Fall -the season of pumpkins, Halloween and stereotypes?

Autumn -the best time of the year for so many reasons, leaves changing colors & falling, boot & scarf season, and the beginning to the most festive time of the year. The kick off holiday for the chain of festivities is a personal favorite of mine, Halloween.

Binge watching the Syfy channel to catch every Michael Myers’ movie, switching over to the Disney channel to see Halloweentown and then going back Syfy to indulge in some less innocent depictions of the best holiday ever is my yearly routine of the month of October.

But, with every great thing there is always a few downfalls, such as the numerous stereotypes put on women (and men) during this season. The idea of dressing up in costumes has been something that has been ingrained in our Halloween traditions since we were children. (My first Halloween costume was a bumblebee outfit -thanks, Mom….)

And of course with the idea of costumes, you have to put your daughter in the correct princess costume and your son as the Ninja Turtle that they most identify with, and God forbid your children chose the opposite sex costume to sport on Halloween night…oh the horror.

But, these stereotypes go beyond just the fact what we wear for one night of the year, it also involves what we watch during this spooktastic and ghoulful time of the year. (see what I did there? so so punny, -heh heh).

Horror movies dating all the way back to the classics have always placed male and female in certain character roles and expectations.

*LOOKING FOR ACTRESS TO PLAY ROLE IN HORROR MOVIE*

Must be:

-Timid, a great screamer, willing to be stalked, sexualized and pursued in unsettling ways, petite and pretty, and comfortable with being “stabbed” while naked in the shower.

*LOOKING FOR ACTOR TO PLAY ROLE IN HORROR MOVIE*

Must be:

-Creepy, willing to stalk and pursue women, and be fully clothed.

Now, this is no way putting these stigmas on EVERY, single horror movie ever produced, but if we look at the main headliners –Psycho, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Halloween, this seems to be the case -women are often murdered while minding their own business in the shower or even worse the bathtub, kitchen or while taking part in sexual acts.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I cannot think of any successful horror movies in which the main slasher is a female who is NOT a witch or in need of some form of an exorcism….

BuzzFeed recently created an interesting video that would place men in the situation that most females would find themselves in a horror movie -while the recreations are comical, they also raise the valid consideration and comparison of females and males in horror films and what the result would be in a complete role reversal.

Personally, I found an abundance of humor and truth in this video and cannot wait for the day when a gender role reversal would not be seen as comical but actually considered to reckon with.