In Praise of Horror Movie Moms
Blogger Stacie Ponder's horror columns appear every Wednesday.
As you may recall, this past Sunday was Mother's Day, a holiday in which we buy cards, make phone calls, and go out to eat to celebrate the women who brought us into the world. My mom did much more than simply, you know, have me: She's the one who got me into horror movies when I was young, and it's still something we share today.
So as a horror fan and writer, how could I let Mother's Day pass without mentioning...uh...Mother's Day? Or Pamela Voorhees of Friday the 13th? Or the Mommy of...Mommy? But in my never-ending quest to be different and to stand out, I've decided to shine the spotlight on the other moms of horror, the ones who are all about saving rather than killing. These women are all about their kids. And as this concerns horror movies -- and not movies where Julia Roberts is the second wife who loves her stepkids and tries so hard to be loved back -- not all good-intentioned moms meet happy endings.
Rachel Keller: The Ring (2002)
One of the things I like about Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) in Gore Verbinski's The Ring is that she wasn't the best mom in the world. She didn't neglect her weirdo kid, Aidan (David Dorfman), but she was concerned first and foremost with her own life and her own career. This self-centeredness, of course, led her to the evil videotape, the wet-haired dead girl in the well, a horse that flips out and commits suicide, and a questionable sequel. If only she'd joined the PTA or stayed home to make cookies for that weirdo son!
Amanda Shepard: Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood (1988)
In order to help her daughter Tina (Lar Park Lincoln) overcome some extreme psychic-power-induced emotional trauma, Mrs Shepard (Susan Blu) enlists the help of Dr. Crews (Terry Kiser). Little does she know that Dr Crews doesn't want to help Tina -- he wants to exploit her telekinetic abilities in a mad quest for fame and fortune! If you think that alone makes him a jerk, then, honey, you don't know Dr. Crews. Not satisfied with simply manipulating the Shepards and bilking them of money, Crews actually pulls Tina's mom between himself and the pointy end of a garden implement wielded by Jason Voorhees. Dr. Crews is bad news!
Laura Baxter: Don't Look Now (1973)
The fact that Laura (Julie Christie) just couldn't get over the death of her daughter Christine (Sharon Williams) led the remaining Baxters on a nightmarish trip through Venice. Creepy psychic sisters, a serial killer on the loose, Donald Sutherland's butt... and one of the most shocking endings in horror film history are but a few highlights of Nicolas Roeg's cerebral exercise in terrifying atmosphere.
Chris MacNeil: The Exorcist (1973)
Man, Chris MacNeil (Ellen Burstyn) really has it all: A fabulous career as a famous actress, spiffy sunglasses, an obscenity-and-pea-soup-spewing daughter who's been possessed by Pazuzu... wait, that last thing sucks. But Chris is a great mom who soldiers on, seeking help and answers in both science and religion in her quest to help her daughter Regan (Linda Blair) overcome her demon-flavored difficulties. And in the end, she bears no grudge against Regan for all the bad behavior -- not for the swearing, the punching, the killing of her friend and director, not even for peeing on the floor during a party. Moms rule!
