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Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film

Name: Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film
Director: Jeff McQueen
Released: 2006
Duration: 88 min

Representation Score

6.3/10

Good

2006

Director

Jeff McQueen

Runtime

88 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

This documentary serves as a scholarly deconstruction of the slasher genre's history. It provides a necessary critical framework to understand the systemic patterns and rigid social hierarchies inherent in horror cinema. While the film offers meaningful analysis of how gender and culture shape the genre, it is ultimately anchored in a subject matter that lacks depth in reflecting multiple aspects of identity. The historical films being studied often relied on uniform casting and traditional formulas. Ultimately, the film's value lies in its critique of these oversights rather than in providing diverse representation itself.

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Category Breakdown

Does Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film looks at how the slasher genre has traditionally used queer coding or punished non-straight behavior. It analyzes these themes through critical examination rather than through active, character-driven stories.

How does Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film portray gender?

Fair

The documentary explores the evolution of gender roles, particularly focusing on the 'Final Girl' cliché. It analyzes how female empowerment is shaped, restricted, or challenged throughout the genre's history.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film?

Limited

The score reflects the historical lack of racial diversity and uniform casting within the slasher genre. The film critiques these systemic oversights within the era of cinema it studies.

How does Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film represent religion and culture?

Fair

The film analyzes how cultural shifts, such as the transition from the Reagan era to 1990s postmodernism, affected storytelling. It breaks down traditional clichés and changing Western media morals.

Does Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film include disability representation?

Limited

The documentary addresses how disability is often used as a plot device or source of vulnerability in horror. It lacks evidence of centering neurodivergent perspectives or providing character empowerment.

Present on Screen

Provides a critical framework for understanding systemic clichés and social anxieties in horror.
Offers meaningful engagement with the evolution of female empowerment and the 'Final Girl' cliché.
Analyzes how major cultural shifts, like the Reagan era, influenced cinematic storytelling.

Limited or Absent

The subject matter is inherently limited by the historical lack of racial diversity in slasher films.
Lacks evidence of centering neurodivergent perspectives or providing empowerment to disabled characters.
Focuses more on critical analysis of queer coding than on active, character-driven LGBTQ+ representation.

Official Synopsis

This historical and critical look at slasher films, which includes dozens of clips, begins with Halloween, Friday the 13th, and Prom Night. The films' directors, writers, producers, and special effects creators comment on the films' making and success. During the Reagan years, the films get gorier, budgets get smaller, and their appeal wanes. Then, Nightmare on Elm Street revives the genre. Jump to the late 90s, when Scream brings humor and TV stars into the mix.

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