09,453
[reporter] The push is on
to find a cure for AIDS.
577
00:27:09,584 --> 00:27:12,979
Since June of 1981, about 1,800
cases have been reported,
578
00:27:13,109 --> 00:27:14,545
mostly in the gay community,
579
00:27:14,676 --> 00:27:17,331
and more than 600 people
have died.
580
00:27:17,461 --> 00:27:19,855
In the early '80s,
nothing was more terrifying
581
00:27:19,986 --> 00:27:21,335
than an unidentified virus
582
00:27:21,465 --> 00:27:23,293
that could incubate
in the body for years
583
00:27:23,424 --> 00:27:26,949
and, when it struck,
was a death sentence.
584
00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:29,430
There was panic in the air
as the AIDS epidemic
585
00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:32,999
decimated a generation
of gay men.
586
00:27:33,129 --> 00:27:35,915
During the process, many people
lost their sense of compassion
587
00:27:36,045 --> 00:27:38,787
and replaced it with homophobia.
588
00:27:38,918 --> 00:27:40,528
And AIDS generally caused
589
00:27:40,659 --> 00:27:43,966
and believed to be caused
by homosexual promiscuity.
590
00:27:44,097 --> 00:27:46,142
While doctors tried
desperately to save lives
591
00:27:46,273 --> 00:27:49,276
and scientists pieced together
how to fight it,
592
00:27:49,406 --> 00:27:52,061
the Reagan administration
ignored the crisis.
593
00:27:52,192 --> 00:27:56,239
But horror filmmakers did not.
594
00:27:56,370 --> 00:27:58,981
[Fleming] When I moved to
New York in the early '80s,
595
00:27:59,112 --> 00:28:01,810
AIDS did not exist
in anybody's awareness.
596
00:28:06,510 --> 00:28:09,383
And then there was this thing
called "gay cancer"
597
00:28:09,513 --> 00:28:12,342
in the Village, which just
seems arbitrary and strange.
598
00:28:12,473 --> 00:28:14,127
And then suddenly
it had a name-- AIDS.
599
00:28:14,257 --> 00:28:15,432
And then suddenly
people were dying.
600
00:28:15,563 --> 00:28:18,261
And it was
a slow-motion horror movie.
601
00:28:18,392 --> 00:28:20,307
I'd been diagnosed
with AIDS-related complex
602
00:28:20,437 --> 00:28:22,135
for two and a half years now,
603
00:28:22,265 --> 00:28:24,006
and there's absolutely no drug
I can take,
604
00:28:24,137 --> 00:28:26,095
and I'm slowly getting worse
and worse.
605
00:28:26,226 --> 00:28:28,315
That's why we're here,
to make a point.
606
00:28:28,445 --> 00:28:31,448
It took something
which was potent and magical
607
00:28:31,579 --> 00:28:33,189
at that point-- sexuality--
608
00:28:33,320 --> 00:28:36,410
and mixed it with
the possibility of death.
609
00:28:36,540 --> 00:28:38,499
I was just coming into my own
as an adult
610
00:28:38,629 --> 00:28:41,154
during the AIDS crisis,
and I moved to New York,
611
00:28:41,284 --> 00:28:46,376
where The Village Voice was
writing all of these articles
612
00:28:46,507 --> 00:28:49,249
on the lack of response
the government had
613
00:28:49,379 --> 00:28:51,294
towards the AIDS crisis,
and all these people were dying.
614
00:28:51,425 --> 00:28:52,992
You know, you were like,
615
00:28:53,122 --> 00:28:55,124
"Is being my true self
gonna kill me?"
616
00:28:55,690 --> 00:28:57,170
The political climate was such
617
00:28:57,300 --> 00:28:58,475
that they didn't even
speak of it.
618
00:28:58,606 --> 00:29:00,434
And so AIDS
was a very terrifying thing
619
00:29:00,564 --> 00:29:03,263
because there was so much
that was unknown about it.
620
00:29:03,393 --> 00:29:05,482
It is hard to explain to people
621
00:29:05,613 --> 00:29:09,182
who didn't live through
the AIDS crisis how bad it was.
622
00:29:09,312 --> 00:29:11,227
AIDS is surreptitiously spreading
623
00:29:11,358 --> 00:29:13,099
throughout our population,
624
00:29:13,229 --> 00:29:16,363
and yet we have no accurate
measure of its scope.
625
00:29:16,493 --> 00:29:19,409
I've asked the Department
of Health and Human Services
626
00:29:19,540 --> 00:29:21,020
to add the AIDS virus
627
00:29:21,150 --> 00:29:23,457
to the list
of contagious diseases
628
00:29:23,587 --> 00:29:26,199
for which immigrants and aliens
seeking permanent residence
629
00:29:26,329 --> 00:29:29,332
in the United States
can be denied entry.
630
00:29:29,463 --> 00:29:32,988
[audience booing]
631
00:29:33,119 --> 00:29:34,424
You had people in Congress
632
00:29:34,555 --> 00:29:36,557
saying you could get AIDS
from mosquitoes,
633
00:29:36,687 --> 00:29:39,386
water fountains,
someone spitting at you.
634
00:29:39,516 --> 00:29:41,475
You had idiots like me
believing stories
635
00:29:41,605 --> 00:29:43,172
that someone at the mall
was gonna scratch me
636
00:29:43,303 --> 00:29:45,044
with a needle and give me AIDS.
637
00:29:45,174 --> 00:29:47,220
We were out of our minds
with panic.
638
00:29:47,350 --> 00:29:50,658
Movies like The Thing
and The Fly
639
00:29:50,789 --> 00:29:54,531
acted as a release valve
for the feelings of helplessness
640
00:29:54,662 --> 00:29:58,492
against a killer
no one could see.
641
00:29:58,622 --> 00:30:00,624
[man] And you find
that vampire fiction pops up
642
00:30:00,755 --> 00:30:03,149
and gets super popular
when there's a disease around.
643
00:30:06,413 --> 00:30:09,155
Fright Night is
a perfect example,
644
00:30:09,285 --> 00:30:13,463
which really encapsulates
all those fears of the sexually,
645
00:30:13,594 --> 00:30:16,118
you know, dick-slinging dude
who lives next door.
646
00:30:18,164 --> 00:30:21,558
Like, what's
he's spreading around?
647
00:30:21,689 --> 00:30:25,084
When I did Fright Night,
which would have been in '84,
648
00:30:25,214 --> 00:30:28,435
uh, there was just
some kind of disease
649
00:30:28,565 --> 00:30:30,219
that seemed to be affecting
a lot of gays,
650
00:30:30,350 --> 00:30:31,960
but nobody knew why.
651
00:30:36,617 --> 00:30:40,273
I was losing gay friends
that I loved.
652
00:30:40,403 --> 00:30:43,232
And I lost somebody
that I really cared about.
653
00:30:43,363 --> 00:30:45,191
But we-- it was a sickness.
654
00:30:45,321 --> 00:30:48,498
We knew it, but we didn't know
what the hell it was.
655
00:30:48,629 --> 00:30:50,239
People were starting to die.
656
00:30:50,370 --> 00:30:52,415
But the word "AIDS"
was not around.
657
00:30:53,329 --> 00:30:56,506
You don't have to be
afraid of me.
658
00:30:56,637 --> 00:31:00,641
I know what it's like
being different.
659
00:31:00,771 --> 00:31:04,950
Only they won't pick on you
anymore or beat you up.
660
00:31:07,169 --> 00:31:08,127
I'll see to that.
661
00:31:10,651 --> 00:31:12,435
All you have to do
is take my hand.
662
00:31:12,566 --> 00:31:14,655
[Holland]
When I had Evil Ed,
663
00:31:14,785 --> 00:31:17,266
and Jerry says,
"Take my hand"--
664
00:31:17,397 --> 00:31:20,356
Jerry Dandridge, the vampire,
says, to Evil Ed, the boy,
665
00:31:20,487 --> 00:31:23,229
"Take my hand and I'll make sure
they never bother you
666
00:31:23,359 --> 00:31:26,145
or bully you in school again,"
667
00:31:26,275 --> 00:31:27,929
and that was speaking
to every gay kid out there
668
00:31:28,060 --> 00:31:31,237
that felt different and
that couldn't come out about it.
669
00:31:31,367 --> 00:31:38,418
♪
670
00:31:38,548 --> 00:31:42,552
I put the gay overtones into it.
671
00:31:42,683 --> 00:31:45,468
Billy Cole's relationship
with Jerry Dandridge--
672
00:31:45,599 --> 00:31:48,515
he's the Guardian, the ghoul,
673
00:31:48,645 --> 00:31:50,560
the one who protects him
during the day.
674
00:31:50,691 --> 00:31:53,041
But they could be lovers.
Who knows?
675
00:31:53,172 --> 00:31:56,610
♪
676
00:31:56,740 --> 00:31:59,221
- [gasps]
- What are you--
677
00:31:59,352 --> 00:32:00,657
[Holland] All that was in there
and it was meant
678
00:32:00,788 --> 00:32:03,965
to promote tolerance, you know,
679
00:32:04,096 --> 00:32:08,448
but in the day when
that was not fashionable at all.
680
00:32:08,578 --> 00:32:11,799
So, yes, that was in there,
and that was because
681
00:32:11,930 --> 00:32:15,716
I was touched and I was moved
because I was losing friends.
682
00:32:15,846 --> 00:32:19,459
Horror movies
are where we talk about
683
00:32:19,589 --> 00:32:22,592
what we don't want to talk about
in day-to-day life--
684
00:32:22,723 --> 00:32:26,379
outcasts and marginalized people
who society feared.
685
00:32:26,509 --> 00:32:29,817
And I think it's a very,
very short step sideways
686
00:32:29,948 --> 00:32:33,603
to get to gay men and the fear
of them during the AIDS crisis
687
00:32:33,734 --> 00:32:37,346
and how sex and death
and marginalized people
688
00:32:37,477 --> 00:32:39,392
were all linked together.
689
00:32:39,522 --> 00:32:40,480
When I came out
with Fright Night,
690
00:32:40,610 --> 00:32:41,742
it was about vampires,
691
00:32:41,872 --> 00:32:43,396
and I went around
with everybody,
692
00:32:43,526 --> 00:32:45,180
all the studios were saying
to me, "Vampires?
693
00:32:45,311 --> 00:32:46,747
Nobody wants to see vampires."
694
00:32:46,877 --> 00:32:49,358
Because nobody wants to see
vampire killers anymore,
695
00:32:49,489 --> 00:32:51,273
or vampires either.
696
00:32:51,404 --> 00:32:53,754
Apparently all they want
are demented madmen
697
00:32:53,884 --> 00:32:57,192
running around in ski masks,
hacking up young virgins.
698
00:32:57,323 --> 00:32:59,238
The vampire genre
was dead and buried.
699
00:33:01,805 --> 00:33:03,546
[man] One of the things that's
also really interesting
700
00:33:03,677 --> 00:33:06,506
about vampires is they're
the monster that looks like us.
701
00:33:06,636 --> 00:33:09,291
They live amongst us undetected.
702
00:33:09,422 --> 00:33:11,250
Hello, Charlie.
703
00:33:12,207 --> 00:33:14,209
We don't know
if our neighbor is a vampire.
704
00:33:14,340 --> 00:33:15,471
I mean, they don't
go outdoors at night.
705
00:33:15,602 --> 00:33:16,559
There are no mirrors
in their house.
706
00:33:16,690 --> 00:33:18,561
They don't cast a shadow.
707
00:33:22,174 --> 00:33:25,525
There's something very funny
at the idea of that--
708
00:33:25,655 --> 00:33:29,311
[laughing] of a boy,
of a teenage horror fan
709
00:33:29,442 --> 00:33:32,662
trying to convince the police,
his mother, his friends,
710
00:33:32,793 --> 00:33:34,838
that there is a vampire
living next door.
711
00:33:34,969 --> 00:33:36,536
That's a funny idea.
712
00:33:36,666 --> 00:33:39,321
You hear that idea,
and you smile and giggle.
713
00:33:39,452 --> 00:33:42,237
They did kill a girl
over there.
714
00:33:42,368 --> 00:33:43,195
How late did you
stay up studying?
715
00:33:43,325 --> 00:33:44,718
Mom, I'm not sick!
716
00:33:44,848 --> 00:33:46,633
The guy did have fangs,
717
00:33:46,763 --> 00:33:48,548
and a bat did
fly over my head,
718
00:33:48,678 --> 00:33:50,419
and a second later,
he stepped out of the shadows.
719
00:33:50,550 --> 00:33:52,334
Don't you see
what that means?
720
00:33:52,465 --> 00:33:53,814
Wait, let me guess.
721
00:33:53,944 --> 00:33:55,424
What?
722
00:33:55,555 --> 00:33:58,340
He's a vampire.
723
00:33:58,471 --> 00:33:59,646
A what?
724
00:33:59,776 --> 00:34:01,517
If you look at Fright Night,
725
00:34:01,648 --> 00:34:04,825
it's Charley Brewster,
the kid next door,
726
00:34:04,955 --> 00:34:07,523
trying to stop
the bloodsucker next door.
727
00:34:07,654 --> 00:34:10,352
And his girlfriend is in danger
of being seduced.
728
00:34:10,483 --> 00:34:14,182
But the real hero's journey
is Peter Vincent.
729
00:34:15,836 --> 00:34:17,707
Peter Vincent's
a great vampire killer
730
00:34:17,838 --> 00:34:21,320
because he's a ham actor
and his whole life
731
00:34:21,450 --> 00:34:24,018
is built on
what he considers a lie.
732
00:34:24,149 --> 00:34:25,759
Vampire killers?
There are no vampires.
733
00:34:25,889 --> 00:34:28,849
That's the most ridiculous thing
in the world, and then...
734
00:34:28,979 --> 00:34:30,764
- Come on, let's get out of here.
- Just a minute.
735
00:34:30,894 --> 00:34:32,722
That goes for you,
too, Ed.
736
00:34:32,853 --> 00:34:34,507
I expect we have a lot
of the same interests,
737
00:34:34,637 --> 00:34:36,639
you know, in horror movies
and the occult.
738
00:34:36,770 --> 00:34:38,467
- [gasps]
- [glass shatters]
739
00:34:39,816 --> 00:34:41,514
Something wrong,
Mr. Vincent?
740
00:34:41,644 --> 00:34:44,734
[Holland] Peter Vincent rises
to the occasion.
741
00:34:44,865 --> 00:34:48,390
He goes in with Charley
into the Dandridge house
742
00:34:48,521 --> 00:34:51,306
to do battle
with the most ferocious vampire
743
00:34:51,437 --> 00:34:55,528
and his ghoulish assistant,
Billy Cole.
744
00:34:55,658 --> 00:34:58,531
He finds his courage.
He's The Cowardly Lion.
745
00:34:58,661 --> 00:35:01,621
He does that
because he likes the kids.
746
00:35:01,751 --> 00:35:03,797
He likes Charley,
and he likes Amy.
747
00:35:03,927 --> 00:35:05,886
And if he doesn't help them,
748
00:35:06,016 --> 00:35:08,758
Jerry Dandridge is gonna
turn her into a vampire.
749
00:35:08,889 --> 00:35:12,327
A horror movie is effective
in direct proportion
750
00:35:12,458 --> 00:35:14,590
to how much you care
about the people
751
00:35:14,721 --> 00:35:16,679
whose lives are in danger.
752
00:35:16,810 --> 00:35:19,247
Ah! Ah!
753
00:35:19,378 --> 00:35:20,727
Aaaah!
754
00:35:20,857 --> 00:35:23,164
No!
755
00:35:23,295 --> 00:35:31,607
♪
756
00:35:31,738 --> 00:35:35,611
In 1987, the criticism
of aggressive capitalism
757
00:35:35,742 --> 00:35:36,873
in the Oliver Stone film
Wall Street
758
00:35:37,004 --> 00:35:39,049
was somewhat lost on a public
759
00:35:39,180 --> 00:35:42,749
that saw glamour and status
in the pursuit of more money
760
00:35:42,879 --> 00:35:47,536
or drugs or cars or everything,
761
00:35:47,667 --> 00:35:52,019
a culture
that celebrated excess.
762
00:35:52,150 --> 00:35:56,632
But horror films like
Poltergeist and Society
763
00:35:56,763 --> 00:35:58,765
made their own commentary
764
00:35:58,895 --> 00:36:02,334
about America's
conspicuous consumerism
765
00:36:02,464 --> 00:36:04,945
and economic inequality.
766
00:36:05,075 --> 00:36:08,644
Just a year after Wall Street
was released,
767
00:36:08,775 --> 00:36:11,691
They Live tackled
America's existential crisis
768
00:36:11,821 --> 00:36:14,563
of averse and greed
769
00:36:14,694 --> 00:36:17,653
and the conflict between
the haves and the have nots.
770
00:36:18,437 --> 00:36:22,702
I have come here to chew
bubble gum and kick ass.
771
00:36:26,009 --> 00:36:28,969
And I'm all out of bubble gum.
772
00:36:29,099 --> 00:36:32,494
[man] My favorite two films
are The Shining and They Live.
773
00:36:32,625 --> 00:36:33,930
Like, the first time I ever
heard of They Live
774
00:36:34,061 --> 00:36:37,020
was a friend of mine
in middle school,
775
00:36:37,151 --> 00:36:40,676
and he couldn't remember
the name of the movie.
776
00:36:40,807 --> 00:36:42,461
But he kept telling me about--
he's like,
777
00:36:42,591 --> 00:36:43,984
"There's this film
where this guy,
778
00:36:44,114 --> 00:36:46,726
he puts on a pair of sunglasses
and he sees aliens."
779
00:36:46,856 --> 00:36:49,816
And I thought he was completely
making it up.
780
00:36:49,946 --> 00:36:51,426
I've got one that can see.
781
00:36:51,557 --> 00:36:55,952
♪
782
00:36:56,083 --> 00:36:57,476
They Live is sort of a movie
783
00:36:57,606 --> 00:36:59,913
that's light-years
ahead of its time.
784
00:37:00,043 --> 00:37:03,438
It's really a film about
the reality that we live in.
785
00:37:03,569 --> 00:37:06,572
They Live is incredibly
about Reaganomics.
786
00:37:06,702 --> 00:37:08,226
Like, that is the focus of it.
787
00:37:12,795 --> 00:37:15,102
We see this guy.
He is working-class.
788
00:37:15,233 --> 00:37:18,758
He's going from gig to gig,
trying to start-- find jobs.
789
00:37:18,888 --> 00:37:21,935
The movie even opens with him
in kind of an encampment
790
00:37:22,065 --> 00:37:24,720
in downtown L.A.,
trying to find another gig
791
00:37:24,851 --> 00:37:27,854
and figure out what's next.
792
00:37:27,984 --> 00:37:29,203
And through a course of events,
793
00:37:29,334 --> 00:37:30,900
he happens upon
a pair of sunglasses
794
00:37:31,031 --> 00:37:33,860
that literally reveal
the world to him
795
00:37:33,990 --> 00:37:35,862
and show him that everything
796
00:37:35,992 --> 00:37:39,779
that he has believed
about society is utter shit.
797
00:37:39,909 --> 00:37:43,609
You're always looking
for a visual way in movies
798
00:37:43,739 --> 00:37:45,263
to get your point across.
799
00:37:49,963 --> 00:37:52,444
And in this case, in They Live,
800
00:37:52,574 --> 00:37:53,923
I wanted to show the difference
801
00:37:54,054 --> 00:37:56,970
between the reality
that we all live in
802
00:37:57,100 --> 00:38:00,452
and the reality that exists
for the aliens,
803
00:38:00,582 --> 00:38:02,497
which is very different.
804
00:38:02,628 --> 00:38:05,500
So I came up with sunglasses.
805
00:38:05,631 --> 00:38:06,893
What's your problem?
806
00:38:07,023 --> 00:38:08,938
With the glasses on,
you see the truth.
807
00:38:09,069 --> 00:38:12,899
You take the glasses off,
it's all deception.
808
00:38:13,029 --> 00:38:15,467
I said,
what's your problem?
809
00:38:15,597 --> 00:38:17,817
The first time I saw
810
00:38:17,947 --> 00:38:19,819
you know, the reveal,
it's like,
811
00:38:19,949 --> 00:38:21,647
"That shit's creepy."
812
00:38:27,217 --> 00:38:29,350
I was like, you know,
"What was the inspiration
813
00:38:29,481 --> 00:38:32,005
for that," you know?
And I asked John and he said,
814
00:38:32,135 --> 00:38:34,007
"Well, it came to me
in a dream one night,"
815
00:38:34,137 --> 00:38:36,836
and I said, "Whoa. I don't want
to be in your head."
816
00:38:36,966 --> 00:38:39,491
Well, the role in They Live
of John Nada
817
00:38:39,621 --> 00:38:41,580
was a working man.
818
00:38:41,710 --> 00:38:43,843
He was a guy who works
with his hands.
819
00:38:43,973 --> 00:38:45,845
He was working poor.
820
00:38:45,975 --> 00:38:50,850
So a movie star-type guy
doesn't-- I don't believe.
821
00:38:50,980 --> 00:38:54,549
But Roddy I believed
'cause he came from the streets.
822
00:38:54,680 --> 00:38:56,899
He had some mileage on him.
823
00:38:57,030 --> 00:38:58,814
He was perfect for the role.
824
00:38:58,945 --> 00:39:01,904
Frank and Nada met
as two homeless guys.
825
00:39:02,035 --> 00:39:03,558
There's a place
over on Fourth Street.
826
00:39:03,689 --> 00:39:05,125
They got hot food
and showers.
827
00:39:05,255 --> 00:39:07,475
I'm going that way
if you want me to show you.
828
00:39:09,477 --> 00:39:12,872
And what we represented
was the working homeless.
829
00:39:13,002 --> 00:39:15,004
Nobody ever talks about that.
830
00:39:15,135 --> 00:39:16,963
But there are a lot of guys
who are homeless.
831
00:39:17,093 --> 00:39:19,139
They just can't afford housing.
832
00:39:19,269 --> 00:39:25,319
It reeks of how our government
does not take care of us.
833
00:39:25,450 --> 00:39:26,799
In the richest country
in the world,
834
00:39:26,929 --> 00:39:28,757
still you have all this,
you know,
835
00:39:28,888 --> 00:39:30,977
devastating homelessness.
836
00:39:31,107 --> 00:39:34,589
You have, you know,
a lot of haves.
837
00:39:34,720 --> 00:39:39,115
And nobody wants to deal
with the have nots.
838
00:39:39,246 --> 00:39:41,683
They Live doesn't feel like
a lot of '80s horror films,
839
00:39:41,814 --> 00:39:44,120
because when we look at 1980s,
what we're seeing
840
00:39:44,251 --> 00:39:46,035
is these really flashy
horror films,
841
00:39:46,166 --> 00:39:48,037
and they're about
upper middle-class kids
842
00:39:48,168 --> 00:39:50,779
who are ripped from their,
you know, fancy lives
843
00:39:50,910 --> 00:39:52,825
and forced to deal
with a killer.
844
00:39:52,955 --> 00:39:56,219
But They Live is talking about
poor society from the beginning.
845
00:39:56,350 --> 00:40:00,528
It's a marginalized group who is
fighting this massive machine.
846
00:40:00,659 --> 00:40:02,051
Look, you crazy mother--
847
00:40:02,182 --> 00:40:04,706
- Put these on.
- Hey! Stay away from me.
848
00:40:04,837 --> 00:40:07,056
I'm telling you,
you dumb son of a--
849
00:40:07,187 --> 00:40:08,884
[man] I think, like, the thing
that I found most impressive
850
00:40:09,015 --> 00:40:12,584
about the film initially
was the big fight scene...
851
00:40:12,714 --> 00:40:15,978
[both grunting]
852
00:40:16,109 --> 00:40:18,894
...that they just did this long
sequence without any music,
853
00:40:19,025 --> 00:40:21,723
and it's just these characters
beating up each other.
854
00:40:21,854 --> 00:40:23,508
I don't want to fight you.
Stop it!
855
00:40:23,638 --> 00:40:25,031
No!
856
00:40:25,161 --> 00:40:28,904
Roddy Piper,
the actor who plays John Nada,
857
00:40:29,035 --> 00:40:30,906
is a professional wrestler.
858
00:40:31,037 --> 00:40:34,823
And what better opportunity
than to do a very long,
859
00:40:34,954 --> 00:40:38,784
involved, extended fight scene?
860
00:40:38,914 --> 00:40:41,090
And Keith David was his costar,
861
00:40:41,221 --> 00:40:44,093
and Keith was absolutely
ready to go.
862
00:40:44,224 --> 00:40:46,182
[both grunting]
863
00:40:46,313 --> 00:40:51,100
So they rehearsed
for a month and a half,
864
00:40:51,231 --> 00:40:53,842
and in the backyard
of our office.
865
00:40:53,973 --> 00:40:56,105
Jeff Imada
was the stunt coordinator,
866
00:40:56,236 --> 00:40:57,672
and he worked with them,
and they came up
867
00:40:57,803 --> 00:40:59,152
with this big fight,
868
00:40:59,282 --> 00:40:59,979
and we shot it in an alley,
downtown L.A.
869
00:41:00,109 --> 00:41:04,592
[both grunting]
870
00:41:08,770 --> 00:41:10,076
[David]
God, we had a good time.
871
00:41:10,206 --> 00:41:12,948
I loved working on that fight.
It was great.
872
00:41:13,079 --> 00:41:16,909
The worst part was fighting
in that stinky-ass alleyway.
873
00:41:17,039 --> 00:41:19,085
They had to put rubber
on the floor
874
00:41:19,215 --> 00:41:20,956
and paint it like it
was the ground
875
00:41:21,087 --> 00:41:23,872
so we wouldn't have to be
on a nasty, you know--
876
00:41:24,003 --> 00:41:26,484
'cause downtown L.A. is no fun.
877
00:41:27,920 --> 00:41:30,531
- Fuck!
- [laughs]
878
00:41:30,662 --> 00:41:33,795
And it wasn't until years later
that I looked at that
879
00:41:33,926 --> 00:41:35,710
and I realized
that the reason that works
880
00:41:35,841 --> 00:41:37,712
is because it's not
a pointless fight scene,
881
00:41:37,843 --> 00:41:40,759
is that that's a fight scene
that represents
882
00:41:40,889 --> 00:41:42,891
sort of the reality we live in.
883
00:41:43,022 --> 00:41:45,851
It represents the differences
in people's political beliefs
884
00:41:45,981 --> 00:41:49,898
and the fact that you can't
change somebody's mind
885
00:41:50,029 --> 00:41:50,899
in a very simple way.
886
00:41:54,033 --> 00:41:55,948
[David]
That's the American way.
887
00:41:56,078 --> 00:41:58,907
They want us to fight
with each other.
888
00:41:59,038 --> 00:42:01,562
But our cause is common.
889
00:42:01,693 --> 00:42:05,218
They pit the poor Black man
against the poor white man
890
00:42:05,348 --> 00:42:08,134
and tell them that he's better
than him, he deserves--
891
00:42:08,264 --> 00:42:11,180
when, you know, together,
you're far more powerful
892
00:42:11,311 --> 00:42:14,009
than you are apart.
893
00:42:16,838 --> 00:42:17,926
[men grunting]
894
00:42:21,103 --> 00:42:26,892
They Live is about what happens
in our American society
895
00:42:27,022 --> 00:42:29,938
when greed is unchecked...
896
00:42:32,114 --> 00:42:38,947
and the society loses
its core values.
897
00:42:39,078 --> 00:42:41,080
[speaker] The underground
terrorist network
898
00:42:41,210 --> 00:42:43,996
has been destroyed
here on the west coast.
899
00:42:44,126 --> 00:42:48,087
Well, I've tried to avoid
statements in my movies
900
00:42:48,217 --> 00:42:50,959
since I think they don't work.
901
00:42:51,090 --> 00:42:54,006
But in this case,
in the case of "They Live,"
902
00:42:54,136 --> 00:42:58,401
I was so fed up
with Reaganomics.
903
00:42:58,532 --> 00:43:02,754
What I mean by that
is unrestrained capitalism.
904
00:43:02,884 --> 00:43:04,451
[thunder rumbles]
905
00:43:04,582 --> 00:43:06,018
It was a cry in the darkness
906
00:43:06,148 --> 00:43:09,195
because Reagan was
enormously popular
907
00:43:09,325 --> 00:43:11,240
and no one else
saw things the way I did.
908
00:43:11,371 --> 00:43:14,809
And I just had to.
I had to do it.
909
00:43:14,940 --> 00:43:16,855
- ...like shit.
- What happened?
910
00:43:16,985 --> 00:43:19,771
So that's what They Live
is about.
911
00:43:19,901 --> 00:43:22,034
It's about [chuckles] the fact
912
00:43:22,164 --> 00:43:23,992
that Reaganism
is controlled by aliens.
913
00:43:24,123 --> 00:43:26,125
- [gasps]
- You're moving on.
914
00:43:26,255 --> 00:43:28,780
Hey, what's wrong, baby?
915
00:43:34,133 --> 00:43:36,352
[Englund] By the late '80s,
after a decade of hits,
916
00:43:36,483 --> 00:43:38,224
the great slasher franchises
917
00:43:38,354 --> 00:43:40,966
seemed to have
burned themselves out.
918
00:43:41,096 --> 00:43:43,969
The genre seemingly stalled.
919
00:43:44,099 --> 00:43:48,147
By the early 1990s,
Gen-Xers turned disinterest
920
00:43:48,277 --> 00:43:50,279
into a cultural trend.
921
00:43:50,410 --> 00:43:52,891
Disaffected and cynical,
922
00:43:53,021 --> 00:43:54,936
the so-called
"slacker generation"
923
00:43:55,067 --> 00:43:58,113
was bored of everything,
including genre films.
924
00:43:58,244 --> 00:44:00,376
The horror movie tropes
were played out.
925
00:44:00,507 --> 00:44:02,291
Audiences knew all the rules,
926
00:44:02,422 --> 00:44:05,294
or at least
they thought they did.
927
00:44:05,425 --> 00:44:07,122
Well, I'm getting ready
to watch a video.
928
00:44:07,253 --> 00:44:08,950
[caller] Really? What?
929
00:44:09,081 --> 00:44:10,996
Oh, just some scary movie.
930
00:44:11,126 --> 00:44:13,259
- You like scary movies?
- Uh-huh.
931
00:44:13,389 --> 00:44:16,218
In 1996,
I was working on my PhD
932
00:44:16,349 --> 00:44:17,916
at Florida State University.
933
00:44:22,529 --> 00:44:24,009
There was a knock on my door.
934
00:44:24,139 --> 00:44:25,314
A guy I know from class,
he said,
935
00:44:25,445 --> 00:44:26,968
"Hey, man,
I'm taking you to a movie."
936
00:44:27,099 --> 00:44:28,753
And I said, "No, I'm halfway
through a story.
937
00:44:28,883 --> 00:44:30,493
I gotta do this," and he said,
"No, I'm taking you to a movie."
938
00:44:30,624 --> 00:44:32,017
And it was Scream.
939
00:44:32,147 --> 00:44:33,975
Why do you want to know my name?
940
00:44:34,106 --> 00:44:36,717
'Cause I want to know
who I'm looking at.
941
00:44:36,848 --> 00:44:39,328
And I was there myself alone
for the next six nights.
942
00:44:39,459 --> 00:44:41,287
I saw Scream seven nights
in the theater,
943
00:44:41,417 --> 00:44:43,419
in its first run, I guess.
944
00:44:43,550 --> 00:44:46,292
And ever since then, I watch it
probably every four weeks,
945
00:44:46,422 --> 00:44:47,423
if not more.
946
00:44:47,554 --> 00:44:49,904
I think it is fairly genius.
947
00:44:50,035 --> 00:44:51,906
Is this some kind of joke?
948
00:44:52,037 --> 00:44:54,692
More of a game, really.
949
00:44:54,822 --> 00:44:56,389
The idea for Scream
was a little twofold.
950
00:44:56,519 --> 00:45:00,262
I wrote a one-act play
in college about a young girl
951
00:45:00,393 --> 00:45:02,177
on the phone
with a serial killer,
952
00:45:02,308 --> 00:45:04,397
and it just sat in a box
and nothing ever happened to it.
953
00:45:04,527 --> 00:45:07,313
And I forgot all about it,
and then years later,
954
00:45:07,443 --> 00:45:10,272
I was housesitting for a friend,
and I walked into the den
955
00:45:10,403 --> 00:45:12,448
and I saw
that the window was open.
956
00:45:12,579 --> 00:45:15,321
And I went, "Has this window
been open the whole time?"
957
00:45:15,451 --> 00:45:17,323
And I got so terrified
and called a friend of mine up.
958
00:45:17,453 --> 00:45:19,281
And I said, "All right,
I think someone's in the house."
959
00:45:20,239 --> 00:45:22,894
So I got a knife
and I walked through the house,
960
00:45:23,024 --> 00:45:24,417
just like a final girl,
961
00:45:24,547 --> 00:45:27,072
and I was looking through the--
in the shower.
962
00:45:27,202 --> 00:45:29,204
I was looking under the bed.
I was looking in the closet.
963
00:45:29,335 --> 00:45:31,467
And I got so scared,
and my friend was on the phone,
964
00:45:31,598 --> 00:45:33,382
going...
[breathing heavily]
965
00:45:33,513 --> 00:45:35,428
Terrifying me, scared.
966
00:45:35,558 --> 00:45:37,212
And then we got into this
big debate about horror films,
967
00:45:37,343 --> 00:45:38,736
and then I went, "Oh!
968
00:45:38,866 --> 00:45:41,260
I wrote a comedy about this
in college."
969
00:45:41,390 --> 00:45:45,090
And so I dug it out
and I brushed it off.
970
00:45:45,220 --> 00:45:46,047
That was the first scene.
971
00:45:46,178 --> 00:45:49,137
[screams]
972
00:45:49,268 --> 00:45:51,357
Scream was another one of
those kind of like, you know,
973
00:45:51,487 --> 00:45:54,273
touchstone kind of horror movies
for me growing up,
974
00:45:54,403 --> 00:45:57,015
one of the best theatrical
experiences I ever had.
975
00:45:57,145 --> 00:46:00,496
And I was so blown away
by especially the first
976
00:46:00,627 --> 00:46:02,977
like six or seven minutes
or whatever it is
977
00:46:03,108 --> 00:46:04,326
with Drew Barrymore.
978
00:46:04,457 --> 00:46:06,024
Drew Barrymore opening up
a horror film
979
00:46:06,154 --> 00:46:07,242
and then dying, you know,
in 10 minutes--
980
00:46:07,373 --> 00:46:09,767
that was unprecedented.
981
00:46:09,897 --> 00:46:13,031
That's the alternate ending
to the movie.
982
00:46:13,161 --> 00:46:15,250
She lives.
983
00:46:15,381 --> 00:46:17,775
It was a calculated risk,
and we didn't know whether
984
00:46:17,905 --> 00:46:21,039
the audience would even
forgive us for that.
985
00:46:21,169 --> 00:46:22,475
They did, thankfully.
But yeah.
986
00:46:22,605 --> 00:46:25,217
It was a very risky film
in many, many ways.
987
00:46:25,347 --> 00:46:28,437
That first opening scene
was like, I think--
988
00:46:28,568 --> 00:46:30,396
I think still probably
one of the best sequences
989
00:46:30,526 --> 00:46:32,267
in any movie,
not just horror movies.
990
00:46:32,398 --> 00:46:34,400
It's one of my favorite
of all time.
991
00:46:34,530 --> 00:46:38,839
I think that the film resonated
with a large audience
992
00:46:38,970 --> 00:46:44,149
because it was this beautiful
blend of camp and culture.
993
00:46:48,675 --> 00:46:50,285
It felt extremely relevant.
994
00:46:50,416 --> 00:46:52,374
Okay, bye now.
995
00:46:52,505 --> 00:46:55,638
If you hang up on me, you'll die
just like your mother!
996
00:46:55,769 --> 00:46:57,423
I remember my parents--
997
00:46:57,553 --> 00:46:59,251
like, when my dad
got a cellphone in the car,
998
00:46:59,381 --> 00:47:00,818
like, that was, like,
mind-blowing, you know?
999
00:47:00,948 --> 00:47:03,298
Like, the killer having
a cellphone in your yard?
1000
00:47:03,429 --> 00:47:06,301
It's like, what?
1001
00:47:06,432 --> 00:47:08,477
Like, that is brand-new
for the killer to be like
1002
00:47:08,608 --> 00:47:11,132
also really, like,
technologically savvy.
1003
00:47:11,263 --> 00:47:13,004
Horrifying.
1004
00:47:13,395 --> 00:47:15,528
[screams]
1005
00:47:15,658 --> 00:47:19,662
Before Scream, slasher movies
had kind of existed
1006
00:47:19,793 --> 00:47:22,709
in a side world where there were
no slasher movies.
1007
00:47:22,840 --> 00:47:24,232
What Scream did was it allowed
1008
00:47:24,363 --> 00:47:27,148
that Halloween existed,
that Jason Voorhees existed,
1009
00:47:27,279 --> 00:47:30,108
that this whole history
of slashers existed.
1010
00:47:30,238 --> 00:47:32,675
And, to me,
that was revolutionary.
1011
00:47:32,806 --> 00:47:34,416
You know, Scream was sort of
the first movie
1012
00:47:34,547 --> 00:47:39,117
that I feel like actually talked
about horror movies so openly
1013
00:47:39,247 --> 00:47:42,163
and allowed them to be exposed.
1014
00:47:42,294 --> 00:47:44,470
There are certain rules
that one must abide by
1015
00:47:44,600 --> 00:47:47,560
in order to successfully
survive a horror movie.
1016
00:47:47,690 --> 00:47:49,562
The rules of horror--
I had the luxury of the '80s.
1017
00:47:49,692 --> 00:47:51,303
I had the luxury
of all the tropes.
1018
00:47:51,433 --> 00:47:52,652
When I went into Scream,
I was able to look
1019
00:47:52,782 --> 00:47:55,263
at all the movies
that had come before it
1020
00:47:55,394 --> 00:47:57,048
and sort of acknowledge them.
1021
00:47:57,178 --> 00:48:00,660
Scream revitalized the genre.
1022
00:48:00,790 --> 00:48:05,143
The meta, self-referential winks
and nods to the horror films
1023
00:48:05,273 --> 00:48:06,535
the audience
had grown up watching
1024
00:48:06,666 --> 00:48:09,364
thrilled fans
and sparked renewed interest
1025
00:48:09,495 --> 00:48:11,279
in scary movies.
1026
00:48:11,410 --> 00:48:13,891
Scream treated its audience
with respect
1027
00:48:14,021 --> 00:48:17,329
by acknowledging
all the clichés of the genre
1028
00:48:17,459 --> 00:48:21,202
and then using them anyway
to scare the hell out of them.
1029
00:48:21,333 --> 00:48:24,597
Once again, clever filmmakers
were elevating
1030
00:48:24,727 --> 00:48:26,512
and refreshing the form,
1031
00:48:26,642 --> 00:48:30,168
and the audience
was the true winner.
1032
00:48:30,298 --> 00:48:31,560
You know, what I love
about Scream
1033
00:48:31,691 --> 00:48:33,606
is that it's a love letter
to the genre,
1034
00:48:33,736 --> 00:48:36,391
but it's a love letter
that calls out the formula,
1035
00:48:36,522 --> 00:48:39,307
the conventions,
the excess of the genre.
1036
00:48:39,438 --> 00:48:41,309
But it's not the kind of parody
1037
00:48:41,440 --> 00:48:43,398
that undercuts
and seeks to destroy.
1038
00:48:43,529 --> 00:48:45,574
It's a kind of parody that hopes
to burn off the excess
1039
00:48:45,705 --> 00:48:49,230
and let the genre
move through better.
1040
00:48:49,361 --> 00:48:51,363
This is the moment
when the supposedly dead killer
1041
00:48:51,493 --> 00:48:54,453
comes back to life
for one last scare.
1042
00:48:54,583 --> 00:48:56,411
- Ah!
- [screams]
1043
00:48:59,545 --> 00:49:01,416
Not in my movie.
1044
00:49:01,547 --> 00:49:05,290
I think Scream, because
it was able to summarize
1045
00:49:05,420 --> 00:49:07,814
all the great things
that we loved about these movies
1046
00:49:07,945 --> 00:49:13,211
and kind of also do a really
good version of that itself,
1047
00:49:13,341 --> 00:49:15,213
it's almost like the genre
really peaked there
1048
00:49:15,343 --> 00:49:17,650
because, you know, after Scream,
1049
00:49:17,780 --> 00:49:21,393
there wasn't a ton to say
'cause they kind of said it all.
1050
00:49:21,523 --> 00:49:23,438
They at least summarized it.
1051
00:49:23,569 --> 00:49:24,700
First test screening we had,
1052
00:49:24,831 --> 00:49:26,354
and the only test screening
we had,
1053
00:49:26,485 --> 00:49:27,965
the test scores
went through the roof.
1054
00:49:28,095 --> 00:49:30,532
I just had the feeling
filming certain scenes
1055
00:49:30,663 --> 00:49:33,231
that this was extraordinary
stuff, you know?
1056
00:49:33,361 --> 00:49:34,536
I had no idea
how big it would be.
1057
00:49:34,667 --> 00:49:37,017
I had no idea
its everlasting impression
1058
00:49:37,148 --> 00:49:39,759
or its everlasting effect
that it would have on horror.
1059
00:49:39,889 --> 00:49:42,457
I just wrote a movie
I wanted to see.
1060
00:49:42,588 --> 00:49:44,242
I was just trying
to get noticed.
1061
00:49:44,372 --> 00:49:45,591
I was just trying
to get a career.
1062
00:49:45,721 --> 00:49:47,549
I just wanted to tell a story.
1063
00:49:47,680 --> 00:49:49,290
I wanted to tell a horror story.
1064
00:49:49,421 --> 00:49:51,684
It's been always my goal
to do my Halloween.
1065
00:49:51,814 --> 00:49:54,295
I look back at it as just
a bunch of memories, you know?
1066
00:49:54,426 --> 00:49:56,341
It was all my memories
with Wes Craven.
1067
00:49:56,471 --> 00:49:57,777
He was always a mentor to me.
1068
00:49:57,907 --> 00:49:59,779
He was always selfless
and giving of his time,
1069
00:49:59,909 --> 00:50:02,869
and he always had answers
to my questions.
1070
00:50:03,000 --> 00:50:04,697
I remember asking him, like,
1071
00:50:04,827 --> 00:50:06,003
"What does it feel like
to be the master of horror?"
1072
00:50:06,133 --> 00:50:07,569
And he would look at me and go,
"I don't know.
1073
00:50:07,700 --> 00:50:09,528
You should ask John Carpenter."
1074
00:50:09,658 --> 00:50:11,573
I think horror is
a funhouse mirror
1075
00:50:11,704 --> 00:50:17,014
that reflects society's
anxieties and dreads back at us.
1076
00:50:19,451 --> 00:50:21,844
Horror is most vital
in times of stress,
1077
00:50:21,975 --> 00:50:26,458
be it political, economic,
environmental, whatever it is.
1078
00:50:26,588 --> 00:50:28,460
I think horror is always
a pulse on our society.
1079
00:50:28,590 --> 00:50:30,331
It never really goes away,
you know?
1080
00:50:30,462 --> 00:50:31,680
So horror stories allow us
to process through
1081
00:50:31,811 --> 00:50:33,508
from beginning to end
1082
00:50:33,639 --> 00:50:35,380
of whatever the bad experiences
in our life.
1083
00:50:35,510 --> 00:50:37,556
Horror lets us imagine
1084
00:50:37,686 --> 00:50:39,036
a light at the end
of the tunnel.
1085
00:50:40,602 --> 00:50:47,522
♪
1086
00:50:47,653 --> 00:50:56,270
♪
1087
00:50:56,401 --> 00:51:04,583
♪
1088
00:51:04,713 --> 00:51:13,331
♪
1089
00:51:13,461 --> 00:51:14,332
♪