English Test 5

It used to be that when people wanted to see a

scary movie they could choose from films such as

Dracula and Frankenstein. But these classic monster

movies, with some exceptions, has been replaced by a

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different breed of horror film the slasher movie. It is

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interesting and perhaps somewhat disturbing to examine

what such changes in taste may indicate about some of

the values at work in our nation.

First: commercially successful low-budget

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chiller was Halloween, and in its wake psycho-slasher

films have the movie market glutted. The formula for

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these movies consists of the serial murder of teenagers

by a ruthless psychotic, with some humor thrown in. The

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fact of the matter being that the popularity of the series

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of Friday the Thirteenth movies and their hundreds of

silly imitators indicates that there is a huge market for

such portrayals of random violence. Indeed, filmgoers

appear to cast their votes for more and more graphic

forms of violence. As a result, filmmakers—those who

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actually made films—generate increasing gory

6 7

productions.

As a result of this trend, slasher films now

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represent mainstream Hollywood movies. Once limited

only to the periphery (fringe) of the movie industry, the

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exploitation of gore has become a major box office

attraction. Older slasher films such as Psycho actually

seem like classics in comparison. Now they’re many

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high grossing franchises that produce countless sequels

like Halloween 20: H₂O. These movies have made a big

wad of cash! [#11]

Although the popularity of such films has

declined somewhat as their novelty has worn off.

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However, they remain a standard feature of the yearly

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production schedule. Even many high-budget films have

adopted the slasher formula of chills and violence. More

recent films, such as Scream, examine the slasher

movie’s formulaic conventions, while the Scary Movie

series plays them for laughs. Are these movies a means

of harmless fun? Are they a reflection of an increasingly

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and ever more violent society? Or do such movies

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encourage violence? Considering the great changes both

within the movie industry and in public (human) taste,

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these are questions that we must begin to consider. [#15]

1. Question 1

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. have been replaced

   3. were being replaced

   4. replaced

2. Question 2

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. film, which is the

   3. film: the

   4. film known, as the

3. Question 3

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. First;

   3. The first

   4. First—

4. Question 4

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. (Place after have)

   3. (Place after movie)

   4. (Place after wake)

5. Question 5

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. The fact of the matter being

   3. The popularity

   4. Factually speaking, in terms of popularity,

6. Question 6

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. –those making the films, actually

   3. (which are the people making the films)

   4. OMIT the underlined portion.

7. Question 7

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. increasing, gory,

   3. increasingly full of gore,

   4. increasingly gory

8. Question 8

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. trend:

   3. trend—

   4. —trend—

9. Question 9

   1. NO CHANGE

   2. periphery

   3. periphery (that is, the fringe)

   4. periphery, fringe,

10. Question 10

    1. NO CHANGE

    2. they are

    3. there’s

    4. there are

11. Is the final sentence of this paragraph appropriate?

    1. No, because it is irrelevant to the topic.

    2. No, because its reference to money, while relevant to the topic, is inappropriate in tone.

    3. Yes, because the exclamation with which the sentence ends heightens the drama.

    4. Yes, because it clarifies the preceding sentence.

12. Question 12

    1. NO CHANGE

    2. off, and they

    3. off, so they

    4. off, they

13. Question 13

    1. NO CHANGE

    2. more, and more, and more violent society

    3. increasingly violent society

    4. increasingly violent society, with anger and blood

14. Question 14

    1. NO CHANGE

    2. public, and human

    3. public

    4. human’s

15. How can this essay best be described?

    1. The tone is serious; the purpose is to point out a significant change in entertainment.

    2. the tone is lighthearted; the purpose is to recommend a new form of entertainment.

    3. The tone is sarcastic; the purpose is to show how contemporary movies lack value.

    4. The tone is harsh; the purpose is to urge people not to attend slasher films.