AAAAAH!! Indie Horror Hits - Volume 1
My good friend, Miguel Gallego of AAAAAH!! Indie Horror Hits, just let me know about a new indie horror movie collection that fans will want to add to their collection.
AAAAAH!! Indie Horror Hits is a new feature length collection of award winning independent short horror films coming to DVD in September 2008 – just in time for a Happy Halloween.
“ALL KILLER – NO FILLER” This is the good stuff. The short horror films that caused a buzz on the festival circuit – then vanished. If you saw them the first time you know what we mean. If you didn’t, you can enjoy them now – for the first time.
From a dark, cautionary tale (The Crypt Club – with Alison Pill from Pieces of April) to gallows humour on the job (Ghost Busted); from the grotesque otherworld of H.P. Lovecraft (The Veil) to today’s outbreak fears (The Ninth Entry); from the stylishly bizarre (My Skin! – with Tony Simmons from Human No More & Carnie) and the chillingly macabre (Oculus) to the dire family survival drama (Old Friends – from Kevin Greutert, editor of the SAW films).
We’ve resurrected these great short indie horror films. Turn down the lights and dig in for your own private horror film festival.
FEATURED SHORT FILMS (alphabetical order):
The Crypt Club (23:00 Canada) Dir: Miguel Gallego
Ghost Busted (3:00 USA) Dir: Vance Null
My Skin! (13:00 USA) Dir: Christopher Alan Broadstone
The Ninth Entry (5:00 USA) Dir: Anthony Falcon
Oculus (32:00 USA) Dir: Mike Flanagan
Old Friends (14:30 USA) Dir: Kevin Greutert
The Veil (12:00 Canada) Dir: Mike Jackson
Alien romance in fantasy art
2008 Film & History Conference
“Film & Science: Fictions, Documentaries, and Beyond,” October 30-November 2, 2008, Chicago, Illinois, www.uwosh.edu/filmandhistory
Second-Round Deadline: September 1, 2008
Area: Cinematic Extraterrestrials
As film made its way into 20th-century popular culture, depictions of extraterrestrial aliens became more prolific and specialized, eventually becoming fixed in the imagination as cultural archetypes, while varying significantly in physical, emotional and intellectual attributes. But is there any pattern to this variety? Does the cinematic alien represent a new cultural archetype of any kind? Or does it merely evoke older archetypes? Are extraterrestrials, for example, the xenophobic hallucinations of a technologically advanced Western Hemisphere striving to decode the subaltern voices of those who have been displaced, or do extraterrestrials represent that advancement itself?
More questions emerge. What new cinematic techniques accompanied the depiction of the 20th-century alien extraterrestrial? How did contemporary scientific methods shape these film narratives? How, for example, did studies in artificial intelligence or developments in special effects affect the character potential of the extraterrestrial? Also, in what ways might films within this genre use the characters of extraterrestrial aliens to challenge assumptions about the attitudes, perspectives, and values of scientists and Science Fiction filmmakers, who seem to stand objectively apart from the world?
Paper topics may treat specific cinematic extraterrestrials in the context of social, scientific, and/or intellectual history, as well as religious studies, sociolinguistics, and astrobiology. Although the most popular images of cinematic extraterrestrials are of primary concern here, unheralded depictions of cinematic extraterrestrials may provide valuable insights. Historical and contemporary analogs to cinematic extraterrestrials may also be considered.
Please send your 300-word proposal by September 1, 2008, to the area chair:
Jim Webb, Chair, Cinematic Extraterrestrials Area
P. O. Box 3536
Chino Valley, AZ 86323
Email: zerzura@sbcglobal.net
Panel proposals for up to four presenters are also welcome, but each presenter must submit his or her own paper proposal.
This area, comprising multiple panels, is a part of the 2008 biennial Film & History Conference, sponsored by The Center for the Study of Film and History. Speakers will include founder John O’Connor and editor Peter C. Rollins (in a ceremony to celebrate the transfer to the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh); Wheeler Winston Dixon, author of Visions of the Apocalypse, Disaster and Memory, and Lost in the Fifties: Recovering Phantom Hollywood; Sidney Perkowitz, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Physics at Emory University and author of Hollywood Science: Movies, Science, & the End of the World. For updates and registration information about the upcoming meeting, see the Film & History website (www.uwosh.edu/filmandhistory).
Zombie CSU book cover
It’s no surprise that zombies have become the horror icon of late modernity/postmodernity. As a result, pop culture is filled with various explorations of these flesh eating, social alter egos. One of the forthcoming expressions of this pop culture phenomenon is the book Zombie CSU: The Forensics of the Living Dead (Citadel Press) by Jonathan Maberry, a Bram Stoker Award winner. The volume is due out at the end of August, and as the title indicates, it represents an example of CSI forensics meets zombie apocalypse. The book’s website describes it as follows:
In the tradition of bestsellers WORLD WAR Z and THE ZOMBIE SURVIVAL GUIDE, multiple Bram Stoker Award-winner JONATHAN MABERRY presents an irresistible, fully illustrated and fascinating guide to the forensic science of the walking dead.
ZOMBIE CSU includes over 250 interviews with real-world experts in LAW ENFORCEMENT, FORENSIC SCIENCE, MEDICINE, THE LAW, PSYCHOLOGY, THE MILITARY and PHILOSOPHY to present the first ever look at how our real world would react, research and respond to a zombie uprising.
Follow the case from the crime scene of the first zombie attack; collect evidence with the experts; go on a manhunt with the police; stand shoulder-to-shoulder with SWAT; go into the labs and morgue with top scientists; hunt the story with journalists; kick some undead ass with martial arts experts; and philosophize with psychologists and even the clergy! ZOMBIE CSU taps experts from 911 operators to directors at Homeland Security.
A MUST HAVE BOOK FOR ANYONE WHO LOVES ZOMBIES!
Featuring interviews with
MAX BROOKS ** BRIAN KEENE ** DAVID WELLINGTON ** TONY TODD ** PATRICIA TALLMAN ** RAMSEY CAMPBELL ** JOHN SKIPP GARY A. BRAUNBECK ** ROBERT KIRKMAN ** BOB FINGERMAN ** BRUCE ‘ANDY’ BOHNE ** JAMES GUNN ** MICHAEL ‘CJ’ KELLY BRINKE STEVENS ** KEVIN J. ANDERSON ** STEVE ALTEN ** KIM PAFFENROTH ** DOUG CLEGG ** ELLEN DATLOW ** STEPHEN SUSCO JAMIE RUSSELL ** JOHN LUTZ ** JOHN PASSARELLA ** SARAH LANGAN KATHERINE RAMSLAND ** L A BANKS ** ZOMBIE SQUAD ** MORT CASTLE DAVID MOODY ** SCOTT A. JOHNSON ** YVONNE NAVARRAO SCOTT NICHOLSON ** TIM WAGGONER ** TONY TIMPONE
And Dozens of Others!
Visit the book’s website for further information, including a look at the author, an exploration of zombie forensics, and zombie art.
My personal story in terms of involvement with the fantastic goes back to a viewing of The Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) on television. I was probably six or seven at the time, but this experience hooked me in terms of fascination with science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Soon after watching this program I began surfing the television dial in the 1970s (when my parents weren’t home), and I discovered classic science fiction films, one of which became a favorite of mine, The War of the Worlds (1953). Still later I would encounter the infamous 1938 Orson Wells radio broadcast of the H.G. Wells story, which in its various incarnations has served as a frequent source of enjoyment of the years.
I enjoyed such films as a child, and on into my teenage years, with a combined sense of fear, fascination, and wonder. But as an adult I’ve had the opportunity to watch these films again in order to discover new facets of these cinematic delights, and to try and understand why I and so many other people find these things important. This process has resulted in the discovery of different levels of meaning within the films, some of which were not even noticed in previous screenings, or at least not as appreciated as elements of the films as they should have been in earlier screenings.
One facet of The War of the Worlds that has been the focus of academic discussion is its treatment of science and religion. This is the focus of Douglas Cowan’s article “Intellects vast and cool and unsympathetic: Science, Religion, and The War of the Worlds” that appeared in the Journal of Religion and Film in two installments, Vol. 11, No. 1 (April 2007) and Vol. 11, No. 2 (October 2007). This post serves as an introduction to this interesting topic and Cowan’s helpful exploration of it, an exploration that will be of benefit to sci fi fans interested in adding another layer to their interpretation of George Pal’s classic film.
Cowan begins his essay with a recognition of the diverse ways in which religion has been treated in this story, from its original literary context in the 1898 novel, to its treatment in the 1953 film. It is no secret that Wells was antagonistic to religion, and this is revealed most dramatically in his portrayal of a Christian clergyman which the narrator of the story meets as the two hide from the aliens in the ruins of a house not far from a church. Cowan discusses the clergyman’s physical description as depicted by Wells that is less than inspiring, and his behavior in the wake of the alien onslaught fares no better at Wells’ hands as he struggles to construct a plausible theodicy in the wake of an unlikely theological foe.
But despite the negative portrayal of religion in the original source material, it is treated far more favorably in George Pal’s cinematic treatment of Wells’ story. While this might be expected in a film coming out of the social and cultural matrix of 1950s America, Cowan notes that critics, commentators, and scholars have been quick to dismiss the religious aspect of the film. Cowan offers a contrary perspective and argues that the depiction of religion in Pal’s film is “anything but extraneous, implausible, or unsophisticated.” He goes on to state that this is “because of the interplay between the time in which it was released and the vast differences that exist between the film” and Wells’ novel.
To make his case, Cowan describes the characters of Rev. Dr. Mathew Collins (played by Lewis Martin), and Dr. Clayton Forrester (Gene Barry). As the movie unfolds we are introduced first to Rev. Collins who symbolizes a conservative and traditional form of Christianity which is introduced as a significant underlying element for the townspeople in their responses to the alien invasion. Shortly thereafter we are introduced to Dr. Forrester, a scientist from “Pacific Tech” who obviously symbolizes the film’s treatment of science. The reactions of these characters to the prospect of alien invasion tells us quite a bit about how 1950s America viewed religion and science, and for the most part, each enjoys a favorable treatment in the unfolding story.
For the most part, religion and science enjoy a parity in this film. As the film reaches its climax, however, the alien invasion and destruction of humanity seems sure in the wake of the failure of the military and its technology. Here, religion finally triumphs over science as the aliens are destroyed by microscopic organisms that humanity has developed an immunity to, placed within the cosmos as a result of divine order. Pal’s film seems to be in keeping with the attitudes of the time period in its depiction of religion and science. As Cowan argues about 1950s America:
“There was an unmitigated trust in both science and the military option, exemplified most completely in the atomic bomb. On the other hand, though, this was also a period of significant church expansion, and to be a good American meant that one was also a good (Protestant) Christian.”
If this is indeed the case, then why have critics and commentators largely dismissed religion as a serious and significant element of The War of the Worlds? Cowan concludes with his assessment:
“By ignoring he social context in which the film was produced, and failing to note the vast difference between the film and Wells’ novel, commentators have long dismissed the profoundly religious elements in George Pal’s The War of the Worlds. A closer reading reveals that it is significantly more than just a science fiction metaphor for a Soviet invasion. In it, he and screenwriter Barre Lyndon complete reversed the understanding of religion in Wells’ novel, and used it instead to reinforce the intimate connection that existed in post-World War Two American between a strong faith and a determined resistance to communist aggression. Rather than experience that he left audiences wonder if the attack would come that evening, Americans could leave the theatre secure in the knowledge that the manifest destiny of humanity was secure.”
What Doug Cowan has done for fans interested in a deeper appreciation of horror through an academic exploration of horror films in his forthcoming book Sacred Terror: Religion and Horror on the Silver Screen (Baylor University Press, October 2008), he is in the process of doing for science fiction fans as well as his essay on this classic sci fi film demonstrates.
Independent horror films, indeed, independent filmmaking in general, is an area of ongoing interest for me. In my explorations of this art form, Mike Nelson of Random Creatureface, an indie horror filmmaker, discussed his work with me recently.
TheoFantastique: Mike, thanks again for stopping by to talk about your work. I like to begin on a personal note whenever possible. How did you get involved with film as a director of horror films?
Mike Nelson: Seriously- As far back as I can remember. If I remember correctly, the first three stories I ever wrote were Wolfman, Dracula, and the Mummy. Yes, those were the titles and I wrote them in kindergarten; including pictures with blood and all. And of course before then I drew several monster pictures, pirate pictures, and gun and knife pictures that it would be funny to think that I wouldn’t be making horror films at this point in my life. The trend never really stopped and the stories kept getting weirder and weirder and a littler gorier each time. It also helps that I was obsessed with watching movies (and still am), especially black and white monster flicks, Indiana Jones, American Graffiti and The Monster Squad. The violence ensued in elementary school where I started making stop motion robot destruction films in my moms living room to high school, where I made several action/horror/comedy/thriller type movies with lots of guns and too many people dying. Not the type of films you make and show to your church youth group (which I did and the outcome wasn’t pretty). Which led me to the Minneapolis College of Art and Design where I studied film for 4 years and made action films or horror/thrillers (and a documentary about a machine gun). So as you can see, it all works out. I then went on to form Random Creatureface Films with two friends, Ben Trandem and Lance Hendrickson and together along with an amazing cast and crew made our first feature film Summer School. A horror film none the less, which after 2 years has finally been put out on DVD independently. I continue writing and making shorts with horror or action or post apocalyptic stories, or twisted thrillers that only a mother couldn’t love. I am currently writing 4 stories to be made into feature screenplays, 2 action films, a dark revenge thriller and a “dramedy” to lighten things up a little. I am keeping busy.
TheoFantastique: Is your work as an independent filmmaker a personal choice or one of necessity given the difficulties of working through mainstream film studios? If your choice, why is this your preference?
Mike Nelson: I’d say both. I’ve heard too many horror stories from people who finally broke into the studio system and had their visions destroyed by over zealous suits with MBA’s. Yet I think at the end of most independent filmmakers tunnels they see a glimpse of hope that one day they will get a break that will land them a chance to truly prove themselves to the studios and make the films they have always dreamed of. I think that its almost necessary to dream that way. Its like fuel. I do think that if you decide to make going after a studio gig your life’s goal you are also ready and willing to give up some control at some point in time. That’s just the way it works. As for me, it would be amazing if I could stay indie and make my hyper-violent, all practical post-apocalyptic odyssey someday with backers and people who just plain believe in my filmmaking and storytelling. Hey, if a studio wants to buy it, even better! This isn’t 1972. BBS doesn’t exist anymore and Fox isn’t just letting any film school kid with a story about galactic battles and warriors swinging neon light tubes at each other in to talk to a head exec. But as an indie filmmaker I will try my hardest to tell great stories with keen direction, and cool cinematography and try to get noticed; hopefully by someone who has clout in the industry. And as any indie filmmaker would say, “as long as I can entertain an audience and show my work to the world, I am happily doing my job and it is the best job in the world.” On that note, thank goodness for the Internet! An indie filmmaker’s best friend.
TheoFantastique: With very few notable exceptions, some of the more creative work in horror films is coming through indie filmmaking. Why do you think this is?
Mike Nelson: I have found that indie filmmakers are more interested in telling good stories or shocking people with visual imagery or innovation more so than catering to what mainstream folk want. A lot of indie filmmakers want to tell a story that they’d want to see at a cineplex or on DVD. It’s obvious to me that many people are growing tired of the horror films (and films in general) that are being pumped out every weekend. The mainstream moviegoer knows that something needs to change but they don’t necessarily know what. And even that notion is changing. Moviegoers are getting smarter and they are looking for something more challenging. Indie films open a door to a whole other world of stories, some that studios wouldn’t touch even if they were forced to at gun point. I think more creative work is coming from the indie realm because there is nobody saying “you can’t” which opens the door to so many possibilities. On the other hand it also opens the door to a lot of crap. Yes, there is a lot of indie crap as well and I know that there is just as much crap as there is good stuff. But the fact that filmmakers are doing things that wouldn’t be done otherwise I feel improves films and can make them better overall.
TheoFantastique: You have put together Random Creatureface Films. Can you share a little about what this organization and its work is all about?
Mike Nelson: Ben Trandem and Lance Hendrickson and I started RCF in 2005 with the idea that we wanted to create a film company with a horror flavor that made quality films. We also saw it as a way to bring filmmakers together and their visions to life. Lance, Ben, and I make up a well oiled machine: Lance being the producer and business man; Ben being skilled in several facets of post-production, practical effects, writing and directing, and web stuff; and myself being a director, cinematographer, story writer/conceptor and sound designer. Together we make up a self-sufficient unit employing the skills to make the films we want. But our strength solidifies by connecting and working with other filmmakers and collaborating to make the best possible work. Yet we don’t stop at horror. We recently produced and shot an R&B music video with an up-incoming director which will get national air play on cable come this fall. Lance wants to do a historical drama, Ben wants to pursue some comedy and I really want to pursue action films. In all we just love film and want to make some damn good movies. Ben and I are always trying to keep people updated with our projects on www.randomcreatureface.com as well as review the films we watch, so check us out.
TheoFantastique: Mike, thanks again for taking some time to discuss these things. One of my fantasy careers would have been to be a horror, sci fi and fantasy film director or special effects wizard, so I’ll try to live vicariously through the indie horror work of yourself and others. Thanks again.
One of the ways in which I enjoy the fantastic in popular culture is through art. And there may be no greater collection of fantastic art than the annual volume of Spectrum: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art. I recently spoke with Arlo Burnett, the Administrator for Spectrum, who shared his thoughts on this inspiring publication.
TheoFantastique: Arlo, thanks for making some time to talk about Spectrum. I am a late comer to discovering this great collection of fantastic art with Spectrum 12 as my first introduction to the publication. Can you talk a little about how Spectrum came together as a publication some 15 years ago?
Arlo Burnett: Certainly! Spectrum grew from a desire of Arnie and Cathy Fenner’s to create an amount of respect and validity to the field of fantastic art. At the time, artwork in this field was dismissed out-of-hand and not taken seriously — even by those within the illustration community. Another desire of theirs was to generate a level of recognition for the artists as well. Artwork had a tendency in the past to become separated from the artists who created it, and having it all collected into a book focused on the art instead of what it was trying to sell (be it a book, album, or product advertisement) afforded the opportunity to attach names to the work. Proposals made by Arnie and Cathy to have someone produce a book collecting the best examples of contemporary fantastic art failed to garner anything beyond initial interest, and as a result they made the decision in 1994 to put the book together themselves.
TheoFantastique: For those who may not have seen the publication, can you describe the various categories of fantastic art and the media that the artists work in that are featured in Spectrum?
Arlo Burnett: Spectrum initially began with the Advertising, Book, Comics, Editorial, Institutional, and Unpublished categories. All six are pretty self-explanatory except for Institutional — we often get questions about that one. The Institutional category was set up as a catch-all for art projects such as artist self-promotion materials, album covers, calendars, etc. which may fall outside of the other clearly defined categories. It was with the third volume that the need for a Dimensional category was recognized, and so it was added as part of the submissions process for that book. Some years later, an increase in the submissions of concept designs which came as a result from the rise of video games and studio development of film franchises led us to re-examine the categories once again, and the Concept Art category was introduced in Spectrum 14 as a result. As for the media used by the artists, we receive submissions that run from oil on canvas to digital creations in Photoshop — and everything in-between. The only requirement is that the artwork falls into the realm of “fantastic art” — which, as long as it provides a unique take on the world around us, can be a pretty broad category.
TheoFantastique: What are the sources for the artwork in terms of publishing venues for the artists? Is there greater representation in books and comics, for example?
Arlo Burnett: It may come as something of a surprise, but the category which has the greatest number of submissions year after year is actually Unpublished. A reason for this is one that I gave as part of the desire for creating the book — artist recognition. Art directors and other industry professionals have an opportunity to see some of the artwork created outside of the established field, and those professionals now have an opportunity to put names and contact information to the art which could lead to work down the road for the artists. I have also found that entries in the Unpublished category often challenge the field of fantastic art either by turning established genres on their ear, or by bringing something entirely new to the table. It’s always quite exciting to see unpublished work as it comes in because today’s entries could become tomorrow’s trends.
TheoFantastique: Do you think there has been an increase in the interest in fantastic art, and if so, why do you think this is?
Arlo Burnett: Absolutely! I think a large part of the interest originated in the late’70s. George Lucas started the process rolling and passed it on to Ridley Scott who then handed it on to James Cameron. Three directors who couldn’t be more different from one another managed to each create something singular in the field. Lucas found acceptance with the general public through Star Wars, Scott fully realized an artistic vision of the future with Blade Runner, while Cameron pushed the envelope of visual effects with Terminator 2. While it could be argued that there are better examples than the ones I’ve given above, I truly think that we have begun (and will continue) to see the impact on an entire generation resulting from a series of films made over the course of 15 years by these directors. It’s hard to find television and movies today which reference pop culture that don’t manage to quote Star Wars to some degree. It’s also equally as hard not to go shopping or drive along an interstate without seeing an LCD billboard of varying scale serving up an advertisement. Even more difficult today is to see a movie which hasn’t been enhanced using computers in some fashion.
TheoFantastique: You recently completed work on Spectrum 15, which will be available from Underwood Books this fall. And I understand that you will be accepting entries for Spectrum 16 beginning in late October this year. What are some of the challenges faced in putting this book together?
Arlo Burnett: The first major hurdle in compiling the book is collecting all of the artwork which was accepted by the jury. Although we do request that artists submit reproductions of their work for the jury to view, it is better to have source images on hand when assembling the book for publication. Amassing all of the images and keeping track of what we receive is no small feat, but thanks to easily accessible high-speed Internet connections, more options are available to the artists to send their accepted images which negates the added cost and time of standard mail delivery. The second obstacle is the process of assembling the book layout. Certain pieces have a tendency to overwhelm others that may appear on the same spread, so finding the right balance of images is a delicate line to walk each year. Another important part of the layout is affording each piece some room to breathe. One way in which this is achieved is by increasing the number of pages in which the artwork appears. The page-counts in Spectrum have continued to increase throughout the years with Spectrum 15 weighing in at 264 pages –both out of necessity for space between the pieces appearing inside and due to the increasing quality in the submissions we receive every year. The final challenge is waiting for the finished product to return from the printers. Heavy storms, availability of paper, and dock strikes have all affected to some degree the arrival of the books on store shelves.
TheoFantastique: Care to pass along any tips to artists who’d like to see their work included in a future edition of Spectrum?
Arlo Burnett: The best tip I can pass along to interested artists would be to send in an entry. Sometimes the toughest challenge
for artists to face is the decision to enter their work in something on an international scale –understandably so. However, a piece can’t be selected for Spectrum if the jury hasn’t had an opportunity to see it, and every entry we receive goes before the jury for consideration. Sending in an entry may sound like a simple piece of advice, but it is a crucial first step for artists to get their work in the book.
TheoFantastique: Arlo, once again, thanks for taking time out of your schedule to discuss this great publication.
Arlo Burnett: It was my pleasure, and thank you for taking the time to do this interview for your readers!
The other day I was reflecting again on how certain movies are considered good films, sometimes classics, of a given genre. Others that appear to be just as good, for a variety of reasons, just don’t capture the attention and imagination of the viewing public like other films do. I’ve posted on this in the past in regards to The Legend of Hell House (1973), a top-notch horror film that never received the attention it deserved, possibly because it was swallowed up in the attention given to The Exorcist that same year, and because audience horror preferences may have shifted away from haunted house stories to supernatural and demonological horror in the 1970s.
As I perused a zombie title on the book shelves at my local Barnes and Noble bookstore in the film studies section, and followed this up with a review of my DVD collection, Dead & Buried (1981) struck me as another film that was well done as a horror tale that has never received the praise or attention it deserves.
Dead & Buried tells the story of the citizens of the small coastal town of Potter’s Bluff, a community with a welcome sign that greets its visitors with the phrase, “A New Way of Life.” As the story develops, the viewer soon comes to realize that this greeting is far more than a small town slogan. Instead, it is an announcement of a soon-coming invitation to a horrific definition of life that is extended to all visitors and transients who end up murdered in brutal and diverse fashion by the local townspeople. The citizens of Potter’s Bluff include the local sheriff (played by James Farentino), and a mortician (played by Jack Albertson in his last film role), who end up in a game of cat and mouse as the sheriff seeks to find an explanation for not only the murders, but claims by some that those seen dead have somehow returned to life to live in Potter’s Bluff.
This film includes a lot of positive aspects that should have brought it to the attention and appreciation of greater numbers of people.
*It involves a frightening story by Dan Shusett and screenplay that was slightly modified by Dan O’Bannon who brought us the original story for Alien.
*The director, Gary Sherman, did a good job of creating a strong sense of atmosphere for the town through the fog and weathered look of the houses of Potter’s Bluff. As O’Bannon notes in an interview on the bonus disc of the two DVD set for this film, this helps create a general sense of fear that transforms the gore effects of the film into something truly frightening and which then transports this film out of the category of a 1980s gore-fest and into an atmospheric tale of horror which also includes gore.
*Farentino and Albertson turn in good dramatic performances in a film that wants its horror to be taken seriously, and they are surrounded by a good cast of co-stars including then-unknowns like Robert Englund and other character actors.
*The makeup effects were done by Stan Winston, which includes some of his early experimentations with puppetry. This film is perhaps best known among horror gore fans for a chilling scene where a bandaged from head to toe burn victim lies helpless on his hospital bed as his nurse jams a hypodermic needle into his eye. In the bonus materials included with this film Winston reveals that the “actor” in this scene was a full-body puppet, an amazing fact in light of the emotion and fear that is conveyed by the special effect as he contemplates his murderous nurse and her instrument of death.
* Finally, Dead & Buried concludes with a Twilight Zone-esque type of ending that serves as a final and fitting twist to a a frightening story.
Digging a little deeper into the film, the mechanism for bringing the dead back to life is somewhat sketchy in this film, but it involves an interesting synthesis of witchcraft and voodooism that also bleeds over into contemporary science. As Albertson’s character says when confronted by the sheriff over his mechanism of reanimation, “Call it black magic. Call it a medical breakthrough. I’ll take my secret to the grave.” Regardless of the specifics of the method for bringing the dead back to life, the film tapped into the esoteric aspects of witchcraft and voodooism that provided inspiration and story elements for so many horror films previously, particularly in the 1970s.
Dead & Buried might also have been expected to do better with audiences in that it is properly construed as a zombie tale. Yet it is a very different expression of the zombie that is in many ways closer to the Haitian zombie motif than the popular American construction of the zombie popularized and given iconic status by George Romero. In Dead & Buried the dead come back to life, and for the most part, live “normal” lives in their small town, until the next visitor or transient arrives which leads to acts of violent murder. The zombies of Potter’s Bluff appear quite natural and normal in appearance, so long as the town mortician is able to touch them up frequently, and they do not wander around town seeking the consumption of the living. Unfortuantely, although Dead & Buried makes a unique contribution to the zombie in film that broadens the treatment of this creature, it is this very different depiction, one fine-tuned by O’Bannon in a desire to stay away from Romero’s iconic zombies, and it is this different zombie conceptualization that may have contributed to the film’s lack of large scale resonance with viewers.
For those interested in good storytelling in their horror that accompanies the gore, I recommend Dead & Buried as a neglected horror film. (Those interested in a preview can see the trailer here, and the film can be added to a film collection through Amazon.com at this link.)
For fans of Mike Mignola’s comic Hellboy, as well as fans of the gifted director and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, today ends a long awaited sense of anticipation as Hellboy II: The Golden Army is released in theaters nationwide. This new film promises to be different from del Toro’s previous treatment of Hellboy in 2004. The first film followed more conventional adaptations of comics to film as well as the pulp novel aspects of the story, albeit while retaining the interesting aspects of Mignola’s character and del Toro’s spin on him as a fan and filmmaker. Interviews with del Toro reveal that this second film will build upon what has been developed previously but will also incorporate more of the mythology, fairytale and foklore aspects that so intrigue del Toro, and which served as the foundation for his Oscar winning film Pan’s Labyrinth (2006).
In an interview in the July edition of Rue Morgue magazine, del Toro discusses the story for the new film that he developed, as well as the influences that shaped this film, including not only mythology and fairytale, but also the magical stop-motion animated monsters of Ray Harryhausen, and the music of Bernard Hermann.
This film seems to have been released at a time which will maximize its ability to do well at the box office. The summer film bonanza is in full swing, and while Hellboy II will face stiff competition from the new Batman film The Dark Knight and WallE, comic books continue to provide the stuff of creativity and box office success for filmmakers. Audience fascination with and positive response to comics turned into films have led some to suggest that comicbook superheroes now function as new sources of mythology in our time.
Although Hellboy II was already greenlighted for production prior to the success of Pan’s Labyrinth, del Toro says that given the positive reception to that film it gave him greater leeway for his plans for Hellboy. Let’s hope that Hellboy II does well in fan reception and box office receipts so that del Toro’s desires for a trilogy can become a reality.
The Religion and Popular Culture group on Yahoo! recently issued the following call for papers:
Call for Papers: An Interdisciplinary Collection of Essays on the Zombie
We are seeking proposals for an interdisciplinary edited volume discussing the zombie from a wide variety of perspectives and within a wide range of contexts. We encourage submissions from any discipline, including but not limited to English literature, film studies, media studies, cultural studies, gender studies, queer studies, philosophy, religious studies, anthropology, sociology, history, psychology, economics, and political science. We especially welcome new approaches to the study of zombies. In addition to theoretical essays on zombies, we also welcome critical discussions of specific zombie films, novels, and graphic novels, including those both pre- and post-Romero.
Proposals should be between 200 and 300 words. Authors are asked to include brief biographical details along with their submissions, including name and academic affiliation. Please submit proposals either electronically or by regular mail. Deadline for submissions is October 31st, 2008.
Submit to either:
Dr. Cory James Rushton
Dept. of English
St. Francis Xavier University
PO Box 5000
Antigonish, Nova Scotia
B2G 2W5Canada
crushton@stfx.ca
or
Dr. Christopher M. Moreman
Dept. of Philosophy
California State University, East Bay
25800 Carlos Bee Blvd.
Hayward, CA 94542
U.S.A.
christopher.moreman@csueastbay.edu
It had been some time since my family and I took in a movie at the theater. Normally we keep our eye out for advertisements of upcoming films, and then once a movie is released to DVD we make a trip to the nearest Redbox DVD rental location and for $1 we have a good night’s entertainment. But yesterday I wanted the full cinematic experience with the large screen, Dolby sound, and of course, the snack bar. My family was somewhat divided over just what would be the the evening’s flickerings fair, but with the vote between WALL-E and Hancock, WALL-E won out.
WALL-E is the latest computer animated film produced by Pixar Studios in collaboration with Disney Studios. I have enjoyed the animated shorts and full-length features done in the past by this creative duo, and the previews for WALL-E piqued my interest in this latest venture, so my expectations were high as I entered the theater. Thankfully, I was not disappointed overall.
As readers may be aware, the story takes place some 700 years in earth’s future in a post-human environment, where human over-consumption and the production of waste run amok, has led to such high levels of pollution that the planet has become uninhabitable. Visual clues in the story’s initial scenes inform the viewer that in the past a mega-corporation, the Buy-N-Large company, produced a group of robots, the WALL-E line of machines, which were tasked with the responsibility of cleaning up the planet. After some time the cleanup efforts were unsuccessful, the human race no longer inhabited the planet, and after 700 years only one robot remains, still pursuing his daily routine of cleaning up after human waste, largely in the form of metal trash compaction and storage. This basic storyline sets the stage for the later arrival of a rocket which drops off a robot probe in search of organic life, and it is this robot which captures the attention and heart of a lonely WALL-E, and which then leads to an adventure in space which unfolds in the remainder of the film.
The animators and technicians behind WALL-E have produced a visually stunning film with this outing. While the main characters still have a “cartoony” feel to them in terms of their appearance, the other elements of the scenes in which the characters perform, including background, “sets” and foreground items, are all done with the appearance of realism and great detail, right down to the rust on metal and dust on a dry earth surface. This combination of realistic surroundings, coupled with a more traditional cartoon approach to character depiction, gives WALL-E an interesting interplay between visual representations that I found intriguing. This contrast is even more striking in that the main feature film is preceded, in typical Pixar fashion, with a computer animated short, Presto, which has an “old school” feel that is reminscent of Chuck Jones’s work in the Looney Tunes.
Another interesting facet of this film is that the ininital scenes which set the foundation for the rest of the story. These take place without any dialogue and it is pure visual imagery, and the emotion conveyed through three characters, WALL-E, his “pet” cockroach, and the robot EVE, that both provide the foundational elements of the storyline and develop emotional bonds between the characters and the audience. Granted, storytellers have been anthropomorphizing non-human characters for quite some time, but Pixar’s animators have done a wonderful job in communicating human emotions and relationships through WALL-E‘s robotic main characters.
Beyond its straightforward family entertainment value, this film is not without its social commentary. A few conservatives have lamented the film’s premise of a planetary environment tainted by human pollution, but this element is handled lightly and serves as a subtle background assumption for the plotline. The film can also be understood as touching on other elements of the contemporary human condition, including our (over?) reliance upon technology, and questions surrounding sentience and the nature of personhood as they relate to complex robotic technologies.
One problem I did have with the film on a visual level was the inclusion of traditional, non-animated video footage of human beings at various points in the story. In previous efforts Pixar has animated all of its characters, including the human ones, and the mix of animated and real human video imagery came across as visually disjointed to me, and it didn’t seem to assist the storytelling either.
Independence Day weekend filmgoers will not be disappointed by this animated fantasy-sci fi adventure that includes aspects of enjoyment for young and old alike.
