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Posted on May 3, 2016

First Look: Beacon Point (2016)

Update: Beacon Point will premiere in LA at Dances with Films on Friday, June 10th @ 11:30pm at the Chinese Theater. Get tickets here.

There has been a trend in recent years for American horror films to offer audiences either a cerebral horror experience or one steeped in gory visuals. But as a fan of the ways in which both modes of storytelling can offer a deeply personalized viewing experience, I’ve been waiting for a film to merge both approaches successfully. Beacon Point, director Eric Blue’s first foray into feature filmmaking, is that film.

We are first introduced to Zoe (Rae Olivier), who impulsively quits her job to embark on a group hike on the Appalachian Trail. She is joined in this adventure by a rag tag group of equally inexperienced hikers: Dan (Eric Goins), a Silicon Valley success story dealing with a recent divorce, along with Brian (Jason Burkey) and Cheese (RJ Shearer), two recently reunited brothers. As they are led off the beaten trail by their secretive tour guide Drake (Jon Briddell), a series of grisly discoveries sets the stage for a terrifying adventure that lingers with you long after the ending credits have rolled.

Posted on April 4, 2016

Stay Tuned: Serialized Storytelling and The Walking Dead

Elizabeth Erwin

In 2013, George A. Romero famously told The Big Issue, “They asked me to do a couple of episodes of The Walking Dead but I didn’t want to be a part of it. Basically it’s just a soap opera with a zombie occasionally. I always used the zombie as a character for satire or a political criticism and I find that missing in what’s happening now.” While I disagree with Romero’s assertion that The Walking Dead lacks social commentary, last night’s cliffhanger ending does raise some questions as to the show’s approach to serialized storytelling.

That the show utilizes established soap opera tropes is without question. From the Rick/Lori/Shane love triangle that results in a pregnancy of questionable parentage to an ample supply of teenage angst courtesy of Carl and Enid, the show has a consistent track record of employing storytelling devices first manifested in the soap opera format. Yet, unlike Romero, I believe that this approach to the narrative is ultimately beneficial because it creates an unusually high degree of audience involvement.

Posted on March 29, 2016

Short Cuts: Senior Citizen Rage in Homebodies (1974)

Elizabeth Erwin

From Minnie and Roman Castevet in Rosemary’s Baby (1968) to Grandpa Chapman in Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984), American horror has a troubling track record in how it depicts aging. Often used as a means of creating a sense of otherness, age is portrayed consistently as being horrific and fraught with evil undercurrents. Culturally, this makes sense. It is not at all surprising that as society has created new means by which to stave off the appearance of aging, the preponderance of elderly, villainous characters in film has increased. And certainly the fact that most of these villains are elderly females is not coincidental.

And so it was with great interest that I recently watched the cult classic Homebodies (1974). Revolving around the plight of a group of senior citizens who are displaced from their homes in the name of gentrification, the film’s portrayal of its elderly characters reflects the “evil elderly” construct while simultaneously inverting its more problematic elements, specifically that age is something to be feared. In the scene above, the tyrannical land developer meets his demise courtesy of the ingenuity of Mattie, the ringleader of the group. With a dark humor sensibility (the gang deals with Mr. Crawford’s foot not being encased in the cement by simply chopping it off), this scene is vital in positioning the elderly killers as both threatening and deserving of our sympathy.

Posted on March 24, 2016

The Function of Queerness on The Walking Dead

Elizabeth Erwin

As I have noted before, there is a danger in dissecting a television narrative that is still in the process of unfurling. Initially it was my intention to write about how queerness functions within The Walking Dead’s (television) universe after the final episode of season 6. However, on Monday night (March 21, 2016) an exchange occurred on Twitter that made me think this is a more pressing conversation. Read more

Posted on March 7, 2016

6 Essential Pre-Code Horror Films

Elizabeth Erwin

To say that I’m a sucker for a well-crafted, classic horror tale brimming with salaciousness would be an understatement. And so it was with more than a little glee that I read about Turner Classic Movie’s month long film series devoted to tackling those films which made the Legion of Decency’s hair stand on end. I’ve written about American horror during this time period and I’ve always wanted to compile a short list of recommended pre-code American horror films as a complement. So here is my list of 6 essential films that will give you a taste of what horror was like pre-code. With everything from a killer with a fondness for meat suits to maniacal scientists hell bent on playing God, these films are a showcase for the cinematic perversions that left many audience members clutching their pearls.