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The slasher film. Across several decades, one of the most dominating sub-genres in the entire horror sphere. From the beginning days of the formative slashers in the 1970s, all the way to today’s reboots, sequels, and fresh originals. From classic icons such as Michael Myers to modern killers like Mia Goth’s Pearl. The slasher truly lives forever, proving it’s always in fashion.
One of the most unique slashers is a movie that just celebrated its 40th anniversary. A movie that spawned a series of films written and directed entirely by women, a rarity in the genre.
That movie? The Slumber Party Massacre.
Released in 1982, The Slumber Party Massacre started life as an on-the-nose horror movie that would essentially be a send-up of genre tropes. This original screenplay was titled Sleepless Nights and was authored by famed feminist writer Rita Mae Brown as a parody of the often dominated slasher film genre, in particular. When the script was picked up by producers (including King of the B-movie, Roger Corman), however, the screenplay was filmed as a straight forward slasher, despite leaving in most of those originally intended comedic elements.
Directed by Amy Holden Jones, the film follows Valerie (Robin Stille) as she attempts to fit in at her new school in Venice, California. One day at school she’s invited by mean girl Trish (Michelle Michaels) to her slumber party. Unbeknownst to all of them, mass murderer Russ Thorn has escaped the local mental hospital and has his sights set on the young women.
Even though this was 1982, the tropes the film was parodying were already set in stone. Teens gathering when the parents are away is a tale as old as the genre and the escaped killer angle was already made famous in Halloween, released only 4 years earlier. The true spin comes from the feminist ideas that lie in the film’s DNA, a result of the original screenplay.
One of the first deaths in The Slumber Party Massacre is of a handywoman at Valerie’s school, a role usually reserved for male performers. While murdering her, Russ gets his signature weapon: a massive power drill. As many have pointed out over the years, it’s not only a tool of slasher movie destruction but also a clear representation of the male killer’s “manhood”; take a look at the film’s iconic key art at the top of this article if you have any doubts about the intentions.
Though Valerie turns down the slumber party invitation, Trish and her friends still go on with their sleepover plans and of course, smoking and debauchery commence. It’s here where a bulk of the male characters are introduced; ranging from a creepy neighbor who promises not to tell their parents about the drugs, to two boys from school named Jeff and Neil. What sets Slumber Party Massacre apart from other slashers of the era is that every male character has a threatening aura about them. They give off bad vibes despite us knowing that none of them are the killer. It’s often argued that these characters exist as red herrings but could also be seen as a commentary on the constant threats of violence and uncomfortable encounters women regularly face.
More on that in a minute…
Of course, Russ eventually shows up at the slumber party to spoil all the fun and get Valerie involved, and what follows is one of the most fun and well-made slasher films from an era when these movies were a dime a dozen. The movie is predictable but is filled with all the humor of the original screenplay (whether this was intentional or not is up for debate) and in fact delivers some of the funniest moments you’ll ever see in a slasher movie. These range from eating pizza off a dead delivery boy, to a great sight gag involving a corpse and a refrigerator. Even if you aren’t into the film’s feminist roots and themes, its hard to deny that Slumber Party Massacre is a well-made and thoroughly entertaining slasher. The very definition of a group hangout movie.
In one of the final scenes we see Valerie and her sister cut the tip off the end of Russ’ drill. An on-the-nose representation of “emasculating” him and allowing them to finally finish him off in a backyard swimming pool, ending his reign of terror once and for all. Fully leaning into its feminist roots, Slumber Party Massacre ends on an exciting note that drives the commentary home.
Made for only $220,000, The Slumber Party Massacre went on to gross over $3 million and then came the inevitable sequels – two of them, in 1987 and 1990. Despite varying quality between entries, the series never lost sight of its roots. The entire franchise has to date been written and directed by women, and to this day it’s the only slasher franchise that can make that claim.
In 2021, the franchise received a reboot. Keeping the tradition alive, the reboot leans back into the ideas of the first one and embraces its feminist themes while never losing sight of being a fun and exciting slasher film. Keeping the franchise alive, Scream Factory is re-releasing the original film along with the first sequel this coming February on 4K Ultra HD.
The Slumber Party Massacre may not have the mass appeal of a hit horror franchise like Halloween or Friday the 13th, but now 40 years and four films later, its legacy still lives on.
