Watch Out Kids that Person is Ugly!

         I find it interesting that the same white male patriarchal structure of Classic Hollywood still applies to the genre of horror film. The same way minorities like Native Americans and African Americans were used in classical Hollywood as the typical antagonist, people with abnormalities and disfigurements are always used in the horror genre as the evil “other.” It makes since right, if somebody has something different or to put it bluntly, “wrong” with them, they must be evil and should be avoided at all costs. Well at least that is the way Hollywood portrays it. When I say “other,” that is the term for the bad guy, serial killer antagonist. Even the term “other” has negative connotations of inferiority and the unkown. This dates back to the earliest films like “Nosferatu,” the guy is clearly not going to make a living as a male model. He has very vivid disfigurements that cause him to appear scary and dangerous. He is tall, gangly, pale skin, overly large nose and ears, old and of course bald. If you have any of these characteristics, beware you very well just might be “evil,” in which case I am screwed because of my lack of hair follicles.

Because our basic instinct is to fear those that are different than us, these stereotypical “others” are so prevalent in horror films. That basic fear is the same motive that fuels prejudices like racism. To put it in plain words, to judge somebody and make assumptions about their character based on physical attributes is being prejudiced at its very core. So a filmmaker that creates an “other” with physical abnormalities, is just adding fuel for the flames. The same way people begin to stereotype and fear people of different race or ethnicity based on what they see in film is no different when it comes to physical appearance as well. Now don’t get me wrong, the “others” usually commit actions that qualify them as antagonists; I am more referring to how movies tend to create “other” characters that have physical abnormalities.  Another classic example is the witch in the Wizard of Oz. The witch is old, has a huge nose, warts and green skin. Once again, that is strike two against me because once, when I was a little kid, I had a wart on my foot.

The only example that I can think of where the “other” isn’t ugly is in recent vampire films and television shows. In fact they are made to be beautiful and sexually desirable. They seem to be the exception to the rule. So, if you want to be the evil “other” in a movie, be a vampire or else plan on the make up artist disfiguring you one way or another.

        Just like in other classical movies, the antagonist often times is any thing other than a white male. The antagonist usually has darker skin and is a foreigner. I guess that is where the term “other” possibly could come from. Other than being a handsome white male. Even in “innocent” movies like Disney, the trademark dark skin, out of proportion facial features and downright ugly “evil” protagonist is very common.
Will film ever escape the sterotypes of disfigurement and minorities equating to evil or inferior? Independent films are attempting to reconstruct the stereotypical ideas that Hollywood for decades has created. However, because money is the number one factor in Hollywood filmmaking, these stereotypes will continue to show their "ugly" face as long as us as viewers continue to support them by paying to see them.