Unspeakable Horror!

Finally had some time in between deadlines for one thing or another to catch up on some DVD watching. Although slasher films are my favorite subgenre of horror, I enjoy horror movies that disturb and are thought-provoking ~ films that take me out of my comfort zone. I hit the jackpot this past weekend when I viewed three wonderfully executed, albeit very different, horror movies and wanted to share some thoughts with Unspeakable Horror readers.

Hellbent Review: Slashing With the Queers

I’d be remiss if I didn’t jump on the bandwagon of writer-director Paul Etheredge-Ouzts’ gay-themed slasher flick, Hellbent. It’s everything a good slasher flick should be, with the decidedly queer appeal of a handsome cast of gay men substituting for half-clad bimbos as the objects of a madman’s wrath. Plus, with a gloriously retro tagline like “When the Night Belongs to the Devil, the Party Goes to Hell” that harkens back to the golden age of 80’s slashers, how could you possibly go wrong?

The film opens cleverly with a gay version of the oft-seen urban legend-type scene of two men making out in a parked car in a desolate wooded area. Before the guys can even get their zippers down, a shadowy figure emerges and beheads the hapless queens, taking the heads as trophies.

Enter Eddie (Dylan Fergus), a policeman-wannabe who works as a guy-Friday at the local police station, and his eclectic group of friends as they prepare to celebrate Halloween during the West Hollywood Carnivale. Along for a night of cruising and partying are Joey (Hank Harris), Eddie’s younger brother who is smitten with a hunky jock known only to the group as “Frat Guy”, Chaz (Andrew Levitas), Eddie’s equal-opportunity bisexual best friend, Tobey (Matt Phillips), a hunky underwear model who attempts drag for the first time, and Jake (Bryan Kirkwood), Eddie’s new motorcycle-riding, tattooed, rough-trade boyfriend. It’s not long before the carnival cruisers are targeted by a muscled madman who moves easily throughout the Halloween action clad in a skintight devil costume and dispatches with the group one-by-one until Eddie finds himself the “Final Girl” and on the run from the demented killer.

Now one could have a field day with analyzing the subtext of a devil dispatching with gay men on the hunt for sex and drugs, and, I admit, the symbolism throughout the film invites many an allegorical comparison to some decidedly conservative right-wing rhetoric. The writer/director’s unsettling subconscious aside, Hellbent is simply one hell of fun ride for queer slasher fans. The film’s pace is brisk; almost too brisk at times with only hints at interesting subplots and rushed character development that leave the viewer wanting to know more. The backdrop of the Mardi Gras-like West Hollywood Halloween scene lends itself to bright lights, outrageously costumed boys, and pumping music ~ while allowing for the horrifying vision of a killer moving about the action in plain sight. My only criticism is the lack of back story or explanation of the killer’s motives in beheading these gay men. Perhaps Etheredge-Ouzts wants the audience to draw its own conclusions ~ scorned ugly ducking, repressed closet case, overbearing mother. But, like Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger, and other iconic slashers of the genre, the motivation is essential in understanding the actions. As a result, I think the film’s failure to give the killer an identity works to its overall disadvantage; the audience is ultimately left feeling incomplete. On a scale of 1 to 10 butcher knives, I’d give Hellbent a solid 8 ~ if for nothing else turning the slasher genre on its queer head!

Feed Review: Consumption Is Evolution

The tagline for this nifty 2005 Austrailian import begs the question: Can you stomach it? And my guess is that many people won’t be able to. Even though this film is billed as a crime-thriller, Feed ranks among the scariest films I’ve seen this year. Feed is a disturbing look at the underground world of fetishes and how sadomasochism can take many different forms.

The plot of Feed concerns a veteran Austrailian cop named Philipp Jackson (Patrick Thompson) who investigates the sinister world of cyber crimes. No stranger to the dark underbelly of sexual fetsishes, Jackson is nonetheless shocked when he stumbles across an American website called feederx.com which introduces him to the voyeuristic world of Feeders and Gainers ~ grossly obese women and the chubby chasing men who feed them. Jackson becomes suspicious when his attempts to access the site are blocked by the webmaster, and he eventually discovers that wagers are being made on how long it will take the women to be force-fed to death. Despite his department’s initial lack of interest in getting involved (starving someone, after all, is a crime – but is the opposite true?), Jackson is fueled on by the criminality of the goings-on and travels to America to track down the twisted force behind feederx on his own and save the life of the site’s latest featured gainer, Deirdre (played by Gabby Millgate of Muriel’s Wedding fame). What ensues is a taught, suspenseful cat-and-mouse game between Jackson and the website’s proprietor Michael Carter (Alex O’Loughlin).

Feed is as discomfiting a film as you’re likely to see ~ for a number of reasons. The film is partly an allegorical tale that likens the sexual fetish of feeders and gainers to the mass consumption of our world ~ our consumption of food, money, sex, natural resources. From the opening sequence, it also draws the viewer in with its provocative exploration of the mantra of “my body, my choice.” Millgate’s performance is particularly effective to this end with her portrayal of trusting complicity. But Feed’s primary effectiveness in the disturbing department comes from its blurring of the lines between perversion and those who keep watch over perversion. Illustrated by an interesting back story of Jackson’s own sadomasochistic relationship with his free-spirited girlfriend, Feed succeeds in creating the ultimate anti-hero in Jackson and begs the question of whose perversion is worse. Watch Feed and then apply it in the context of To Catch a Predator, the wildly popular Dateline series on pedophiles, and see if you don’t shudder just a bit at the latter’s attractiveness to viewers.

Shot in hues of blue at times and gold at others, Feed benefits from some inventive camera work and jarring audio. The pacing is spot on, and each scene is brilliantly choreographed so that there is never a shortage of action. To writer Kieran Galvin’s credit, Feed’s plot structure boasts zero body fat, with each scene intricately relevant to the story. But the big revelation here is Australian actor Alex O’Loughlin (who also boasts zero body fat!) who turns in an as award-worthy performance as you’re likely to see this year. Layering the character of feeder Michael Carter with equal parts sweetness, charisma, and perversion, O’Loughlin’s bravura portrayal can simultaneously elicit reactions of pure revulsion tempered by moments of genuine sympathy toward the character. That this brilliant actor can portray such an abominable villain so convincingly as a well-dressed, well-mannered, and upstanding member of society who you wouldn’t glance twice at is as jarring at times as the more Se7en-esque moments in the film and indicative of O’Loughlin’s depth and ingeniousness as an actor. Sadly, due to the nature of the film, O’Loughlin’s brave, virtuoso performance will likely be overlooked at awards season, but view the actor’s inspired monologue during the scene in Jackson’s hotel room and you, too, will dub this guy one to watch.

Hard Candy Review: Of Pedophiles and Castration

Lionsgate has quickly become my favorite movie studio for consistently putting out edgy, controversial films like Hard Candy. Crackling with high-wattage tension, this superb thriller is the first film since 1990’s Misery to ably employ the two-character, single set device to achieve maximum suspense. Hard Candy tells the cautionary tale of fourteen-year-old Haley (a jarringly youthful-looking Ellen Page) who meets up with 32-year-old fashion photographer Jeff (Patrick Wilson) at a coffeehouse following a series of flirtatious online chats. Despite their age difference, the pair of unlikely friends hit it off, with Haley unabashedly flirting and Jeff admirably restraining himself at first. As the afternoon wears on, Haley invites herself over to Jeff’s house, and it seems as if he hesitantly acquiesces. Viewers begin to fidget uneasily at the prospect of this pedophilic seduction. The tension escalates in the scenes that follow as Haley and Jeff verbally volley at his house, and viewers will be hard pressed to discern just who is seducing whom ~ at least until it’s obvious that Haley has ulterior motives and that their casual Internet chat was no mere chance meeting. The film builds to a nail-biting cat-and-mouse game of one-upmanship between (is-he-or-isn’t-he-a-pedophile?) Jeff and (is-she-or-isn’t-she-crazy?) Haley.

Hard Candy is another disturbing film that has you questioning yourself when you find that you’re rooting for the wrong character. Manipulation is at the heart of this film, and director David Slade does a sublime job of carrying that theme throughout the movie, while Brian Nelson’s script is tight, smart, and filled with intelligent dialogue that adds to the suspense quotient. Much of the suspense in Hard Candy comes from the flip-flopping role reversals the characters find themselves in. To this end, credit goes to the underrated Wilson (Angels in America) who provides a seamless performance as both man and monster, eliciting our disgust in one frame and our sympathy in another (the “castration” scene is harrowing in large part due to the realism Wilson infuses into his performance). Page, a Canadian actress who was eighteen at the time the movie was lensed, is an absolute wonder in a career-making role. Her slightly androgynous looks coupled with her youthful mannerisms transform the actress into the character so fully that you may forget you’re watching an actress of legal age, thus at times shocking the viewer when Haley’s brutality comes forth.

More likened to Fatal Attraction than Halloween, the horror in Hard Candy comes from the realism evoked in this age of Myspace hook-ups and the vulnerability of our children in this age of Internet. Hard Candy is a delicious blend of morality play and revenge tale topped off with a (bitter)sweetly satisfying denouement in which the right guy (or girl) gets their just dessert.