Deconstruction of masks in films

These are masks worn by mentally challenged children and the fact that you cannot see their faces creates a sense of mystery which is why masks are often used in slasher films, to disguise/hide someone, especially the killer(s). As these are children wearing masks and whom are chained to their seats, you begin to wonder just how powerful/dangerous they could be. All the masks are creepy but the children with the scariest masks are the paper bag mask with a cut out of a toothy grin on it, the devil with horns and an extremely long torso, (the boy who drives the bus off a cliff who is wearing a) dracula style mask with long fangs, and the crazy clown. They seem scary because there is the element of the unknown - we do not know whether draculas and devils exist, but we do know that clowns are real and that anyone can put a paper bag over their head, but it seems strange that a wide mouth is pasted on the bag and that the clown looks jolly, yet evil. The bunny, baby, skeleton and upside down queen masks do not seems as daunting as the others. This may be because they are 'typical' masks, like the skeleton, or are masks of things which aren't terrifying, such as a bunny and a baby.



The infamous Saw mask which appears in every Saw film is very well known, a distinctive feature being the red swirls on his cheeks. Also, his eyes are red and red symbolizes blood, danger and threats which is exactly what the Saw films are brimming with. Especially as this is a human face with hair, it seems quite realistic which is what makes it more frightening. In slasher films, the more relatable and realistic something is, the scarier it is to the audience.

Leatherface from Texas Chainsaw Massacre is one of the most sickly masks because it is a human being's face which has been cut off. The killer then goes around killing people wearing a human's face as a mask to protect his real identity. This concept is very sickening and works very well with the slasher theme of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Slasher films consist of a lot of gore and nauseating content so this mask fits in well with those themes.











The masks used in The Purge are of a person who is smiling. In The Purge, 12 hours are allowed every year for all crimes to be legal, so people can go around killing each other. The happy expression of the masks contrasts with the negativity of commiting crimes. This is similar to Saw's Jigsaw mask, who is also smiling. It is a horror and slasher convention for the killer to be pleased by killing and torturing and this mask represents that.

Also, because the mask is some length away from the face, the eye holes disable us from seeing their eyes, so the one bit of identification we are normally given with masks is not given here. So the person behind the mask is completely anonymous.

 The masks used in The Strangers are used by the killers who enter the couple's house and torment them, then finally kill them. The two female faces with rosy cheeks and red lips are scary because a girl looking like that is often associated with innocence and youth, and these 'strangers' aren't innocent and do not seem young. The man wearing the scarecrow mask with a smile painted on it is also disturbing because when he torments and kills people, because of his mask it looks like he is enjoying it.