Highlights from The Phoenix Film Festival 2018 – Part 3
Article by Ray Schillaci
Now, we’re getting to the nitty-gritty as I enter the creepy and fantastic territory of the International Horror and Sci-Fi Film Festival. I was able to catch a few of the shorts offered, including writer/director Duncan Roe’s Best Sci-Fi short winner, Noro. Roe takes us into the drama of a woman attempting to cope with the loss of her son through therapy. After a simple accident, the mother begins to question if her son actually died. Noro is a well thought out piece of science fiction that continues to have me thinking about it long after the film is over.
On the horror end, stunt coordinator turned writer/director/producer Sean Skene gave us some spooky chills with his gill man from Fisher Cove, and ended up nosediving into winning Best Horror Short. Skene has a number of impressive genre credits from his stunt work including Wolf Cop, Cult of Chucky, and two beloved cult cable series, Fear Itself and Channel Zero. With that background, Skene knows a thing or two about the genre, what works and what doesn’t and the man exceeds expectations for his literal fish-out-of-water frightener. What at first appears to be a humorous fishing trip turns deadly. This one was a great catch at the festival.
What Metal Girls Are Into gave us three bad ass gals taking on a head banging festival in the middle of nowhere only to encounter a weird and possibly dangerous owner of the place they’re renting. Writer/director/producer/actress Laurel Vail has a great deal of fun turning the tables on those that stalk women in movies. Vail has a natural way of making us laugh and getting us creeped out at the same time. The young women she has gathered around her may be edgy, but they are also a likable bunch you cannot help but root for.
One of my favorites on the horror end of shorts was Adam Losurdo and Chris Stival’s Hope, turning the zombie genre on its rotted ear. Director Losurdo unravels a poignant tale of peaceful zombies that have no desire for human flesh. They merely wander around looking for meaning. One zombie in particular, Karl, pines over a dead partner, Hope. His quest is sadly rocky since those alive tend to bully the walking dead, punching, stabbing, and shooting them at times. Even a zombie can only take so much, especially when losing hope. Losurdo and Stival’s story is simple and, at the same time, highly inventive. It’s as if they give the zombies a new purpose and a reason for the outcome that we accept without question. At the same time, they pepper their story with good humor and a great deal of humanity…even though their lead character is dead.
On the feature end of sci-fi, writer/director/producer Maurice Haeems presents a contemplative sci-fi drama/thriller with Chimera. An obsessive genius freezes his children alive to race against time and battle the genetic disease afflicting them. His theory: to extract DNA from the Turritopsis jellyfish that is considered immortal. Not only is Haeems’ film based on facts, but he has weaved a dramatic thriller that raises questions and enthralls at the same time (and was the reason Chimera won Best Science Fiction Film).
For a first time filmmaker, Haeems successfully operates on all cylinders in the genre with an impressive cast. Henry Ian Cusick (Lost, The 100) is effective as the troubled genius, Quint. It’s the kind of role Cusick excels in. He easily runs with it while we still relate to his human side, even though he’s off the charts beaming with ideas that can boggle the normal mind. Among the other recognizable faces are Kathleen Quinlan (Breakdown, Apollo 13) as Masterson and Erika Ervin (American Horror Story, Hemlock Grove) as Dita Cruze.
Spanning over a 40-year career in the industry, it’s always a pleasure to see Ms. Quinlan whether it be on the small or big screen. She always manages to bring a sense of class to so many of her projects, and Chimera is no exception, even though she’s playing an evil corporate bitch. The only problem one could find is placing her with a sidekick that she could overpower. But, Erika Ervin holds her own, and then some. She is a force to be reckon with, and why has somebody not cast her in a Bond film yet?
An important mention is also in order to actress Karishma Ahluwalia as Jessie, the voice of reason and the wife of the distraught genius. Jessie has such a calming sense that’s needed amongst Professor Quint’s angst over his impossible problem solving and Haeems frenetic storytelling. It’s largely due to Ahluwalia’s performance that we can keep up with the story. It should be noted that her authentic sounding accent took time to develop. She mastered it by carefully examining her older family members. In her Q&As, Ahluwalia had no accent at all.
For the more techie crowd, Haeems is a blessing, and for us layman he doesn’t spoon-feed us, but he does have us thinking quite beyond simple sci-fi entertainment. He can pull at the heart strings as well as experience the frustration and fear of our main character. Haeems has created a personal journey into the mind of a genius walking that fine line and nearly dipping into madness surrounding his sojourn with intrigue and corporate greed. Chimera is a fascinating film filled with immense ideas and is a challenge to its viewers.
On the horror end, those receiving the biggest buzz included Rock Steady Row, Downrange, To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story, Marla Mae, Cynthia, Secret Santa, and The Evil Within. One heck of a lineup. But, I wasn’t able to catch all the nightmares in the few nights afforded to me.
Rock Steady Row has a college freshman exacting his revenge on not only the bully-like fraternities, but also the dean of the college as well. The film split its audience with some considering it more of a drama than falling into the horror category, but it did strike a tone reminiscent of recent headlines. Downrange was an intense experience as it pit young people against a sniper after their van has a blowout. To Hell and Back: The Kane Hodder Story is based on the harrowing book of the same name. How Kane Hodder (Jason Voorhees – Friday the 13th series) pulled through torment and bullying as a child, and later survived a near-death experience with a burn accident only to become one of the most famous and beloved stuntman/villains in horror history. The fans ate this one up.
Andrew Getty’s The Evil Within presented a lonely, mentally handicapped young man who finds a friend in his reflection in an antique mirror. That reflection ends up being a demon played by beloved horror genre icon and 70 year-old Michael Berryman (Wes Craven’s 1977 classic The Hills Have Eyes). The demon gets his victim to go on a murder spree killing the ones closest to him. Frederick Koehler as Dennis the mentally challenged soon-to-be-maniac is both sympathetic and frightening. His is a potboiler performance.
The story behind the film and filmmaker is even more fascinating. Andrew Getty was an heir to the Getty fortune. His paternal grandfather was J. Paul Getty. Writer/director Getty was a businessman, filmmaker and philanthropist and spent fifteen years working on The Evil Within, eventually getting a tentative release date of 2017. Sadly, he would not see the true fruition of his project since he passed away in 2015. Unfortunately, I was pulled off to do a Q&A in the middle of this film. But, what I saw was a creepy and tragic tale that ended up winning Best Horror Film.
There were two films that some may claim were derivative, but I considered them acts of bizarre love and homages to popular cult films. One took a far more serious tone while the other was bat-sh*t crazy fun. Marla Mae reminded me of 2007’s Teeth where a young girl discovered she had a dangerous vagina. That film either tickled audiences or repulsed them. But, first time writer/director and actress Lisa Van Dam-Bates had a far more dour and serious tone to her vagina monologue. Her teeth are far bigger and are not satisfied with just a male member. All this transpires due to a suspicious family friend who offers her a free IUD.
Although uneven and slow in its beginning, Van Dam-Bates unravels a tale of torment and horror that reminded me of the efforts of earlier filmmakers and their passion projects – George A. Romero’s Martin (’78) and Richard Franklin’s Patrick (’78). Her characters are lower class misfits, but she never looks down on them and neither do we. There is genuine sadness in Marla, and Van Dam-Bates captures that perfectly with her characterization, writing and directing. The film may not be for the average horror genre fan, but it will be appreciated and loved by those looking for something very different with teeth.
The other film exhibiting girl power was Cynthia, with the perfect couple working overtime to have a child only to have twins, but with only one coming out normal. The other ends up disguised as a large tumor and is taken to be dumped only to escape and wreak havoc, leaving a trail of bloody corpses. Directors Devon Downs and Kenny Gage, working from a script by producer Robert “Corpsey” Rhines, traverses chaotic horror/comedy territory with plenty of gore to spare.
Sure, their film reminds me of cult fave Frank Henenlotter’s Basket Case and Brain Tumor, while turning back the clock to Larry Cohen’s ’74 classic It’s Alive with some makeup efx that resemble Tobe Hooper’s creature from Funhouse. With all that being said, everyone had a good time hooting and hollering at the antics provided by these filmmakers that know how to meet the needs of their audience. Not only did they make us laugh and gasp, but they managed to get us to squirm as well. Obviously, Cynthia is not a mainstream film. It spits in the face of mainstream audiences and demands to be loved by the horror cult crowd.
While we’re on the subject of rebels, let me tell you that writer/director Adam Marcus personally warned his audience before revealing his film that there would be something to offend everyone. So, the crowd was prepared…or were they? Starting with the inventive and very amusing opening credits and reveling in its mayhem, madness, and bawdy humor about the worst family holiday dinner ever, Secret Santa is obviously out to slay.
Marcus, with his co-writer Debra Sullivan, have fashioned a nasty bit of yuletide terror inviting us in on a Christmas Eve dinner with the most dysfunctional family imaginable, and adding to their misery a punch spiked with a truth serum that has nasty results. Verbal barbs escalate to getting physical and eventually deadly with anything that can be used as a weapon, from corkscrew to lawn tools. Let your imagination run wild.
Marcus and Sullivan’s story works in large part to an amalgamation of talent behind and in front of the camera. Marcus keeps us guessing as to who’s next, and the actors are a good humored bunch that apparently have no problem with all the bloodletting. What I wouldn’t give to see outtakes on this bunch.
A Leslie Kies plays April, the sweet innocent of the band of lunatics. She’s brought her date to her family because things are getting serious. But, the question you have to ask yourself is, would you subject anyone you love to this family?
That’s what makes Secret Santa so much fun. We’re seeing this band of misfits through their eyes: the overbearing mother, a lecherous stepbrother, a stammering weakling younger brother, the philandering father, and the pissed-off-at-the-world sister. Yes, there are others that are equally uncomfortable to be around, but there is so much frenetic energy here that it’s hard to keep up with only one viewing, which is why the audiences packed in for all three screenings.
Writer/actress Debra Sullivan as Shari, April’s shrew of a mother, and Pat Detro as Aunt Carol, the bitch-on-wheels, are a riot as their disdain for each other grows. Funny thing here, Sullivan seems to be channeling some of the comedic timing of actress Molly Shannon. At times, she actually resembles Shannon.
Other stand-outs are Ryan Leigh Seaton as the literal bad (and mad) Penny. God, this woman is funny! She’s so miserable, and we have no idea what she’s capable of. Also, Nathan Hendrick is properly over-the-top as Jackson, the over-sexed stepbrother who is properly paired with his over-sexed date Jaqueline, played with a steamy gusto by Michelle Renee Allaire. And, who could forget Uncle Carter! Curtis Fortier as Carter is so much damn fun on screen you can’t help but wish there was more of him.
Marcus and Sullivan have gathered the family from hell and puts them through a literal bloody hell with a body count that includes dismemberment and eye gouging. We do end up having our favorite members of the family that we root for, and it should be remembered that there’s no guarantee they’ll survive to open their presents. But, hey it’s all in fun. Secret Santa delivers the bloody goods with a sinister Christmas sneer.
Remember: Life is too short not to be entertained.
