Bunny Lavalliere’s recent Halloween costumes have been mostly “fluffy and fairylike,” as she puts it – but not this year.
The 19-year-old fashion design student is making an outfit that pushes the boundaries of gore. From the front, it will have a sullen zombie look. But when she turns around, there will be fake protruding bones and organs in the back. It’s another sign that, after taking a respite, darker Halloween themes are making a comeback.
“I’m big on surprises. This one is going to have amazing amounts of blood,” Lavalliere says of the costume she’s making at her school, the Art Institute of California-San Francisco.
Her inspiration came from the revival of the slasher movie – genre classics such as “Friday the 13th” and “Halloween” that her generation is flocking to see, along with newer horror films, including “Saw” and the remake of “House of Wax.”
Retailers and trend-watchers also are sensing a heightened comfort level with scarier costumes and decorations, a full return to the dark side after many revelers toned down their outfits following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
“It was tough for a while,” says Dave Dering, a 39-year-old resident of Lawrenceville, N.J., and a longtime fan of Halloween.
Known as “Uncle Deathy” to family and friends, even he displayed only one yard decoration four years ago: a monster carrying an ax – and an American flag.
Of course, recent months have had their share of sad news, too – from ongoing casualties in Iraq to a seemingly constant string of natural disasters. But this time, Dering and others see scary, sometimes kitschy Halloween traditions as a way to escape tough realities, rather than potentially offensive.
“It takes some steam off; it’s a diversion – a way to have a little fun,” says Dering.
Retailers say they first sensed an increased appetite for darker Halloween themes at trade shows last winter – and stocked up their inventory as a result.
Still, those who work in the fright industry say they’ve also been careful not to take it too far. Lynton V. Harris now avoids such words as “terror” and “horror” in the theatrical arena shows he produces at Halloween.
“Unfortunately, those words became part of everyday language, as opposed to entertainment,” he says.
