Best in Show: Scary Movie Masks (Part I of II)

A lot of horror movies use masks. That's a plain ole' factual statement with very little explanation needed. However, making those masks scary is another story. Typically done well and seldom disruptive, masked assailants in horror almost always work hand-in-hand. In fact, I can't think of a movie where an intentional mask (not poor makeup) actually diffused the tension of a horror movie. Yeah some are cooler or look better and some are more destined for Halloween iconography, but ultimately masks almost always do more good than harm. Here's a list of the one's that have scared me the most.  



(youtube.com)

10. Sam (Trick R' Treat)
It's hard to be simultaneously cute and scary, but somehow Sam's homemade mask in Trick R' Treat does just that. On one hand, you want to hold him, but something vacant about the movie's titular villain is off-putting. It's the kind of terrifying child horror movie fans crave, but also the kind that someone could possibly one day love. The mask works because it seems so innocent but ultimately leaves you more disconcerted than warm.



(everythingaction.com)

9. Ghostface (Scream)

Not scary, insofar as it is iconic. The mask worn by the killers of the Scream franchise never really strike fear, but are notable and worthy, solely based on its infamy. Ghostface, like the demented painting it's based on, is weirder to look at than anything. The disproportionate, melted form of the mask, lend to its satirical properties.- where movies like Halloween try to bring terror through terrifyingly human masks, Scream brought a mask that looked all too fake.

(dreadcentral.com)

8. Mr. Mouse (Torment)

Ugh. This movie wasn't even all that good, but the stuffed-animal-turned-terrifying-face-mask of a children's toy was enough to give me nightmares. Torment is one of those lesser known horror movies that you watch on Netflix when there's nothing else to do. It wasn't spectacular but ultimately, I walked away with a fear of the movie's featured mask. Like a misshapen mouse, the stretched-out features of the kid's stuffed animal look grotesquely inappropriate and exaggerate the twisted nature of the killer. The bottom line and point I'm trying to make is that the mask of Torment is able to set off a good jump scare or head turn, but even if it couldn't save the movie's other flaws.

(youtube.com)

7. Animals (You're Next)
Like Ghostface, the masks of You're Next are less scary than they are other things. For one, the masks of You're Next are fascinating to look at. Where some horror movies used distraught and beaten down features to bring out the horror, the animal masks in You're Next are so viscerally clean. They're not misshapen heaps and instead are the stuff of intensity. They're terrifying because unlike the person behind the mask of Ghostface, the people behind the masks of You're Next seem far more serious, ready to attack you at any moment.

(fansided.com)

6. Polite Faces (The Purge) & Gasmask (My Bloody Valentine 3D)
I'm done with snarky comments about ties. Realistically, every list will have them since I always have more than 10 things to say. Why not expand my lists to 11? Because the pressures of coming up with 11 things every single time is too much.  But I digress. The Purge relaunched quite the Halloween craze when it came out. Between its masks flooding in and out of stores and people still wanting to be this group of purgers, the "polite" yuppies of the first Purge movie have achieved a Ghostface-like level of commercial infamy. All of this is for good reason though- this group of masked assailants is one of the scariest. Between eerie smiles and hollow eyes, The Purge killers are great additions to any slasher night.

(pophorror.com)

I included the gasmask from My Bloody Valentine 3D on this list because it is the most terrifyingly normal mask out there. Despite being a remake of the not so scary Canadian version, My Bloody Valentine 3D is surprisingly good. It's kind of cheesy but is the type of easy going slasher that you can really delve into. On top of that, the gasmask worn by the killer is so plain and terrifying that it's left me with a fear of miners (not minors, although I am afraid of those too). The glassy eyes and rugged exterior are similar to the effects of the animal masks in You're Next in that they're so harsh, they're scary.

Come back tomorrow for part two of this list!