While I often wonder whether anyone reads what I write, I am dismayed to find out that I'm one of only a few women actually writing reviews of films. I think I may actually know all the other women who review horror or who write about it. That's scary - I can count them on my hands. A new study by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University reports really low numbers of women hired as film critics by U.S. newspapers. The study found that men write 70 percent of film reviews and that among newspapers that publish movie reviews, 47 percent had no reviews written by female critics, writers or freelancers. By looking at the statistics, it's sad to see that more women are going to horror movies, and they are unable to get a female's perspective on the movie itself...

Alliance of Women Film Journalists President Jennifer Merin said, "This important study shows in concrete and shocking terms that women -- more than 50 percent of the population -- are still being left out of a national discussion of sweeping cultural and financial significance."

In an article by Anne Riley-Katz and the Los Angeles Business Journal in April 2007, horror films and their female audience numbers were reported.  According to the studios own exit polling numbers, The Messengers audience was  53 percent was female. When a Stranger Calls had a 55 percent female audience. The Omen studio research showed that 52 percent of the audience was female (and 63 percent of that group was younger than 25). The audience for Universal's White Noise, which brought in $24 million on its opening weekend in 2005, was 58 percent female.

Women are going to see horror movies. It's a shame that they must usually rely on a male point of view on whether the film is any good or not. And if they read some of the more popular horror film websites, they're usually getting reviews written by a dude who only cares about attending the next Hollywood party and becoming friends with the guys on top - not about being an honest or good film reviewer.

For a woman's point of view on horror, try  Rue Morgue Magazine, edited by Jovanka Vucovick, and www.stacilaynewilson.com, a writer for Horror.com.