Movie: Clown

 

Production Year: 2016

 

Tubi Provided Summary: A father puts on an old clown suit to save his son’s birthday party. He soon finds that the suit, the wig, and the makeup cannot be taken off at all.

 

Film Can Be Accessed At: https://tubitv.com/movies/507459/clown?start=true

 

Does This Movie Pass The Bechdel Test: Yes

 

Character Analysis:

  • Kent: Caring father, dedicated to his son, hard worker, mix of masculine and feminine traits
  • Meg: Loving wife, doting mother, intelligent, strong under pressure, mix of masculine and feminine traits
  • Jack: Son of Kent and Meg, innocent, curious.
  • Karlsson: Nervous, studious, an expert on the evil of the film, mostly masculine traits

Minor Characters:

  • Walt: Father of Meg
  • Denise: Mother of Meg

Death Analysis

*Numerous children, named and unnamed, were killed on and offscreen. These deaths were all quick and bloody*

  • Walt: First to die, quick death scene, jaw ripped from face, killed by possessed Kent.
  • Kent (while possessed): Second to die, extended death scene, attacked, chained, and eventually decapitated, killed by Meg

 

Survival Analysis

*All survive the events of the film with varying levels of trauma*

  • Meg
  • Jack
  • Karlsson
  • Denise

 

Final Statistics:

Character Sex Ratio: 2 Females: 4Males

Character Survivor Ratio: 2 Females: 2 Males (not including ambiguous characters)

Character Death Ratio: 0% of Females to 50% of Males (not including ambiguous characters)

 

Final Takeaways: 

Clown offers a new and interesting perspective on the common story of possession. While unoriginal in concept, the follow-through offers surprisingly progressive development in traits each especially when it comes to their son whom they are both highly involved.

In addition, while analyzed through the Sex Role perspective, Clown, unlike many films in the horror genre, makes no particular preference towards masculine or feminine characters. On-screen deaths were kept to a minimum, especially with children, all of which were either just off camera or only the aftermath of their deaths were seen. No female characters were killed in this movie and of the male deaths, only one was extended and particularly gruesome: the death of the demon possessing Kent.

Not only did Clown show no preference for any characters over another, the film quickly passed the Bechdel Test. This, combined with its clear avoidance of gender-targeted violence, Clown makes for a strikingly progressive and unusual watch. 

 

Shared by: Ariana Nichols
Image Credit: Wikipedia