You gotta finish the bad guy off in a horror movie. Credit to Sidney Prescott for learning from her mistakes.
In Scream (1996) Sidney (and basically everyone) knocks Ghostface down multiple times, then immediately turns their back and runs instead of finishing the job. He pops right back up. By the end of the movie, though, Sidney has wised up and finishes Billy Loomis off for good.
Hurting the villain and not completing the job drives me crazy. Here are other famous examples of this happening in horror movies.
Halloween (1978): Laurie stabs Michael with a knitting needle, thinks it’s over, and sits around crying. He sits up like 30 seconds later. Every single time.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974): Sally spends the entire final act barely escaping Leatherface and his family, then just runs into the road. No final blow. He just stands there swinging his chainsaw. Back the truck up and run him over.
Friday the 13th franchise: Pick almost any entry. The final girl hits Jason with an axe, a machete, a boat motor, and more, sees him go down, and sprints away instead of making sure the job is done. Surprise, he’s fine.
The rules are simple. If he’s not moving, check. If he is moving, finish it.
