Stereotypical Characters in Horror Movies Pt. 2

 

The Final Girl

A movie about a group of friends going off on vacation or camping, always ends with only one of the girls surviving.

Here are some of the qualities that the Final Girl possesses

1. They are always wearing a tank top

The could be wearing a sweater or a jacket or literally a full-sleeves shirt, but towards the end, the sleeves will be torn or the sweater and jacket will be removed to reveal a tank top underneath.

And that tank top is usually grey or white.

2. They are betrayed by people closest to them

The final girl thinks she's living the ideal life. Sure there's a killer targeting her and all but she has a great family, a boyfriend and a supportive group of friends.

Then the killer is revealed and it turns out to be the protagonist's boyfriend or best friend or even someone from her family.

The killer always befriends the final girl and gains her confidence before leaving her for the very end. Sometimes it's that friendly neighbor she thinks will always be there for her.

3. They have a tragic back story

The final girl has learned how to survive and that is because she has gone through the most difficult time of their lives. Most times it's a dead parents. Other times it is something she did in the past that has caused her to feel guilt-ridden.

But she overcomes all her inhibitions after she confronts the killer. In a way, the killer has taught her to keep fighting and keep living.

4. They are popular

No matter how bad an attitude they have or how boring they are, they have a big group of friends who are ready to make sacrifices for her. They will literally die for her and make sure she is safe. The side characters who barely have a dialogue, end up going out of the way for the final girl just so they can escape the killer.

It's important that she lives. People all around them are ready to take an axe on their back for her.

5. They possess hidden strength

The final girl may have never seen the inside of a gym in her life or look like she has picked up a heavy grocery bag, but when it comes to taking down a burly killer, she suddenly has super strength.

It doesn't matter that this hulky villain is armed with chains, knives and an axe. The final girl easily takes him down with one swing of an arm of a weapon she just happens to find nearby.

6. They are lucky

The final girl manages to escape the trickiest situations while the side characters are eliminated quickly. She could be drowning but saved by a ship that is passing by. She could be swimming next to a killer shark but somehow the predator doesn't see her.

And if it's a serial killer?

She escapes his clutches at the right moment. The side character however is brutally murdered.

7. They turn out to be resourceful

The final girl may be boring and called dumb but towards the end, she's the one who gains smarts and tries to save everyone's lives. She doesn't succeed but she is hailed a hero.

At the very last moment before the killer strikes, she is hit with a random memory which was a teaching moment. She uses that knowledge to create a weapon or build a raft to get away from danger.

8. They care about their friends. Sort of.

As one by one the friends start dropping like flies, the final girl will react on their deaths but in the very next scene, they have moved on. It's like they never existed in the first place. The character's name is never mentioned as well.

And at the very end, when she has escaped danger, she moves on with her life happily, not even bothering to meet her friends' families and offer condolences.

9. People forgive them easily

The final girl can say the rudest things and treat her friends like dirt. She could be offensive or mess up someone's life, but she is still forgiven.

She could be estranged from her family and miraculously, without a connecting story, she is accepted with open arms.

10. They are unassuming

The final girl is introduced as an unassuming character who dresses in simple clothes and is usually a person of few words. She is also friends with the most extrovert and fashionable person in the group.

It is only later in the movie that we learn that the serial killer was secretly in love with her along with another guy who is a jock. The jock is usually killed in a brutal manner because the killer is possessive and can't stand the final girl having any one who cares about her.

The final girl ends up figuring out who the killer is, discards her frumpy outfit and wears a tank top, then goes ahead and kills the murderer with her newfound knife abilities.