It is a common trend in slasher films that the final character is a strong willed, innocent and resourceful woman. The final girl trope has always been present in the horror genre, especially in slasher films. In spite of this fact, why is it that no one talks about it? Surely this representation of female characters should be celebrated. In her book 'Men, Women and Chain Saws: Gender in Modern Horror Films', (Clover, 1992) coined the term 'Final Girl'. She suggests that although horror films are about the antagonist, the viewers change the character that they identify with, this being the final girl, at the end of the film.
The shift from being the damsel in distress to the survivor; the prey to the hunter, gives the viewers someone to root for. Although the villains are usually overpowered and has a better chance of winning, it is not human nature to support a character with bad morals. The question that arises is why is it always a female character and why do they always have a stereotype? Studies have shown that if the gender was reversed, viewers are less likely to sympathise with men characters. It could be due to the fact that everyone loves an underdog character and women have always been stereotyped as physically and sometimes mentally weaker than men. Therefore there is a bigger journey for the female character to overcome to be the survivor whereas it would be predictable and viewers can assume that the male counterpart would survive.
Clover also suggests that final girls are necessary because villains are often men and the terror that the final girl experiences throughout the film 'purges' the character of her personal problems. An example would be Ripley from (Alien, 1979) where she forgets about the quest of returning home and all she focuses on in the latter part of the film is killing the Xenomorphs and surviving. She broke film stereotypes when she actively sought the alien to kill it at the end of the film. It is one thing to kill the antagonist while the character is defending herself but Ripley changed cinema history when she took action.
On the other hand, why can't the final girl not experience all the terrors that horror films present? I think we can link this trope back to fairy tales. Almost all notable fairy tales have final girls in them, albeit they may not be the only survivor. Characters such as Cinderella, Snow White and Little Red Riding Hood are innocent and go through hardships like all final girls in films. They eventually overcome their foes and survive, with the exception of the Little Mermaid as she turned into sea foam at the end of the original story. However it can be argued that she won as it is less painful to die than to see your true love loving someone else. It is almost as if final girls are modified versions of fairy tale heroines. There's a sadistic voyeurism in viewers taking pleasure from seeing female characters in distress although I believe it is the resolution that they enjoy thee most. The juxtaposition of being physically and mentally tortured to the final girl having a moment of realisation quite frankly, is enjoyable to see. If the female character was to be tortured and killed at the end, I don't think horror films would be as successful as they are now.
The film (Cabin in the Woods, 2012) is a great critical satire of the slasher genre the final girl trope. It successfully explores the final girl character as she is revealed to be a virgin, would not partake in activities like heavy drinking and sexual acts and she survived the false end of the film. However, she broke the stereotype by deciding that humanity is not worth saving and ends of smoking marijuana as the world ends. It was refreshing to see the final girl relax and not have to worry about death because she chose to embrace it instead.
The final girl can also be observed in games. Clementine from the Walking Dead (2012) games is one of my favourite characters. Not only do we get to see her grow up, but we also decide who she becomes as a person. Although with decision making games, there will always be multiple set endings. With all the endings, Clementine survives even though she goes through unbearable torments like sewing her own arm and killing people she knew. Strong female characters are slowly developing in games although we could expect them to be weak at first to allow for character development. Another final girl type character in games is Sam from Until Dawn (2015). The game itself is a homage to the slasher film genre. However the game allows the players to make decisions that can lead to hundreds of different endings. This game represents an excellent marriage between games and films which I hope other studios follow up on as I think a successful narrative makes for a successful game. This game demonstrates a great way to let film lovers direct their own film. It's a tendency for viewers to yell at the screen, telling the characters to not split up or to not go to the woods. In this game, Sam is represented as the final girl on some of the endings where she survives. She is 'innocent' and resourceful, like most final girls in films. This game breaks the trope by giving the players the chance to let her die or to fight o the end for her survival. Another great thing about this game is that you can play as other characters: the 'jock', the 'bimbo' or even the villain himself.
Ultimately, there are many things that can be fixed in the final girl trope to better represent women in digital media. However, it will be a part of story telling for years to come. It has worked for years and had proven itself to be a very effective narrative device.
Alien. (1979). [video] USA: Ridley Scott.
Cabin in the Woods. (2012). [DVD] Vancouver: Joss Whedon.
Telltale. (2012) The Walking Dead. Xbox/PS4/PC. California: Telltale Games
Supermassive Games. (2015) Until Dawn. PS4. Surrey: Sony Computer Entertainment
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