Nosedive Brings Molotov's FAT MEN to NYC

Nosedive Productions Brings Molotov Theatre Group to New York
for Fat Men in Skirts Run in January

“Surprisingly Sweet Show about Rape and Cannibalism”
Is the First Traveling Show from Washington DC’s
Notorious Grand Guignol Horror Theatre Company

Washington, DC (December 8, 2011) — Nosedive Productions, New York City’s “Theatre for Sick Little Monkeys,” will host DC-based Molotov Theatre Group, America’s second-oldest Grand Guignol theatre of horror, for a three-show run of Molotov’s critically acclaimed Fat Men in Skirts, January 5, 6 and 7, 2012.

Molotov’s Fat Men in Skirts will be performed at 8 PM each day, at the UNDER St. Marks Theatre, 94 Saint Marks Place, in New York’s East Village. Tickets are $15, and can be purchased in advance online here.

Advance purchase for this extremely limited run is strongly recommended, although tickets may also be purchased at the door on a space-available basis.

The run time of Molotov’s Fat Men in Skirts is approximately 95 minutes with no intermission. Please pee before entering.

Nosedive Productions Co-Founding Co-Artistic Director James Comtois said, "The folks at Molotov make exactly the type of theatre that excites us here at Nosedive Central: sweet, funny and horrifying all at once. So we're thrilled to be bringing their delightfully effed up play up to New York from DC."

“We’re grateful to the kindred spirits at Nosedive Productions for helping us put this show on its feet in New York,” said Molotov Artistic Director Kevin Finkelstein. “UNDER St. Marks is the perfect venue for us – shadowy, quirky and right in the middle of all the action. That’s the perfect recipe for Molotov’s special brand of nonsense.”

Written by Nicky Silver, Fat Men in Skirts was Molotov Theatre Group’s fifth Capital Fringe Festival production, and the first ever Capital Fringe show to be “Helen Hayes Awards Recommended.” The Helen Hayes Awards are Washington DC’s most prestigious theatre community honors – what the heck is Molotov doing getting this kind of recognition?

Critics reviewing the Capital Fringe production of Fat Men in Skirts heaped awkward praise on Molotov’s staging of the bizarre dark comedy:

"...a wonderful piece of theater art that inspires laughter, tears and three hot showers after viewing..." Maryland Theatre Guide (5 star review)

“…Surprisingly sweet for a play about rape and cannibalism…”: The Washington Post

“…Just the right tone for a Fringe play — it’s edgy, raw and a little nonsensical…”: DCist.com

“…I enjoyed [it] as much as one can enjoy a play that involves mental illness, rape, murder, and incest…”: dctheatrescene.com

“…Rethink your own revulsion when it comes to eating dead babies”: Washington City Paper

Fat Men in Skirts features DC area actors Katie Culligan, Dave Gamble, K. Clare Johnson and Matthew Marcus. The play follows the Phyllis Hogan and her son, Bishop, stranded on a desert island in an increasingly “interesting” relationship. Rescued five years later, they discover the family’s philandering patriarch involved with a young porn star. Chaos, insanity, violence, cannibalism, and sidesplitting hilarity ensue.

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR THE EMOTIONALLY OR PSYCHOLOGICALLY IMPRESSIONABLE OR FOR PEOPLE WITH CARDIAC OR NERVOUS CONDITIONS.

STRONGLY RECOMMENDED FOR COUNTER-CULTURAL, UNDERGROUND AND CULT FANS WITH PROPERLY WORKING HEART AND CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEMS.

FOR THE SAFETY OF THE ACTORS AND THE SEATED AUDIENCE, PEOPLE LEAVING THE THEATRE WHILE THE SHOW IS IN PROGRESS WILL NOT BE READMITTED.

About Molotov Theatre Group

Founded in 2007, Molotov Theatre Group is dedicated to preserving and exploring the aesthetic of the Grand Guignol, or French Theater of Horror. The company will strive to accomplish this in two ways:

• Through its ongoing project, “Grand Guignol DC,” to produce English translations of original Grand Guignol scripts to preserve and draw attention to this important, and essentially forgotten genre; and

• To apply ideals from the Grand Guignol to contemporary and classic works.

Molotov Theater Group will pursue these goals following the Grand Guignol model of employing a resident company of artists and working towards building a true rotating repertoire of plays. To our knowledge, no other company in the world is working to maintain this genre in such a traditional way. For more information, visit Molotov Theatre Group's site. Molotov Theatre Group is a not-for-profit professional theatre under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code — really!

Poltergeist (Tobe Hooper,* 1982)

As always, there's some stuff in here that could be construed as spoiler-y. Happy Snowy Halloween, folks!

Just like the Steven Spielberg-directed films Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (which was released a week after this film), the Steven Spielberg-produced supernatural horror film Poltergeist takes its audience to American suburbia. However, whereas those first two films are (in their own way) celebrations of suburban life, Poltergeist is a condemnation. In fact, Poltergeist reveals that suburbia's underbelly is quite literally teeming with rotting corpses.

Poltergeist is a haunted house film where the house in question is far too new to have ghosts. In fact, the house is being haunted precisely because it is new and its very presence offends the spirits.

I put the asterisk next to Tobe Hooper's name above—perhaps unfairly—to indicate the mini-controversy/debate surrounding who really directed Poltergeist. Although Hooper is credited as being the film's director, numerous accounts (as well as simple observable details) suggest that Spielberg (on top of being the credited writer and producer) was the true director of the film.

Though Spielberg has since insisted that Hooper was (is) the true director of Poltergeist, comparing the film with The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (Hooper's prior directorial effort) then with Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, or Close Encounters (Spielberg's) suggests otherwise. Poltergeist unmistakably looks like a Spielberg film, from its shot compositions to its score (where Jerry Goldsmith is doing his best John Williams impersonation).

Again, this could be incredibly unfair (I obviously wasn't there on the set and have spoken to absolutely no one involved in the making of the film), and I don't mean to disrespect Hooper (who did direct my favorite horror film of all time, after all) but I'd assert that Poltergeist ultimately represents Spielberg's, not Hooper's, vision. And ultimately, that's where I'm coming from with this entry.

Just as Gremlins would later be the dark and twisted version of E.T., Poltergeist is the evil twin of Spielberg's 1977 film Close Encounters. In fact, if watch the scene in the former where Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke) and Robbie (Oliver Robins) Freeling are attacked and abducted, followed by the scene in the latter where little Barry is taken from his mother, you could be forgiven for thinking they're from the same movie.

Whereas E.T. and Close Encounters ultimately evoke wonder while offering a touch of dread, Poltergeist reverses that balance—it evokes dread while offering a touch of wonder. And make no mistake: early in the film, when Diane (JoBeth Williams) notices the chairs in the kitchen slide across the room, the paranormal activity taking place in the Freeling family's house does inspire wonder. Then later that night, when the giant misshapen tree in the yard reaches into the kids' room and tries to eat Robbie and Carol Anne is sucked in through the closet wall to some sort of alternate dimension, the sense of wonder ends and the enervating horror begins.

(In fact, the movie does a really good job of conveying how draining the haunting is for the Freelings. After Carol Anne disappears, look at Craig T. Nelson's face in the following scenes. Through the bulk of the second act he looks as though he literally hasn't slept in days.)

Here's one example of how the spirits within the house torment and terrorize its inhabitants. I suppose I'd label it NSFW. I mean, if your boss walks by and sees you watching it, it may lead to some awkward conversations:

(I'd also like to point out that, like Jaws, this film was rated PG when it was originally released.)

In Poltergeist, the suburbs are not romanticized—they are a literal source of evil. When the opening credits roll, we see row upon row of sprawling identical houses, spanning out indefinitely. "I can't tell one house from the other," says one prospective homebuyer when Steven (Nelson), a real estate broker, shows off a house in Cuesta Verde, a suburb that, in Steven's words, his "company built."

In another early scene, Steven's wife Diane discovers that their daughter Carol Anne's pet bird has died. So, she and Carol Anne give it a funeral by putting it in a cigar box with a napkin for a blanket, a rose, some food, and other items, then burying it in the yard. We'll see later that all this care and respect will be for nothing, as a bulldozer will unceremoniously dig it back up and spill it back out onto the ground.

I realize I'm describing it to seem like a heavy-handed and clumsy bit of foreshadowing, but in execution it's actually quite deft and subtle—primarily because we're not let onto why all this aggressive paranormal activity is taking place in the Freeling family home.

And just why is all hell breaking loose in the house? This could be a clue as to why.

Thaaaat's right. The company that built the town unceremoniously mowed over a cemetery and desecrated the graves of countless souls. Oops.

Sure enough, the Freeling family gets the hell out of there before the house literally implodes and Steven's boss (who apparently gave the go-ahead to move the headstones but leave the bodies behind) inexplicably gets no comeuppance. Cue the subsequent following of two horrible yet inevitable sequels.

And because no write-up on Poltergeist would be complete with a reference to the traumatizing evil clown doll in the kids' room, here you go. You're welcome.

(Seriously, what little kid has that fucking thing as a toy? I suppose the same little kid who has a poster for Ridley Scott's Alien on his wall.)

With Poltergeist, which had another director credited, Spielberg was able to explore the dark side of his more wondrous, child-friendly creations yet keep himself at a safe, arm's length distance. Yes, Spielberg gave the world E.T. But the week before, he also gave the world that goddamn clown doll.

Never sleeping in a room with a clown doll,

James "Just...Smart That Way" Comtois

Coming this Halloween to a radio station near you...

This Halloween, FinalRune Productions and Aural Stage Studios presents an original horror story by Yours Truly...

Intensive Care

By James Comtois

Directed by Samantha Mason

Featuring
Nat Angstrom - Kristina Balbo - Janice Gardner
P.G. Lorusso - Hannah Kramer - Dave Marshall

Music by Barb Truex and Matthew J. Boudreau

Sound design by Matthew J. Boudreau

Recorded at the North Dam Mill in Biddeford, Maine, courtesy of mill owners and the City of Biddeford.

More details on the show, including where to hear it, can be found here.

Scaaawing your ears off,

James "Aural Nightmare" Comtois

Trav S.D. on The Blood Brothers

Although Captain Moonbeam & Lynchpin has closed, we've still got three more performances of The Blood Brothers present...FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE, playing over at the Kraine on East 4th Street in Manhattan.

Trav S.D. has just written some very kind words indeed for the show, calling it "by far the best" he's seen of the series. Wow. Thanks, Trav!

The next performance is tonight at 8:30. Get your tickets.

The Blood Brothers present...FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE Opens This Saturday!

Have you ever wanted to know what goes on in your child's bedroom after you put them to bed?

Have you wondered just how bad post-partum depression can get?

Have you always wanted to know how much a pig can eat before it gets full?

If so, then you're in luck, because the answer to these horrible questions – and more – will be answered when our first show of the summer, The Blood Brothers present...FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE opens THIS SATURDAY AT THE KRAINE! So get your tickets now!

As always, we promise creepy new plays based on true stories, violence, thrills, gore, disturbing nudity, gory violence, morbid humor, and of course, violence and gore.

So, y'know. Bring the kids.*

All shows are at the Kraine Theater on 85 East 4th Street (between Second and Bowery). Tickets are $20 ($15 for students) and may be purchased online or by calling 866-811-4111.

Saturday, June 11 @2pm

Friday, June 17 @6pm

Saturday, June 25 @5:30pm

Tuesday, June 28 @8:30pm

Saturday, July 2 @2pm

Sunday, July 3 @8pm

Dousing the audience in kerosene,

James "I Mean, 'Stage Blood'" Comtois

*Seriously, do NOT bring the kids. Not because it'll traumatize them (it probably will, but hey, they're your kids and therefore your problem), but because if you're the kind of parent who regularly takes children to shows like this, we don't want to know you. We just create plays about depraved individuals, we don't wanna go hang out and have drinks with them.

The Blood Brothers present ... FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE

From Nosedive Productions

and EndTimes Productions…

THE BLOOD BROTHERS PRESENT…
FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE

Written by James Comtois, Stephanie Cox-Williams,
Mac Rogers, Brian Silliman & Crystal Skillman

Directed by Pete Boisvert, John Hurley & Patrick Shearer

AS PART OF

ENDTIMES' VIGNETTES FOR THE APOCALYPSE V

JUNE 11 – JULY 3 @ THE KRAINE THEATER

A young beat cop follows up on a routine call, only to stumble upon a scene of unspeakable depravity. A child plays with her abductor, but where does the game end and reality begin? And a girl goes off in search of her little sister, only to discover that men really ARE pigs.

These tales and others make up this year's BLOOD BROTHERS PRESENT... horror anthology series. Following the tradition of the original Grand Guignol Theatre, James Comtois (The Little One), Stephanie Cox-Williams (The Zombie Project: The Story of Icarus Phoenix), Mac Rogers (Viral), Brian Silliman (The Magic of Mrs. Crowling) and Crystal Skillman (The Vigil, or The Guided Cradle) write new stage plays based on stories ripped from the headlines, where even the monster under your bed is real.

THE BLOOD BROTHERS PRESENT…FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE features nudity and graphic violence and is recommended for adults only.

Featuring Leah Carrell, TJ Clark, Stephanie Cox-Williams, Stephanie Finn, Marc Landers, Abraham Makany, Samantha Mason, Collin McConnell, Judy Merrick, Ingrid Nordstrom and Ben Schnickel.

THE BLOOD BROTHERS PRESENT…FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE is part of The EndTimes Productions' Vignettes for the Apocalypse V at The Kraine Theater (85 East 4th Street between Second Ave. and Bowery). Show times are Saturday, June 11 @2pm; Friday, June 17 @6pm; Tuesday, June 21 @6:30pm; Saturday, June 25 @5:30pm; Tuesday, June 28 @8:30pm; Saturday, July 2 @2pm and Sunday, July 3 @8pm. Tickets are $20 ($15 for students) and may be purchased online or by calling 866-811-4111.

“For sheer playful fun, make this gory confection your Halloween treat." Time Out New York

# # # #

www.nosediveproductions.com
www.endtimesproductions.org

Tix for Blood Brothers Now on Sale

That was fast.

Tickets are now on sale for The Blood Brothers present...FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE.

Why wait? Waiting is for choads. Get 'em now.

A total choad,

James "Pud Boy" Comtois

Coming This June at the Kraine: The Blood Brothers present...

This June and July at the Horse Trade Kraine Theater...

From Nosedive and EndTimes Productions

The Blood Brothers present...FREAKS FROM THE MORGUE

An all-new collection of gruesome horror tales for the stage,
based on true stories ripped from the headlines.

With new works by
James Comtois
Stephanie Cox-Williams
Mac Rogers
Brian Silliman
Crystal Skillman

Directed by
Pete Boisvert
John Hurley
Patrick Shearer

LIMITED ENGAGEMENT!

Saturday, June 11 @2pm

Friday, June 17 @6pm

Tuesday, June 21 @6:30pm

Saturday, June 25 @5:30pm

Tuesday, June 28 @8:30pm

Saturday, July 2 @2pm

Sunday, July 3 @8pm

At the Kraine Theater on 85 East 4th Street, NYC

Part of EndTimes Productions'
VIGNETTES FOR THE APOCALYPSE V

Tickets on sale soon.

Speaking at the December Fear Mongers

Hey, gang. For those of you still in the city, I'll be speaking at the Clay McLeod Chapman-curated lecture and Q&A Fear Mongers: Fireside Chats About Horror Tuesday night about the first horror film I saw in the theatre: Gremlins.

The fun takes place at Dixon Place on 161A Chrystie Street Tuesday, December 21 at 9 p.m. It's free, so make your reservations by calling 212-219-0736.

Also, check out clips, talks and interviews from previous Fear Mongers events here.

I've had a blast being an audience member for this series since Clay launched it in September, and now I'm doubly-psyched to be one of its guest lecturers.

Utterly terrified,

James "Public Speakerphobe" Comtois

The Dangers of Making That Ape Dance

There's more nattering on horror & theatre going on at the IT Awards blog, this time from Nosedive Central's very own Patrick Shearer. (No, the title to this blog post isn't just word salad; it's in reference to the contents of Patrick's very insightful post.)

Patrick talks about, amongst other things, the importance of the horror genre, growing up with nightmares, and being shaken (as I was) when he originally saw The Blair Witch Project (before all the hype). Check it out and discuss on their comments section.

And the quote's from Stephen King's Danse Macabre.

Wanting his 10 points,

James "Petty Pundit" Comtois

Nat Cassidy Talks Horror

Speaking of the NYIT Awards, playwright and director extraordinaire Nat Cassidy guest blogs for NYIT this week, offering up some of his thoughts on the horror genre. Check it the fuck out, scawy cats and cweepy kittens.

Your link to the outside blogosphere,

James "100% Content Free" Comtois

The "Queen of Gore!"

Huzzah! The New York Press has a feature on Nosedive Central's own Stephanie Cox-Williams about her being the Go-To Gal for blood and gore effects in our fair city's indie theatre scene.

(They even show a photo from The Little One demonstrating her work, tee-hee.)

Huzzah!

Beaming with pride,

James "Squibby" Comtois

The Little One and Yours Truly in the NY Times

Jason Zinoman has written an article in the New York Times about the emergence of horror-based theatre in all its varied forms, which features Yours Truly nattering about horror films and The Little One throughout. You can also read my homies Qui Nguyen and Clay McLeod Chapman talk about their different angles for showing—or not showing—violence and the macabre for the stage.

Putting the scawwy back in scary,

James "Stage Monster" Comtois

Daybreakers

(Since I'm working on a play about vampires at the moment and since one of my half-dozen readers asked why I stopped writing reviews for movies, I figured now would be as good a time as any to write up my thoughts on a film I just watched in my Netflix queue that was released in theatres earlier this year.)

Daybreakers takes place in 2019, when vampires are now in the majority and humans are an endangered species. That vampires now rule the world is made clear during the opening credit sequence, which shows a completely abandoned city during the day, then a metropolis teeming with fanged commuters getting their blood-filled coffee on their way to work after darkness falls.

In this vampire-run city, Ethan Hawke plays Edward Dalton, a hematologist and reluctant vampire seeking to create a synthetic blood replacement, since the human population is dwindling and recent reports suggest that the vampires' food supply (received mainly via comatose farmed humans) will be depleted by the end of the month. Reports also show that vampires become deformed feral monsters after only a couple of weeks of being deprived of human blood (complete with pointed ears, claws and bat-like wings).

The concept of vampires brought forth in Daybreakers is an inventive one, and one that makes perfect sense if vampires did in fact exist. In a short period of time, yes, vampires would radically outnumber humans, since all the humans would eventually either die or become converted. This means that the vampires' food supply would become scarce, then eventually extinct. The problem is also exacerbated when you consider that vampires are traditionally immortal, which means you now have to deal with feeding a species that will only grow in population but never die out.

Edward hopes that a blood replacement will put an end to the hunting and farming of humans. His boss Charles, however (played with demonic precision by Sam Neill), cares about profits and the bottom line, and still believes in capitalizing on the farming and selling of human blood for consumers willing to pay a little extra "for the real thing." What I particularly enjoyed about Neill's character is that he's much more of a corporate monster than a traditional one, fangs aside. This is one of the many nice touches that the movie offers, showing it is interested in conveying ideas rather than just showing off a penchant for gore (although wow, there is plenty of gore as well).

Edward eventually meets up with a band of humans led by Willem DaFoe who think they may have found a cure for vampirism. And here's where the movie brings in its most "take it or leave it" through-line. I won't reveal what the supposed cure is, but it may stretch the viewer's suspension of disbelief, even for a movie about vampires.

There are also a number of subplots in Daybreakers, including a through-line dealing with Sam Neill and his estranged (human) daughter, another concerning Ethan Hawke's strained relationship with his brother, and a whole subplot involving the government's callous handling of the starving feral vampire population. However, the movie doesn't feel overstuffed and handles these threads well (albeit somewhat truncated).

I admire the ideas and social commentary scattered throughout the movie (particularly in scenes like the one where a mini-riot breaks out at a Starbucks-like vendor when it changes its blood-to-coffee ratio). True, the commentary isn't exactly subtle, but then again, neither is the commentary in the films of George Romero.

I also admire that the film's writer-directors, Australian brothers Michael and Peter Spierig, delay the perfunctory shoot-em-up ending for as long as possible to continue doling out intriguing details of the world they've created (and might I add that the movie looks nice and slick, with the central city resembling elements of the cities found in Brazil, Blade Runner and Minority Report, yet still maintaining its own look). I also liked the cars and how they're set up to enable daytime driving.

Although I understand why, I think the reviews for Daybreakers were a tad unfair. No, it's not a mind-blowing work of art. Yes, it's a tad overstuffed. Yes, it's concept of a "cure" for vampirism is more than a little iffy. And yes, the final 10 minutes are as uninspired as its first 10 minutes are inspired. But despite these flaws, it's got a lot more going for it than many critics had led me to believe (hence me not seeing it in theatres during its original release). It's got a higher level of ambition than most mainstream horror films have had in the past decade. It has a new angle on the vampire tale. It has enjoyable performances (particularly from Neill and DaFoe). It has fun ideas. And hey: it also has lots of gore.

Liking his social commentary
to be chock-full of ultraviolence,

James "Lowbrow Philosopher" Comtois

S&Man (J.T. Petty, 2006)

Note: Due to the difficulty in getting a copy of this film (it's neither on Amazon.com or Netflix as of this writing - Mr. Clay McLeod Chapman lent me his copy), odds are that most of you reading this have not seen this film. So, unlike most horror film posts, I'll try to keep spoilers to a bare minimum.

J.T. Petty's S&Man (pronounced "sandman") is a profoundly disturbing and thoughtful film. I almost can't talk about it without giving away what makes it so unnerving (I also don't want to overhype it). But suffice it to say it gave me the retroactive willies several hours after watching it.

Originally intended as a documentary about a peeping tom from Petty's childhood town who videotaped thousands of hours of footage of his neighbors without their knowledge, S&Man becomes a documentary of sorts about the subculture of underground horror films when the peeping tom refuses to be interviewed.

The primary subjects of the documentary are Bill Zebub, who makes films with titles like Jesus Christ Serial Rapist, Fred Vogel of Toe Tag Films (director of August Underground) and Eric Rost, who makes the titular S&Man series, who becomes the real focal point of the film (for reasons I'll explain later).

Amidst the interviews with these filmmakers and documentary footage of their incredibly disturbing films, we have various talking head interviews with a "scream queen," a professor, a sexologist and a forensic psychologist who talk about, well, horror, fetishes and fetish films. The film then explores ideas of the audience's desire to have a visceral relationship with film (which is one the many reasons I enjoy horror films), with voyeurism, and with the desire to see the taboo.

Though primarily dealing with horror films, S&Man explores the connection between voyeurism and all filmmaking, and tries to get to the bottom of our fascination with violence and torture. It also suggests throughout that very few of us - if any - are really immune.

As a result, especially since I would consider myself a fan of horror films (duh), this film is one of the most unsettling and unnerving film-viewing experiences I've had in a while.

What's amazing about S&Man is that it genuinely wants to examine the appeal of horror films (even extreme ones), not just finger-wag at those who enjoy them. There's sincere reflection and contemplation here, not just easy - and smarmy - self-righteousness. (As a fan of horror films, I do find this ubiquitous and knee-jerk form of moralizing tiresome.) Petty is, after all, a director of horror films, so he has a great deal of love and respect for the genre.

One of the talking heads hypothesizes that often, insecure men who are unsuccessful with the ladies (or, "nerds," in the parlance of our times) enjoy watching pretty girls getting destroyed because they represent the girls that have rejected them all their lives.

(While the Berkeley professor and horror film scholar hypothesized this, I was reminded of watching a double-bill of two horror films with Steph and Yustin from Nosedive Central a couple nights before: one intelligent and thoughtful [Ginger Snaps, which I hope to write about as a future horror film post] and one incredibly stupid [Freddy Versus Jason]. Watching these movies back-to-back, it was interesting to see the stark contrast of how the films treated its young female characters [we popped in FvJ because Katharine Isabelle from Ginger Snaps was in it]. In Ginger Snaps, the teens are portrayed as believable, thinking and sympathetic characters, with relatable anxieties, frustrations and personalities. In FvJ, they're just stock, two-dimensional killer fodder: insipid hateful hardbodies who convey no discernable or interesting personalities. When they talk, it's only in clichés and/or to convey plot.)

There's also the flip side: while some horror films are designed to have the audience live vicariously through the killer, others are designed to have the audience live vicariously through the victim. (Halloween, for example, brilliantly offers both. The opening scene is literally from Michael's point of view, whereas the third act is completely from Laurie's.)

Watching this the first time round with bud and co-conspirator Abe Goldfarb, we noticed that these underground horror films covered in S&Man (based on the clips shown and the interviews from their makers) don't offer any reflection on, context for, or catharsis from its violence. There's no room for fear or pity, no room for thoughtful or sympathetic identification. Most of these films portrayed are designed for the viewer to offer identity with the killer, who is mostly killing personality-free pretty girls. They're made-to-order films to accommodate the fetishes of the filmmakers' audience base. Hell, even Bill Zebub says early on in the film: "I don't shoot these movies to be a piece of cinema, I shoot it so perverts give me money." Guess you at least have to admire the honesty.

(I'll also hand it to Vogel: although his films seem to be the most over-the-top and depraved in terms of content (think original Last House on the Left but more bloody and sadistic - yeah, I know), Vogel himself seems to be the most professional and put-together of the three filmmakers. He's mild-mannered, prefers to collaborate with people he trusts and who trust him, and it's clear that making his collaborators feel like they're in a safe environment is a major priority. In environs such as these, that's no small thing.)

Then, during the last third of the film, Petty is more explicit with the film's real subtext and goal: it's the hunt for the mythical "snuff" film (that most-likely fake subgenre of film where people are actually killed on camera).

And here's a good time to talk about Eric Rost, creator of the S&Man series. Oh, boy. Oh, boy.

Amidst Vogel, Bill Zebub and the experts talking about (amongst other things) snuff films, Perry tries to get more information from Eric about his brand of films and, more importantly, the truth behind the making of them.

According to Eric, a pudgy guy who lives in his mother's basement (seriously), he likes to follow pretty girls around and videotape them without their knowledge. Then, he approaches them, abducts them, and kills them.

The "episodes" of the S&Man series just has names of the girl's first name, followed by how they're killed. Here's a trailer for one of Eric's S&Man movies (NSFW):

The thing is, the more Petty grills Eric for information about how he makes his films, the more coy and evasive Eric gets. One minute, he talks about them like they're scripted films with consenting actresses, the next, he complains that one of the women ruined his shot because she "tried to escape." No, the women aren't aware that they're being followed...at first. No, they haven't taken any legal action once he's revealed himself to them. Has he kept in touch with any of the women afterwards? Nnnnnnnot really. Usually after filming they...part ways. When Petty asks for any of the women's contact information, Eric suggests that Petty give him his contact info, and he'll relay it to the women, so they can decide if they want to be interviewed.

He can't seem to give a straight answer. When Petty really starts to push him for honesty, Eric gets mad, and tells Petty and his crew to get lost (some of this can be found in the trailer above).

What the hell is going on here? Is Eric just trying to play up the mystique of his films, or is something more stomach-turning going on here?

BEGIN MILD POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING HERE. Petty does give us an answer to these questions - sort of. Many people may find the conclusion of this film a cheat or horrific betrayal. (Although let's not get into the odd can of worms concerning why a veiwer may be disappointed with the ending.) For me, I found the ending is precisely what gives the film its power. In a way, the film not only becomes the very thing it's exploring, but transcends it. It gave me the creeps like you wouldn't imagine and forced me to rethink what I had just seen - specifically, the scenes centered on Eric, particularly when he pretends to choke a very uncomfortable-looking Petty - which chilled me to the bone. END MILD POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING HERE.

Ultimately, the film is not about the makers of these depraved films so much as it is about us (which may be another reason why some folks may not be keen on the ending of the film). S&Man posits that one of the many desires that a viewer of horror films (or, really, anyone - not all those people rubbernecking to see a car wreck on the highway enjoy horror films) has, ranging from perverted and prurient to natural and primal, is to be punished and hurt in some way. And it spends its 90-minute run-time proving its point to the viewer, starting out as a rather pedestrian documentary about underground horror films then slowly and steadily becoming something more profound and unsettling.

Both more thoughtful about the
genre and freaked way the hell out,

James "Let's Watch A Romantic Comedy Now" Comtois

Clay Talks (Lesser-Known) Horror

Over at Awkward Press, Clay McLeod Chapman offers us a list many of us could use for our Netflix queues: the Top Ten Horror Movies of 2009 That You Probably Didn’t See.

Although I haven't seen many of the movies on this list (and neither have you, so don't act all superior), I have seen a few of them, including the movie on his #1 spot.

(At this point, I'll actually let you read the list before I put in my cent and a half on the entries I've seen. Go on. I'll wait.)

Back? Good.

I'm very much with Clay on his assessment of Chan-wook Park’s Thirst (it kinda takes forever to get going, but once it does, the final act makes it all worth the wait). In September, I wrote in my summer movie roundup that the movie has "some stunning imagery...and although it's a bit slow going and not particularly scary, it is a haunting and meditative take on the vampire mythology."

You guys have already read my assessment of the retro-awesomeness that was The House of the Devil, so I won't repeat myself. The link to my review (and my use of the made up compound adjective "retro-awesomeness") should suffice.

Now for the number one movie on his list. Deadgirl.

As I told Clay when I read the list, I'm very glad he posted this, since this is a very unnerving movie that (understandably) got very little attention from the critics. Basically, it's about two high school losers finding a naked and apparently undead girl chained up in the basement of an abandoned mental institute and using her as their personal sex slave. I'm not kidding.

I was contemplating writing about this movie after having seen it, but was very much on the fence about it and ultimately decided against it. It's not because I found this film about too disturbing (although it is very disturbing) or that it crosses some ethical line and is morally repugnant (it isn't, although it certainly appears that way; it's really about how weak people find ways to dominate others even weaker than them). It's because I found its two protagonists too vile and unlikable to care about in any meaningful way. The more dominant and sociopathic of the two friends, J.T., is just a straight-up psycho, and the character you're theoretically supposed to be rooting for, Rickie, is maddeningly, insufferably spineless.

Clay tells me that's one of the things he found so unnerving about Deadgirl: the two main characters are listless teenagers with no moral code and have no morally redeeming values whatsoever. This is a very valid point: it's obvious that the zombie girl isn't the monster in this film. (I still wish I didn't spend the movie wanting to punch the supposed hero of the piece in the area where his junk should be the whole time. Seriously, Rickie, grow a pair!)

And in his honorable mention section, I agree: if you consider yourself a science fiction fan and often complain about the dearth of good sci-fi films out there that don't insult the audience's intelligence and haven't seen Moon or District 9, quit your bitching and go see them immediately.

As for the rest of the movies on Clay's list, I'm Netflixing the fuckers.

Except for Antichrist. I think I'm done with von Trier.

Not done with the scawwy,

James "Deadguy" Comtois

The House of the Devil

The House of the Devil, the new horror film written, edited and directed by Ti West, is all about the slow build. Those seeking wall-to-wall violence will most likely be very disappointed. This is about ramping up the tension for as long as possible before unleashing the intensity.

Jocelin Donahue plays Samantha, a college sophomore who just landed a room in an off-campus house. Only problem is, she's dealing with some money problems and has to come up with $300 for rent by next week. While contemplating her money woes, Samantha sees flyer on a bulletin board on campus that says "Baby $itter Needed."

When she meets Mr. Ulman, the soft-spoken, well-dressed, yet ultra creepy man who posted the flyer (played by the always awesome Tom Noonan), he confesses that it's not a child she'll be attending to, but his mother. Although this throws Samantha for a loop, and her best friend, Megan (Greta Gerwig), tells her to walk away, Mr. Ulman offers her $400 to stay in the house until midnight. How can she refuse?

Aside from the fact that, you know, he and his wife (Mrs. Ulman, played by Mary Woronov) creep her the hell out, the house is in the middle of nowhere, and that Samantha doesn't have a car. She needs the money and is unaware that she's a character in a horror film, so we'll cut her some slack for accepting the gig.

The opening title cards about Satanic worship in America in the '80s (as well as, well, the title itself) lets you know this couple isn't who they say they are and aren't to be trusted, which adds to the tension and suspense all the more. We know right out of the gate they're up to no good and have sinister intentions with Samantha, so we're stuck waiting with bated breath for the proverbial shoe to drop as Samantha bides her time in the giant house with no sign of this mother she has to tend to.

And yes: the audience's patience is rewarded. The shoe definitely drops. Oh, boy, does it drop.

The House of the Devil takes place in 1982, but more than that: it looks like it was made in the early '80s, with the scratchy and faded film print, dated opening titles and corresponding freeze-framed shots. Plus, the characters look like they're living in 1982, as opposed to attending an '80s-themed costume party.

Another thing that's impressive about The House of the Devil is that West uses many tropes of early-80s horror films - babysitters in peril, a creepy and presumably empty mansion, Satanic worship - without relying on clichés or cheap "gotcha" moments. In fact, the two times I jumped in the first half of the movie were moments when things actually happened (rather than, say, someone being startled by a cat; speaking of which, there is no cat in this movie, I'm happy to say).

West and Donahue succeed in making Samantha a likable, sympathetic and believable heroine, not a bird-brained coed. She's a character, not an archetype. In fact, the acting across the board is top shelf and grounds the film in reality.

Is this movie groundbreaking? Of course not. Is it an exceptional technical exercise? Perhaps. (Although I'd say the above-mentioned acting and believability of Samantha makes this more than just a technical exercise.) But considering the current wave of new horror films being released are about ratcheting up the body count and gore with no consideration for suspense, it's admirable and refreshing to see a new horror film that's all about showing restraint for as long as possible before letting all hell break loose.

Not eating the pizza,

James "Lunar Eclipse Fanatic" Comtois

And...Scene

After a short four-performance run, The Blood Brothers Present...The New Guignol has gone up into the Great Production in the Sky. I was (am) really proud of both this show and everyone who worked on it. The cast & crew really brought their A-games to this and stepped out of their comfort zones (and plus, were overall very fun to be around each night), and I eagerly await playing with everyone involved again in the near future.

This may have been one the most balls-out fun I've had working on and seeing a Nosedive show. I ended up getting downright schoolgirl giddy each night when we opened the house and had people filing in. I'm a little sad to see it go.

Many, many thanks and much love to everyone who worked on this and came to see the show. This was an absolute blast.

As sad as I am that we're closed, I am looking forward to using some newly-acquired free time to lay low, see a couple plays here and there, work on rewrites for The Little One, and simply enjoy some leisure time before starting rehearsals for the latest episode of Entrenched for the next Saturday Night Saloon.

I also just wanted to offer a note of congratulations to Brian Enk, Matt Gray, and everyone involved in the Sinister Six Must Be Destroyed film series, which I attended Sunday evening and thoroughly enjoyed.

All in all, it was a really satisfying Halloween weekend for me. This may be one of those highs I'll try to ride (and milk) for a couple of weeks.

Doing what he can to stave
off post-show depression,

James "Bloodstuffed" Comtois

Check Out Buck-Buck's Shout-Out

This is also happening this weekend, which many of us in Blood Brothers and Nosedive Central are a part of. Kid Sister Comtois has directed a short piece I've written (featuring Stephanie Cox-Williams, Marc Landers, Brian Silliman, Sistois herself and Daryl Lathon), Patrick's written & directed a piece that Abe Goldfarb & Madame Renee Rosebud is in, Danny Bowes has a piece featured, and Blood Brothers actress Becky Byers is in one of the shorts.

In short, Nosedive's hijacked Bryan Enk's evening of slasher films.

And speaking of the two Becky's, Daryl just sent this along, plugging the evening but really highlighting their entries.

Well, Kid Sistois, I guess you're an important woman in horror. Woo-hoo!

An unimportant man in horror,

James "More of a Rom-Com Guy" Comtois

Horror Film Posts

For your convenience, here is the list of horror film posts on this site thus far (with the most recent entry on the top of the list). Since the list is getting a little unruly for the sidebar, I'm replacing the individual links to each horror post on the sidebar with this one. I'll continue to update this list as I write new entries.

Poltergeist

S&Man

The Serpent and the Rainbow

The Shining

Rosemary's Baby

Alien

The Exorcist

Carrie

The Fly

Black Christmas

Them (Ils) & The Strangers

Twin Peaks: Episode 29

The Mist

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer

1408

The Last House on the Left

Gremlins

Audition (Odishon)

An American Werewolf in London

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre

Dawn of the Dead

Halloween

Making your life easier,

James "Convenient Schlockmeister" Comtois