Happy belated Hallowe’en. It’s not really a thing here in Australia, but door-to-door begging is slowly catching on.
If you don’t answer your door, it’s still possible to avoid it. Almost. But then you’d have to avoid turning on your television. Friday night TV scheduling comprised a line-up of horror films and ‘Hallowe’en specials’. iTunes Australia offered a slasher movie for its 99c movie of the week. We usually check out the cheap movie, but after watching the Hallowe’en movie preview, this was just another slasher film, in which the audience is invited to enjoy the terror and mutilation of an attractive young white woman as she descends into agony/ecstasy/pick your titillation.
No thanks. I’m pretty sure I’ve heard this plot before.
White Females at Highest Risk In Horror Films, says Time Entertainment, stating the bleeding obvious.
A few days ago I had a disturbing story come through my feed. This is not a slasher film. This is an actual news headline, which coincides happily (for the news outlet) with Hallowe’en festivities.
Body Parts Keep Showing Up At Water Treatment Facilities
And here’s the first sentence:
In a “Dexter”-like twist, more human remains have been found at a water treatment plant, marking the third time body parts have been found in the last week.
When reading ‘journalism’ such as this, in which a real woman has been killed, cut into small pieces then disposed of into the reticulated sewerage system, it’s easy to brush over and dehumanise the victim, as we do with so many slasher films. Dexter is a fictional character. Murderers are not.
Who needs the faux-horror of Hallowe’en when I’m horrified by the state of journalism?
