A ROUGH GUIDE TO FRIGHTFEST 2008 Leicester Square, London August 21st-25th 2008

Leicester Square, London
August 21st-25th 2008

(Note : Full reviews of many of the movies mentioned below will be appearing on The Horror Review over the next week or so).

By Steven West

www.frightfest.co.uk</a>

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DAY ONE : When Hoodies Attack

The ninth annual Frightfest unfolded for the last time at London’s Odeon West End, a building to be demolished and replaced with a casino, thus necessitating a move next year to the more prestigious Empire. To a packed auditorium – weekend passes this year sold out in an unprecedented twelve hours – one of the strongest ever Frightfest line-ups unfolded, confirming the horror genre to be alive, well and still capable of kicking its audience in the nuts. From relatively modest origins, the Frightfest has grown into easily the U.K.‘s most popular and respected genre-related movie festival, and in terms of atmosphere, guests and quality movies, it seldom disappoints.

Common threads swiftly emerged among the 27 feature films. Downbeat endings were back in fashion, and a number of filmmakers relished the chance to pay homage to the 80’s splatter films of their youth (while others preferred to echo the survivalist themes and bleak mood of 70’s horror). Despite evidence that so-called “torture porn” had wheezed to a halt, there were a large number of screaming, attractive young women being tied down to gurneys / tables and mutilated / tortured. (And that was just in The Phoenix nightclub after the festival!). In perhaps the most surprising mini-trend, two movies focused heavily on mutant penises and mutated female genitalia, perhaps a response to last year’s memorable TEETH.

As is now tradition, opening night saw organizers Ian Rattray, Paul McEvoy and Alan Jones – and a decent portion of the audience – decked out in formal evening wear. The affability of the Frightfest team and their eagerness to interact with both regulars and non regulars alike have always given the festival a personal, extra-friendly dimension that many similar events notably lack. You’re never in doubt that these dudes are fans, just like you or I.

Four well-liked directors at Frightfest (left to right) : Gregg Bishop, Joe Lynch, Neil Marshall and Adam Green.

An opening sketch created by Adam Green and Joe Lynch set the tone for the most purely enjoyable aspect of the weekend. The two young filmmakers didn’t have a feature film to show this year, having provided past crowd pleasers HATCHET and WRONG TURN 2 : DEAD END. They did still, however, show up for a substantial part of the festival to kick back, watch the movies and chat to fans, many of whom had already established a rapport with the hilarious directors at past fests.

They also brought with them a hilarious, semi-improvised short movie for every night of the festival : each one riffing on the wonderful “Do you wanna see something really scary?” prologue of TWILIGHT ZONE THE MOVIE with surprising and very funny results. The skits were so well received that each night’s fresh one seemed to receive an even bigger cheer, to the point where the final one was as rapturously welcomed as any of the weekend’s feature films.

Launched via a cute pastiche of the old Warner Bros’ logo – Green and Lynch calling themselves “Douche Brothers” in the first of an endless series of self-deprecating gags – the opening night skit captured the fan boy rapport and cheeky schoolboy humor that have endeared Frightfesters to the filmmakers. The initial sketch also featured the first in a series of knowing cameos, as Lynch’s madly grinning promise of “something really scary” (a dynamic running gag almost as funny as the guys’ varied choice of music to groove along to while driving from the USA to Leicester Square) results in the appearance of gorgeous Danielle Harris…with a dick.

As for the first night’s feature films, writer-director James Watkins and prominent stars Michael Fassbender and Jack O’Connell were very entertaining guests for the outstanding first film’s world premiere : referring to an early, relatively innocuous scene in the otherwise punishingly grim EDEN LAKE, O’Connell cheerfully advised that a prosthetic penis was used in lieu of his real member. EDEN LAKE, a graphically nasty and nihilistic survivalist shocker exploiting the all-too real fears of contemporary Britain about youth violence and knife crime, suggested that Watkins – involved in the upcoming THE DESCENT 2 – is a genre talent to watch.

It seemed to please almost everybody, though the cricket-themed slasher spoof I KNOW HOW MANY RUNS YOU SCORED LAST SUMMER – framed by an obviously drunk co-director Stacey Edmonds and her filmmaking partner Doug Turner – disappointed many and looked vulnerably cheap on the Odeon’s big screen. Everyone shifted over to Cineworld Cinema on Shaftesbury Avenue for the special 3-D screening of SCAR, which proved the most unenthusiastically received until a certain chili parlor film on Saturday night… This SAW-era retro-slasher item followed RUNS by continuing a retro-80’s feel that would stretch for the entire weekend though the 3-D gimmick was miserably under-used and the traditionally ultra-enthusiastic ‘fest audience didn’t even perk up much when some perfect boobs made a welcome on-screen appearance.

DAY TWO : MUM & DAD & FRANK

Regular Frightfester Amy Finn with TRAILER PARK OF TERROR director Steven Goldman.

Seven movies made Friday a typically packed Frightfest day, with almost everything copping a mixed reaction. Some found THE STRANGERS – already a sizable hit in the U.S. – unremarkable mainstream shtick, others were scared, and there was an audible sense of unease during probably its greatest shock moment (despite the fact that it was already spoiled by the trailer and poster). TIME CRIMES, BAD BIOLOGY, TRAILER PARK OF TERROR and, particularly, MUM AND DAD (one of the sleepers of the fest) seemed to please most quarters and originally scheduled movie THE SUBSTITUTE was, erm, substituted by the generally well received Spanish movie KING OF THE HILL.

An entertaining bunch of special guests added to the fun of this movie marathon. Steven Goldman was an amiably modest host for his impressive TRAILER PARK OF TERROR and the appearance of almost the entire main cast of MUM & DAD on stage helped seal the deal for that jaw-dropping flick. There was something uniquely unsettling, having watched the harrowing movie, about watching the two lead actors doling out suitably whacked prizes to “lucky” festival goers (Mum’s knife rack, Dad’s toolbox were the prizes in question).

The least enthusiastically received movie of the day was FREAKDOG, the only film of the festival that screened for the first time anywhere in the world : in a move rare since the debacle of NINE LIVES in the 2002 festival (it starred Paris Hilton, ‘nuff said), even Alan, Paul and Ian hadn’t seen it beforehand. Paddy Breathnach (whose heart didn’t seem in it) and actor Andrew Lee Potts took to the stage to field questions but the audience were all too clearly lukewarm about the movie.

The day’s biggest guest coup was the first UK appearance of Frank Henenlotter, who gamely hung around to sign autographs at 2am after the appropriate midnight showing of BAD BIOLOGY, his first movie in over a decade. Henenlotter (who related a recent battle with cancer) was joined in the twilight Q & A by impressive stars Charlee Danielson and Anthony Sneed, both of whom give astonishingly ballsy performances in the deliberately OTT tale of genital mutation and giant cock rampages.

As for Day 2’s “Douche Brothers” presentation, it was another crowd pleaser, with big laughs greeting its marvelously off-color references to last year’s audience-baiting THE GIRL NEXT DOOR and a sublime punch line with Jason Vorhees, no less.

DAY 3 : Lionsgate? Schmionsgate!

With as many movies packed in as Friday’s seven-strong line-up, day three inevitably provoked some snoozing during a couple of the slower, artier items – in this case, pretentious animated anthology FEAR(S) OF THE DARK and derivative Korean thriller THE CHASER, though neither were as ill-received as the low, low budget BUBBA’S CHILLI PARLOR. Director and several key cast members were on hand for the Q and A, but the movie – which was the most common choice for least favorite movie of the weekend – looked vulnerable on the big screen and was just an endurance test to sit through. Enough of the grotty “Grindhouse” homage’s, already!

Infinitely better received were MANHUNT – attended by affable director Patrik Syversen, co-star Nini Bull Robsahm and gaunt-looking composer Simon Boswell – TOKYO GORE POLICE (in a perfectly suited midnight slot) and, one of the sleeper hits of the whole festival, DANCE OF THE DEAD. The latter, whose laidback director Gregg Bishop was in attendance, enjoyed an unexpectedly rapturous reception from an audience wowed by a zombie flick with original ideas, genuine wit and characters to warm to.

MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN, carelessly thrown away in the U.S. thanks to the misguided antics of Lionsgate, turned out to be one of the most dynamic and gruesome American horror films of the past year. The eye-popping fate of traditionally hapless Ted Raimi enjoyed perhaps the most enthusiastic reception, though after the film there was also a significant buzz surrounding ten or so minutes of preview footage from the next Clive Barker movie adaptation, BOOK OF BLOOD.

A late-night reel of vintage 70’s exploitation trailers (a Frightfest tradition) and another great Douche Brothers presentation – this time with the legendary MANIAC exploding head as the punch line – added to the grisly fun of Frightfest Saturday.

DAY 4

DAY FOUR : SUNDAY, BLOODY SUNDAY

Phil Mucci’s haunting, beautifully crafted 14 minute silent horror movie pastiche THE LISTENING DEAD opened day four of Frightfest in great style. Employing stop-motion animation and a wonderfully atmospheric piano-based original score by Peter Scriba, this tale of a haunted composer and his wife is a mini Gothic masterpiece that suggests a bright future for all concerned. The day’s other short film reinforced the outstanding standard of short films throughout the weekend and was shown alongside its director’s feature film THE BROKEN. With both films, photographer-turned-filmmaker Sean Ellis proved to be a bright talent, though his short, LEFT TURN was particularly strong : the 2001 film tells an urban legend-style tale of a murderous hag-like hitchhiker and sustains a potent sense of menace. It also pulls of a startling reveal sequence involving the contents of a bag that both chills and (thanks to a hilariously nonplussed English policeman) amuses.

The day’s features, although varying wildly in tone and producing contrasting audience reactions (MARTYRS became the working definition of love-it-or-hate-it extreme cinema), proved consistently interesting. From America came three very different horror films : the boldly downbeat teen flick FROM WITHIN, Adam Gierasch’s terrific 80’s horror homage AUTOPSY and the equally retro-minded JACK BROOKS MONSTER SLAYER. Director Pascal Laugier was on hand to field questions about the festival’s most contentious movie, the deeply disturbing MARTYRS and intelligently discussed the movie’s core themes, its grim production history (including the recent suicide of its make-up effects artist and a serious injury on set) and the graphic nature of recent French horror. During this emotionally shattering movie, there were alleged walk-outs and even a vomiting scenario, though, in its aftermath, Laugier’s film provoked more debate (torture porn vs. art) than any other movie of the weekend.

The day’s other guests were just as entertaining and approachable : co-writer Jace Anderson and director Gierasch were hugely charming guests for AUTOPSY : the latter memorably paced around in a nervous fashion for hours before the film’s premiere, fearing a negative reaction. He needn’t have, for AUTOPSY came close to matching DANCE OF THE DEAD in terms of being a festival sleeper hit with the crowd. Trevor Matthews, title star of JACK BROOKS MONSTER SLAYER, proved as charismatic and laidback in person as he is in the movie, and spoke with huge enthusiasm about working with Robert Englund and the possible cinematic future of the JACK BROOKS franchise. And John Ajvide Lindquist, who adapted his own highly admired novel for LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (probably the most warmly received film of the weekend), was a frank and hilarious on-stage guest. A non-horror fan whose disarming approach to the vampire sub-genre won many converts, Lindquist amusingly reflected on how his novel’s title proved too long for the American marketplace and led to publisher’s requests to be changed to either LET ME IN (nonsensical) or LET HER IN (proving, in his words, that they hadn’t actually read the book and its twist). Both titles made nonsense of the movie’s Morrissey-homaging original name.

Finally, the festival’s fourth Adam n Joe short uniquely opened with the directors exuberantly singing along to 80’s anthem “I Think We’re Alone Now” by Tiffany prior to a discussion of favorite horror directors that culminated with a winning John Landis cameo.

DAY FIVE : THE (NEARLY) DEAD INSIDE

There were no connected guests for the final two movies of Frightfest, mostly because they were both major studio mainstream big-star releases : even the most pessimistic of fest-goer probably still held out some fan boy hope that the unlikely event of a Kiefer Sutherland or even Jason Statham appearance would become a reality. Alas, we just had the movies to enjoy, and its fair to say that both were largely relished by the packed house. Alexandra Aja’s MIRRORS was an almost total wash-out as a horror film though the widespread unintentional mirth provoked by its consistent stupidity made it more fun than it will probably ever be again. This was a great example of how the Frightfest audience can truly bring a movie to life – even if, in this case, it was for all the wrong reasons. Somewhat sneered at when first announced, closing film DEATH RACE did what it said on the tin and enjoyed some partly drunken applause during all the right moments (including Joan Allen’s use of the word “cocksucker”).

Director Kerry Anne Mullaney was a charming guest for THE DEAD OUTSIDE, an impressive 28 DAYS LATER-influenced achievement on next-to-no money, while 70’s British horror legend Norman J Warren – in attendance for his role in the SHORT FILM SHOWCASE – was as easygoing and enthusiastic as he’s renowned for. Many audience members were extremely impressed by the understated British chiller THE DISAPPEARED, and a lot of love was foisted upon guests Harry Tread away – the lead actor on his way to the Hollywood big-time – and director Johnny Kevorkian.

Perhaps the best of the afternoon’s many excellent short films was TOTAL FURY, which begins like yet another riff on HOSTEL : a pretty girl is lured into a torture room by a stranger. It then shifts completely when the would-be victim recalls watching TOTAL RECALL with her drunken dad, and uses it as inspiration to fight back. The extended climax is a tremendously exciting and hilariously OTT homage to Schwarzenegger’s 80’s action movies, with a host of corny kiss-off lines, spectacular gore and a score that cutely riffs on James Horner’s work on COMMANDO. Here’s hoping this gem surfaces on You Tube – or, better yet, DVD – real soon. (The Gothic horror pastiche THE AMAZING TROUSERS, also shown Monday afternoon, is already on You Tube and well worth checking out).

British horror legend Norman J Warren (TERROR / SATAN’S SLAVE) on stage with festival organizer Paul McEvoy.

Adding to the excitement of Frightfest 2008’s final bow was the concluding Adam & Joe short, this time a guest-filled (Mick Garris, Ryan Schifrin, Tom Holland, Joel David Moore, many others) fake-tribute to the two directors, having allegedly both perished in an embarrassing sex act in a hotel room. This was the perfect finale for one of the most purely fun incidental pleasures of the festival. Also great to see was the early trailer for Marcus Nispel’s impending FRIDAY THE 13TH remake, which at least looks nasty enough to satisfy long-term FRIDAY acolytes.

And so ends another jam-packed Frightfest. Those that sat through all 27 movies – crammed into five days with little breathing room for meals or sleep – needed at least a week to recover but almost certainly came away with a much higher ratio of good stuff than mediocre stuff. Anyone who had a chance to soak up the festival’s typically great atmosphere and rub shoulders with at least some of the many notable guests would have come to the same conclusion as the diehards : how can they possibly top this for next year’s much-touted 10th Anniversary Frightfest…?

With Thanks to Jim Smith, Amy Finn and all those who helped in any way with this year’s festival.