Page "Slasher film" Paragraph 48

* The Killer — With notable exceptions, the killer in the slasher film is usually male.

His identity is often, but not always, unknown and / or concealed either by a mask or by creative lighting and camera work.

He is often mute and seemingly unstoppable, able to withstand stabbings, falls and shootings by his victims.

He is usually very strong and sometimes very big, making it almost impossible to kill him.

His background sometimes includes a childhood trauma that explains his choice of victim, weapon and location ( the killer can be made out to be pitiable or understood ).

Slasher villains tend to prefer handheld weapons such as knives, axes, machetes and / or chainsaws as opposed to firearms.

Throughout most of the franchises, the killer is constant.

Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees are notable examples of this type.

Rarely the killer is a woman ; a notable example is 1980's Friday the 13th where Jason's mother, Mrs. Voorhees, was the original killer.