by Victoria Potenza, Staff Writer

Sometimes when we talk about killer ladies in film, we come across a truly unapologetic bitch. I have been saving this one as it got closer to prom season, so I am very excited to finally write about one of my favorite unapologetic bitches, Mary Lou Maloney from Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II. She is a woman who knows what she wants, and even death will not stop her from getting it. She is hot, she is young, and she will not let anyone tie her down. As someone who feels the need to apologize for simply breathing, Mary Lou is fully secure in who she is and apologizes to no one. She is a cold hearted harlot and I could not love her more for it.

Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II is not related to the first Prom Night film starring Jamie Lee Curtis. However Mary Lous does come back for Prom Night III: The Last Kiss. While I may reference the 3rd installment, the true magic really lies in the 2nd. Prom Night II opens at a high school prom in 1957. As Mary Lou (Lisa Schrage) is crowned prom queen, she is burned alive in front of her classmates due to a prank gone wrong perpetrated by a suitor she slighted earlier in the evening. Thirty years later her vengeful spirit is awakened and she possesses the sweet girl next door Vicki (Wendy Lyon). As plans for the prom are underway Mary Lou’s spirit takes the opportunity to get vengeance on Bill and Craig, the men responsible for her death. However, Mary Lou’s rage cannot be contained and she decides she will kill whoever she has to in order to finally get the prom night she deserves.

Mary Lou is one of the first vengeful spirit killer ladies I have covered, her desire for revenge and for prom queen justice is so strong that she is able to manifest that anger in crazy ways. It also means we get to see two actresses bring her to life. Vicki is possessed by Mary Lou for a good portion of the film so we see much of her character played through Vicki, although Lisa Schrage’s performance as the flesh and blood Mary Lou is probably more memorable. The film itself is a mad combination of Carrie, Nightmare on Elm Street, and The Exorcist. The ways her spirit finds to exact her vengeance and kill her enemies are creative and enjoyable to watch. It utilized a lot of Elm Street sensibilities, especially in its practical effects. Mary gets to be a bit of a vengeful and youthful Freddy character which is a highlight of the film.

Mary Lou’s main reason for killing is her need for vengeance. At the height of her high school experience everything comes crashing down around her. Her boyfriend, Billy, catches Mary Lou cheating on him with Craig. In a fit of anger he ignites a stink bomb he finds in an attempt to embarass her for slighting him. Instead the bomb catches fire and ignites her dress, burning her alive in front of all of her classmates. Much like Carrie, this embarrassment cannot go unpunished. I also think the major secondary reason for her return and murder spree is her distain for the afterlife. While confronting one of her victims, she says “There's no God, Buddy! And there is no Heaven, and do you know what pissed me off the most? NO FUCKING WINGS!” Mary is a girl that was cut down in her prime, there were so many things for her to do and boys for her to break. By possessing Vicki, she gets to live through her and take back the life she lost.

Unintentionally Mary Lou also gives Vicki a little of the taste of freedom she never had, and likely never would. Vicki’s mother is an overprotective god fearing woman who restricts much of what Vicki is able to do (another ode to Carrie). Bringing her chaotic evil energy into the mix Mary Lou gets to rid Vicki of her problematic parents. Vicki might not whole heartedly agree that this freedom is a good thing, especially since Mary Lou forces Vicki to makeout with her father. However seeing her mom get what is coming to her is highly entertaining and cathartic. While the trail of bodies she leaves behind also includes several of Vicki’s closest friends, she does also take out some of the more frustrating characters. Ultimately Prom Night II is pretty cutthroat when it comes to its characters, even the nicest of one's face the wrath of Mary Lou.

As far as how she is perceived, she is perceived as a bad bitch. The film opens on Mary Lou in a confessional admitting her sins to the priest:

Mary Lou Maloney: Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been three months since my last confession. I've disobeyed my parents many times. I've taken the Lord's name in vain many times. I've had sinful relations with boys at my school. Many boys, many times.

Priest: My child, these are great sins. You must prepare yourself for the consequences.

Mary Lou Maloney: Father, there's just one more thing.

Priest: What is it, my poor child?

Mary Lou Maloney: I loved every minute of it.

Right away we know that Mary is a menace and refuses to feel bad about it. She is in her prime, with a whole life ahead of her. Given the fact that Mary is a teenager during the 50s, it makes her behavior even more impressive. She refuses to be boxed in and is no one man’s woman. She wants to have fun and wants to have sex and she does not care if that means people label her as a slut, harlot, or loose woman. The fact that she is such a sexually liberated woman is probably the reason I like her so much. Along with the fact that she has no qualms about living her life the way she wants to. She is by no means a good person, but she does exhibit some surprisingly health empowered qualities.

Considering the fact that the film makes so many allusions to Carrie, it is worth comparing the two. Carrie gets revenge because of the relentless torture she goes through at school and with her mother. Her embarrassment at prom is not deadly, at least for her. So she takes the opportunity to rid the world of all of her tormentors, it is the ultimate in “getting back at your bullies” cinema. On the other hand, Mary Lou does not need much of a push to murder anyone she considers a threat. If she had Carrie-like powers I think Mary would have utilized them all of the time when she was still alive. Mary Lou fits much more closely with some of the other femme-fatale cold killers, a la Catharine Trammel (Basic Instict) or Julia (Hellraiser 2). It is hard not to love them. They live a life unafraid of others, especially men. They take what they want and do not care how that colors people's perception of them.

It makes the third installment Prom Night III: The Last Kiss slightly more disappointing for her character, but only slightly, she literally escapes from Hell by cutting her chains with a nail file. However she does become obsessed with a pretty average high school boy Alex, who she helps gain popularity while murdering anyone she wants. There are plenty of fun kills and Mary Lou is still a badass, but her boy obsession is not as much fun as the man eating murderess we meet in Prom Night II. Even still Mary Lou was a welcome presence to the Prom Night franchise and is a lovable killer lady.