This movie single-handedly is the reason why I don’t fuck with scarecrows. The mask is a simple altered pillowcase, similar to Jason’s in Friday the 13th, Part 2, but man…is it effective! The final scene of this underrated 1981 made-for-TV horror classic gives me chills to this day, so much so that I can’t watch it.
Pluto is the youngest child of Red. He wears a mask presumably to hide his burned features. The mask is effective because of the stark contrast to Pluto’s red jumpsuit and the wide eye holes it has. Pluto’s feral behavior provides an added element to his characterization. And anytime we have a masked child is a win.
The 2007 horror anthology Trick ‘r Treat contains one of the best underrated characters of all time. Samhain, b/k/a “Sam,” is a burlap sack-masked pumpkin patch-born demon who walks around to make sure the rules of Halloween are followed. If they aren’t, he steps in to make sure that the offenders pay the price. Sam looks like a child, but he is not. The burlap sack-mask is weirdly cute because of Sam’s childlike demeanor, but when it is ripped off, his visage is that of a deformed pumpkin, but no less cute. If you ask me, Sam is Michael Myers’ little cousin.
The Grabber’s mask is quite distinctive. It’s in four parts, and he wears it in a variety of ways: a smile, a creepy rictus, or nothing at all. According to Screen Rant, “The Grabber employs the mask as a sort of theater — the different Grabber mask variations each represent characters in a show he's putting on for himself and his victims.” Depending on where he is in his killing ritual determines how he wears his mask. It’s a downright diabolical performance by Ethan Hawke, and as far as I’m concerned, instantly iconic.
Anthony Hopkins’ Oscar-winning turn as suave cannibal Dr. Hannibal Lecter needs no description. Nor does his iconic mask. I think what made everything hit home for the audience–as it was hard to reconcile the slightly-built, calm and soft-voiced psychiatrist with his crimes–was when we saw him strapped to a hand truck with that mask on his face. Not too long after that, we saw what he was capable of.
The mask is a repurposed goaltender’s faceplate, created by Ed Cubberly. I wonder if ol' Ed knew at the time that he was helping create the greatest villain of all time, according to AFI.
This classic film premiered in 1925, with Lon Chaney Jr. Over time, the mask has evolved as the movie was re-released. The most famous iteration of the Phantom’s mask is in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic 1986 musical. According to Google, the mask was inspired by WWI vets with facial injuries. Maria Bjornson, the creator of the commonly known Phantom mask opted to use porcelain instead of copper. The mask represents the Phantom’s vulnerability and the injustice he faces.
I picked out my favorite variation of the Phantom’s mask, but you can see more of them here: The Many Masks of the Phantom of the Opera - Monsters of Makeup
From L to R: Lon Chaney, 1925. Claude Rains, 1943. Herbert Lom, 1963. Michael Crawford, 1986. Gerard Butler, 2004.
Brooke Shields’ film debut paints her as the suspect to the murder of her younger sister during her First Communion, and other murders that soon follow. The mask the killer wears is an over-exaggerated woman’s made-up visage, but when it’s worn over an actual face, the effect is chef’s kiss. Scared the hell outta me when I was a kid.
A surgeon causes an accident that leaves his daughter disfigured, so he kidnaps young women in an attempt to do a facial transplant. She spends the bulk of the movie wearing a creepy white porcelain mask. The actress that plays Christiane, Edith Scob, has very expressive eyes. This produced a very creepy, effective effect. Scared the shit out of me when I was a kid.
This is my favorite folk horror movie. Combine a pagan cult and Christopher Motherfuckin’ Lee, and you get some of the creepiest masks in horror movie history.
I don’t even need to name them because everyone knows the Mount Rushmore of horror movie masks.
Leatherface, from 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, directed by Tobe Hooper, has a mask made of dried human skin. Played by the late Gunnar Hansen, Leatherface is a chainsaw-wielding inbred fiend from a family of cannibals.
Michael Myers, from 1978’s John Carpenter classic Halloween, has an altered William Shatner mask. Production designer Tommy Lee Wallace found the mask in a local shop, shaved off the sideburns, widened the eyeholes, jacked the hair, spray-painted it white, and an icon–and my favorite slasher–was born.
Jason Voorhees wore a bag on his head in 1981’s Friday the 13th Part 2, but for 1982’s Part 3, F/X supervisor Martin Sandoff happened to have some hockey gear on set and director Steve Miner loved his Detroit Red Wings mask. After that, it was off to the races and the name Jason Voorhees became synonymous with hockey masks.
Ghostface, from 1996’s Wes Craven’s masterpiece Scream, has a mask that’s based on Edvard Munch’s The Scream and the film poster to Pink Floyd’s The Wall, and originally created by Fun World. It was different and an instant classic.
You will find these four iconic masks on any respectable list and it would be disrespectful to leave it off mine.
In my opinion, a good horror mask is most effective when it is simplistic. There have been plenty of good ones over the years and true fans of the genre know that a lot of later masks were influenced by earlier ones in lesser-known films. Some years back before I left the US, back when Netflix was solely a DVD mail service, I went down a rabbit hole and watched a lot of old horror movies. It was a time, I tell you! Netflix ain’t shit now, but I digress. In those old flicks, I got introduced to some creepy masks.
What’s always been most effective for me as a young horror head is a plain white mask with large eye holes. It’s oftentimes better when the eyes aren’t seen, but it’s also extremely creepy when they are, depending on the situation. A white mask is most effective for reflecting all the fears your mind unfurls in a stressful situation, at least that’s the case for yours truly. Second place would be a good animal or creature mask. But I also have to give some love to definitive masks that are associated with one character or movie and its effect cannot be replicated under any circumstances. So for this year’s Halloween celebration, I will highlight some of my favorite horror movie masks.
Sources:
Top 10 Masked Killers in Horror Movie History
Top 21 Scariest Horror Movie Masks | Den of Geek
Wikipedia
IMDb
