Editing Slasher film (section)

===1982===
[[Straight-to-video]] productions cut costs to maximize profit. The independent horror film ''[[Madman (1982 film)|Madman]]'' opened in New York City's top 10, according to ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]],'' but soon fell out of theaters for a much healthier life on home video.{{sfn|Kerswell|2012|p={{page needed|date=October 2021}}}} ''[[The Dorm That Dripped Blood]]'' and ''Honeymoon Horror'', each made for between $50–90,000, became successful in the early days of [[VHS]].{{sfn|Nowell|2011|p={{page needed|date=October 2021}}}} Because of this change, independent productions began having difficulties finding theatrical distribution. ''[[Girls Nite Out (1982 film)|Girls Nite Out]]'' had a very limited release in 1982 but was re-released in 1983 in more theaters until finally finding a home on VHS. [[Paul Lynch (director)|Paul Lynch]]'s ''[[Humongous (1982 film)|Humongous]]'' was released through [[AVCO Embassy Pictures]], but a change in management severely limited the film's theatrical release. Films such as ''[[Hospital Massacre]]'' and ''[[Butcher, Baker, Nightmare Maker|Night Warning]]'' enjoyed strong home rentals from video stores, though ''[[Dark Sanity]]'', ''[[The Forest (1982 film)|The Forest]]'', ''[[Unhinged (1982 film)|Unhinged]]'', ''[[Trick or Treats (1982 film)|Trick or Treats]]'', and ''Island of Blood'' fell into obscurity with little theatrical releases and only sub-par video transfers.{{sfn|Kerswell|2012|pages=118–130}}

Supernatural slasher films continued to build in popularity with ''[[The Slayer (film)|The Slayer]]'', ''[[The Incubus (film)|The Incubus]]'', ''[[Blood Song]]'', ''[[Don't Go to Sleep]]'' and ''[[Superstition (1980s film)|Superstition]]'' (the supernatural-themed ''[[Halloween III: Season of the Witch]]'', though part of the [[Halloween (franchise)|''Halloween'' franchise]], does not adhere to the slasher film formula). ''[[Alone in the Dark (1982 film)|Alone in the Dark]]'' was [[New Line Cinema]]'s first feature film, released to little revenue and initially dismissed by critics, though the film has gained critical reappraisal. Director [[Amy Holden Jones]] and writer [[Rita Mae Brown]] gender-swapped to showcase exploitative violence against men in ''[[The Slumber Party Massacre]],''{{sfn|Kerswell|2012|pages=118–130}} while ''[[Visiting Hours (film)|Visiting Hours]]'' pitted liberal feminism against macho right-wing bigotry with exploitative results.

''[[Friday the 13th Part III]]'', the first slasher trilogy, was an enormous success, selling 12&nbsp;million tickets and dethroning ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial|E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial]]'' from the top of the box office.{{sfn|Nowell|2011|p={{page needed|date=October 2021}}}} The film's iconic [[hockey mask]] has grown to [[Popular culture|pop-culture]] [[iconography]]. [[Universal Pictures]] had a tiny release for ''[[Death Valley (1982 film)|Death Valley]]'', while [[Columbia Pictures]] found modest success with ''[[Silent Rage]]''. Independent distributor [[Embassy Pictures]] released ''[[The Seduction (film)|The Seduction]]'' to a surprising 3.9&nbsp;million admissions, making a hit erotic slasher-thriller that predates [[blockbuster (entertainment)|blockbusters]] ''[[Fatal Attraction]]'' (1987) and ''[[Basic Instinct]]'' (1992) by several years.{{sfn|Nowell|2011|p={{page needed|date=October 2021}}}}

Internationally, Australia released ''[[Next of Kin (1982 film)|Next of Kin]]'' while Puerto Rico's ''[[Pieces (film)|Pieces]]'' was filmed in [[Boston]] and [[Madrid]] by an Italian-American producer with a Spanish director. Italian ''gialli'' saw slasher film influences in their releases for [[Sergio Martino]]'s ''[[The Scorpion with Two Tails]]'', [[Lucio Fulci]]'s ''[[The New York Ripper]]'' and [[Dario Argento]]'s ''[[Tenebrae (film)|Tenebrae]]''.{{sfn|Kerswell|2012|pages=118–130}}