Movies follow whatever is the dominant power, generally speaking. So if a movie is feminist, it implies the dominant culture is feminist. Which given Hollywood, isn't an unlikely condition.
Horror movies in particular are movies, generally speaking, about disenfranchisement and disempowerment fantasies. In Saw2, they could have just walked through the wall, or stood in the front doorway, and escaped, no danger, no harm. But they went through the deathtrap maze because the MCs need to be killed off, need to be disempowered. Disenfranchised.
In that regard, that horror movie protagonists could be successful and healthy but choose to be a victim, yes, they are often feminist movies. Often, the only difference between an action movie and a horror movie is the protagonists of horror movies are inept, useless, and weak, while action stars are innovative, inventive, and strong. Left wing vs right wing. Die Hard is a horror movie where innocent office workers are killed off one by one, only for the rest to die horrifically at the end... Except there's a strong, inventive, not-terminally-stupid fellow yelling "Yippy kai yay, mutherfuckers!".
Movies follow whatever is the dominant power, generally speaking. So if a movie is feminist, it implies the dominant culture is feminist. Which given Hollywood, isn't an unlikely condition.
Horror movies in particular are movies, generally speaking, about disenfranchisement and disempowerment fantasies. In Saw2, they could have just walked through the wall, or stood in the front doorway, and escaped, no danger, no harm. But they went through the deathtrap maze because the MCs need to be killed off, need to be disempowered. Disenfranchised.
In that regard, that horror movie protagonists could be successful and healthy but choose to be a victim, yes, they are often feminist movies. Often, the only difference between an action movie and a horror movie is the protagonists of horror movies are inept, useless, and weak, while action stars are innovative, inventive, and strong. Left wing vs right wing. Die Hard is a horror movie where innocent office workers are killed off one by one, only for the rest to die horrifically at the end... Except there's a strong, inventive, not-terminally-stupid fellow yelling "Yippy kai yay, mutherfuckers!".