- Published on
I have a debate with friends over the efficacy of teaser trailers.
Now, for those of you who don't know the difference, let me explain just a bit. A full coming attractions trailer is a stand-alone work of art that tries as best as is humanly possible to encapsulate the breadth of the forthcoming story along with separate highlights made by the assembled cast. When done right, it gives the audience a welcome sense of what the completed project has to functionally offer without granting them so much information as to spoil any of the surprises that are learned along the way. In constrast, the teaser trailer is -- generally speaking -- very short, and it is meant to be more of an appetizer than it is a full taste of what cinematic delight awaits the watchers. They often tend to be quizzical -- never really doing anything more than to whet one's taste buds -- and might even through a sheen of doubt over what's truly waiting in store.
When it comes to teasers, I hate them. Compatriots of mine insist that they're works of sheer genius, tantalizing a potential audience with whatever they might deliver, be that a joke, a jest, or an enigma. My point is that I've seen far more of them produced that risk foisting a cloud of ambiguity over a property, and why gamble with winning some ticket buyers with something that might eventually be a misdirection? Give me something of substance, or give me nothing. That's just how I'm wired, kiddos.
In any event, I received a press release this morning regarding a little something-something called Rumours; and the teaser was -- ahem -- curious enough that I thought it worth sharing with the readership. Check it out -- it's under a minute in run-time -- and you'll see what I mean. You learn nada ... but that, too, might be what its makers really wanted after all.
You know what to do.
Now, for those of you who don't know the difference, let me explain just a bit. A full coming attractions trailer is a stand-alone work of art that tries as best as is humanly possible to encapsulate the breadth of the forthcoming story along with separate highlights made by the assembled cast. When done right, it gives the audience a welcome sense of what the completed project has to functionally offer without granting them so much information as to spoil any of the surprises that are learned along the way. In constrast, the teaser trailer is -- generally speaking -- very short, and it is meant to be more of an appetizer than it is a full taste of what cinematic delight awaits the watchers. They often tend to be quizzical -- never really doing anything more than to whet one's taste buds -- and might even through a sheen of doubt over what's truly waiting in store.
When it comes to teasers, I hate them. Compatriots of mine insist that they're works of sheer genius, tantalizing a potential audience with whatever they might deliver, be that a joke, a jest, or an enigma. My point is that I've seen far more of them produced that risk foisting a cloud of ambiguity over a property, and why gamble with winning some ticket buyers with something that might eventually be a misdirection? Give me something of substance, or give me nothing. That's just how I'm wired, kiddos.
In any event, I received a press release this morning regarding a little something-something called Rumours; and the teaser was -- ahem -- curious enough that I thought it worth sharing with the readership. Check it out -- it's under a minute in run-time -- and you'll see what I mean. You learn nada ... but that, too, might be what its makers really wanted after all.
You know what to do.
rumours
IN THEATERS NATIONWIDE OCTOBER 18
Starring Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander, Roy Dupuis, Charles Dance, and more
Directed by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson
"WILDLY ENTERTAINING. A laugh-out-loud political satire."
- Guy Lodge, Variety
"A wry upmarket variation on pulp horror... A cross between Dr Strangelove,
Buñuel's The Exterminating Angel and Night of the Living Dead."
- Jonathan Romney, Screen International
Starring Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander, Roy Dupuis, Charles Dance, and more
Directed by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson
"WILDLY ENTERTAINING. A laugh-out-loud political satire."
- Guy Lodge, Variety
"A wry upmarket variation on pulp horror... A cross between Dr Strangelove,
Buñuel's The Exterminating Angel and Night of the Living Dead."
- Jonathan Romney, Screen International
Ricocheting between comedy, apocalyptic horror, and swooning soap opera, Rumours follows the seven leaders of the world's wealthiest democracies at the annual G7 summit, where they attempt to draft a provisional statement regarding a global crisis. With unexpected, uproarious performances from a brilliant ensemble cast that includes Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander, and Charles Dance, these so-called leaders become spectacles of incompetence, contending with increasingly surreal obstacles in the misty woods as night falls and they realize they are suddenly alone. A genre-hopping satire of political ineptitude, the latest film from incomparable directors Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson is a journey into the absurd heart of power and institutional failure in a slowly burning world.
Directed & Written by: Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Roy Dupuis, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Charles Dance, Takehiro Hira, Denis Ménochet, Rolando Ravello, Zlatko Buric, Alicia Vikander
Produced by: Liz Jarvis, Philipp Kreuzer, Lars Knudsen,
Executive Produced by: Ari Aster, Cate Blanchett
Directed & Written by: Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Roy Dupuis, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Charles Dance, Takehiro Hira, Denis Ménochet, Rolando Ravello, Zlatko Buric, Alicia Vikander
Produced by: Liz Jarvis, Philipp Kreuzer, Lars Knudsen,
Executive Produced by: Ari Aster, Cate Blanchett
- Published on
Good morning, gentle readers!
As I've previously mentioned, sometimes one of the biggest joys I get in my blogging life is passing along information from one person to the next. While it's perfectly grand toiling away in Web obscurity by producing my own content, article, and reviews, I really do appreciate more these days hearing from the readership and other like-minded folks out there in Cyberspace. It gives me an added dimension to my sense of purpose, helping each of you keep up with the goings on in Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and more ... and I'm tickled pink when those out there find my humble outlet -- SciFiHistory.Net -- a worthwhile purveyor of information to our every growing masses-at-large. You -- the recipient -- are sought, and it isn't great to feel wanted?
So in that spirit I'm doing the dutiful copy-and-paste this morning from a press release I've received from the kind folks at The New York Science Fiction Film Festival. It's a rather expansive bit of data -- so cull it over at your leisure -- but there just might be something of interest in here. All of the provided deets are below.
Similarly, if you or someone you love needs to get your word out via the Information Superhighway, my email links are generally provided at the end of every original article. Never hesitate to drop me a line, even if it's just a casual inquiry. Trust me when I say that those of us who do this kinda/sorta thing on a regular basis can never hear too much from the readership. After all, some of you know what's up'n'coming well before I do, and it's a thrill to be in on the action!
As I've previously mentioned, sometimes one of the biggest joys I get in my blogging life is passing along information from one person to the next. While it's perfectly grand toiling away in Web obscurity by producing my own content, article, and reviews, I really do appreciate more these days hearing from the readership and other like-minded folks out there in Cyberspace. It gives me an added dimension to my sense of purpose, helping each of you keep up with the goings on in Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and more ... and I'm tickled pink when those out there find my humble outlet -- SciFiHistory.Net -- a worthwhile purveyor of information to our every growing masses-at-large. You -- the recipient -- are sought, and it isn't great to feel wanted?
So in that spirit I'm doing the dutiful copy-and-paste this morning from a press release I've received from the kind folks at The New York Science Fiction Film Festival. It's a rather expansive bit of data -- so cull it over at your leisure -- but there just might be something of interest in here. All of the provided deets are below.
Similarly, if you or someone you love needs to get your word out via the Information Superhighway, my email links are generally provided at the end of every original article. Never hesitate to drop me a line, even if it's just a casual inquiry. Trust me when I say that those of us who do this kinda/sorta thing on a regular basis can never hear too much from the readership. After all, some of you know what's up'n'coming well before I do, and it's a thrill to be in on the action!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THE NEW YORK SCIENCE FICTION FESTIVAL
ANNOUNCES BROOKLYN EVENT FOR SEPTEMBER 2024
Festival Spotlights Importance
of Sci-Fi Cinematic Entertainment
Screenplay and Graphic Novel Competitions
To Be Held
(NEW YORK) August 28, 2024 — The New York Science Fiction Film Festival has announced the full program for its fourth event, with a lineup of films, discussions, virtual realty, and screenplay and graphic novel competitions. The festival is slated for Saturday, September 14, 2024 at Stuart City Cinema and Cafe, with all shorts streamed online the following day. Passes are available at https://www.newyorksci-fifest.com.
As a lifelong admirer of science fiction, Daniel Abella established the festival to showcase the importance of the genre. “As our world becomes progressively technological, we need to find ways to protect our humanity, and the best way is through storytelling,” he said. “What was regarded as speculative years ago has now become fact, and this is the perfect medium to address the plethora of the issues we face.” In addition to film and virtual reality screenings, the festival will hold screenplay and graphic novel competitions. “The festival serves as a platform for rising talent, and writing is the beating heart of any good movie,” said Abella.
Saturday, September 14, 2024
Stuart City Cinema and Cafe (79 West St, Brooklyn, NY 11222)
Block 1: The Dark Side of Eden
Time: 2:00pm - 4:00pm EST
Wisper (2018; Trailer)
Director: Russ Emanuel
1 minute, USA
In June 2016, a loving family was found shot to death at their suburban home in Northern New Jersey.
Mercury (2023)
Director: Clara Dubau
11 minutes, USA
Elio volunteers for a filmed experiment to help him reconnect with a repressed memory.
Everything Dies Out Here (2023)
Director: Cian + Sean Mallers
10 minutes, USA
In a barren, oil-soaked wasteland after a global catastrophe, a man clings to the last flower on Earth. As danger mounts from unforeseen forces, his connection to the flower proves a window to the past.
You, Forever (2024)
Director: Brenda Kovrig
14 minutes, Canada
A short hybrid film that incorporates documentary and dark comedy fantasy fiction. Robert Ettinger, ‘the father of cryonics,’ speaks of his life’s work while his ‘patients’ experience an unnatural existence in suspended animation.
LifeQuest (2023)
Director: Richard Lounello
25 minutes, USA
A young physicist lives out his life in search of his greatest scientific discovery and finds one extraordinary truth.
The BiodiverCity (2024)
Director: Masataka Ishizaki
11 minutes, USA
In 2035, people live in one big area due to the biodiversity program in which humanity must stay away from nature for the environmental treatment. Nora thinks about Tree because she never saw it. So she decides to go outside to see it with Eric.
Source Code (2021)
Director: Mark Kiefer
17 minutes, USA
The year is 2065. Captain John Galatin’s loss of focus cost lives on a remote-controlled battlefield. He has been ordered to see the compound’s psychiatrist who will assess his continued fitness for duty.
Jackpot (2023)
Director: Chance Thomas Garcia
9 minutes, USA
A father, mother and son gather in front of the television set to cast their votes and watch the Society for Population Control’s nightly lottery.
The Elsewhere Machine (2023)
Director: Jay Yeomans
12 minutes, UK
A filmmaker travels to 'the underneath' where he begins to contemplate a sci-fi movie; leaving for New Tokyo he meets a woman who claims to have met him before, and who gifts him a device to restore memories; he returns to his homeland where revelations ensue.
Dear Elf on the Shelf (2024)
Director: Tor Martin Norvik
2 minutes, Norway
A captivating tale of a young girl's emotional journey, intertwining reality with the magical lore of the Elf on the Shelf. As the holiday season envelops her home in joy and cheer, nine-year-old Emily encounters her family's Elf on the Shelf in an unexpected light, sparking a series of mysterious events.
Conversion of the Atheist (2023)
Michael Ambrosino
10 minutes, USA
Two Mormon boys with a dark secret knock on an atheist woman's door.
The Space Between Us (2023)
Director: Tim Holmes
6 minutes, USA
An animated short film tells the story of a forlorn astronaut heading into space after losing the great love of his life; on a journey in which nothing goes as ground control would have wished.
Q&A with filmmakers to follow.
Block 2: Future Shock
Time: 4:30pm - 6:30pm EST
Magical Doomsday Horsegirls of the Apocalypse (2024)
Director: Abbie Bacilla, Andrea Schmitz
2 minutes, USA
Fed up with the state of the world, these magical girls decide to take things into their own hands.
Moonskin Fever (2022)
Director: Hannah Bisewski, Tara Elliott
17 minutes, USA
A near-future winter on a remote New England Island: as the economy and population wanes and locals grow desperate to survive, lovers Josette and Anna discover an intoxicating substance that could mean their salvation, and hatch a plan of escape.
Neon Vowels (2023)
Director: Sergio Caballero
11 minutes, USA
A service robot operating a taco stand learns, with the help of a Navajo elder, that it is mucho más more than just a dumbwaiter.
Powerline (2024)
Director: Roman Caspain
2 minutes, USA
"Powerline" invites viewers on an exploration into the depths of the human psyche through the perspective of its physical carrier—electricity, as the universal energy that binds us all.
Reformat (2022)
Director: Jesse Pickett
16 minutes, Canada
After the body of an AI student is found on school grounds, an investigation into the last 7 people who interacted with the student takes place.
Gum Garden (2023)
Director: Adriana Guevara
8 minutes, USA
Dedicating his life to researching and discovering the oddities in his dental profession, Dr. Agrait stumbles upon a patient with a peculiar gum disorder.
JINX (2023)
Director: Maya Zaleski
20 minutes, USA
A young woman’s descent down a path of obsession and paranoia. When Jordan's estranged grandmother dies, she is haunted by visions of the occult practices that stained her childhood.
Chaska (2024)
Director: Liz Guarraccino
16 minutes, USA
A girl curious about her family innocently submits her DNA to Lineage Industries, the leading Ancestral Investigators in the World. Her blood type, on a secret watch list since the 40’s, is red flagged, and soon she will find herself imprisoned and experimented on for reasons she is unaware.
Sileo (2023)
Director: Demeter Lorant
8 minutes, Hungary
A robot after working for years in a factory and being repaired and replaced bit by bit realizes that he doesn't want to loose his identity and sets out to find his creator.
ADA (2023)
Director: Anaïs Vachez
16 minutes, France
Ada, an eight-year-old girl, witnesses the ongoing tensions between her parents. One evening, a particularly heated argument breaks out.
In Your Dreams (2022)
Director: Mike Krohn
4 minutes, USA
In the future, a sentient robot finds that his dreams intrude on his waking life.
Operators (2023)
Director: Andy Zou
6 minutes, USA
Two-night shift 911 operators try their best to hold things together during an alien invasion.
The Panharmonion Chronicles: Times of London (2022)
Director: Henry Chebaane
3 minutes, UK
The video was written and shot as a short film teaser, introducing the creator of the story as a character inside his own fictional universe, which happens to exist also in our own reality. Here, the author-protagonist appears as a time-travel engineer who got lost into the dreamlike world of his own creation.
Q&A with filmmakers to follow.
Block 3: Feature Presentation
Time: 7:00 - 8:30pm EST
The Coldness (2024) — NY PREMIERE
Director: Gustavo Sampaio
75 minutes, USA
Nick Polito, a retired Jersey City homicide detective with a haunted past, comes to Los Angeles in search of answers to a recent gruesome death that is shockingly like a case that has been an obsession for him since 1999. Determined to find out what happened, Nick connects with his former partner and encounters a cast of characters that lead him steadily down a disturbing path into lethal occult darkness.
Q&A will follow.
Time: 7:00 - 8:30pm EST
The Coldness (2024) — NY PREMIERE
Director: Gustavo Sampaio
75 minutes, USA
Nick Polito, a retired Jersey City homicide detective with a haunted past, comes to Los Angeles in search of answers to a recent gruesome death that is shockingly like a case that has been an obsession for him since 1999. Determined to find out what happened, Nick connects with his former partner and encounters a cast of characters that lead him steadily down a disturbing path into lethal occult darkness.
Q&A will follow.
Block 4: Feature Presentation
Time: 8:30 - 10:00pm EST
Red Earth (2022)
Director: Georg Adrian Koszulinski
66 minutes, USA
Red Earth imagines a world in the late Anthropocene, where large parts of Earth have become inhospitable to life. The story follows three generations of Martians, from the first colonists to the first expedition to return to an Earth decimated by interplanetary war.
Q&A will follow.
Screenplays, Graphic Novels, and Virtual Reality
Coke and A Smoke (Best Short Screenplay)
Writer: Charli Brown
United States
Lotus (Best Short Screenplay)
Writer: Kyle Hatley
United States
I/O (Input-Output) (Best Short Screenplay)
Writer: Molly J Vernon
United States
Final Timefall (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Ivanhoe Flighter
Serbia
Robot Asteroid (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Paul May
Canada
The Age of Revenge (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Jason H. White
United States
The Age of Revenge (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Jason H. White
United States
Light Years (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Jaroslaw Gogolin
United Kingdom
Pocketful of Mondays (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Lindsey Morrison Grant
United States
Alpha Chase (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Chuck Gordon
United States
Inversion (Best World Building Sci-Fi Prototyping Screenplay)
Writer: Suzy Stein, Fernando Perez
United States
Song of the Shadows (Best Supernatural/Horror Feature)
Writer: Les Zig
Australia
Sight Specific (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Peter Hardy
United States
If November Ends (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Michael Yurinko
United States
Restoration (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Don Stroud, Winter Mead
United States
Donavan Emery, The Android & Himself (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Jesse Dorian
United States
The Panharmonion Chronicles (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Henry Chebaane
United Kingdom
MASTIFF #1 (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Big Tim Stiles
Australia
A Little Favor (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Russ Meyer
United States
Halloween Girl Book One: Promises to Keep (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Richard T. Wilson
United States
Asteroid Quest (Best Virtual Reality/Immersive Experience)
Director: Bertrand Jack Daniel Loyer
France
Festival Lineup and Passes:
The festival will be held on Saturday, September 14, 2024 at Stuart City Cinema and Cafe, located at 79 West St, Brooklyn, NY 11222. All shorts will be streamed online on Sunday, September 15. Event lineup subject to change. For more information on the full schedule and passes, visit https://www.newyorksci-fifest.com.
About The New York Science Fiction Film Festival:
Founded in 2017, The New York Science Fiction Film Festival celebrates freedom of expression and the unique approaches of independent filmmakers as a merit to the science fiction, horror, supernatural, and fantasy genres. By honoring a groundbreaking past and looking ahead to an unprecedented future, the festival is committed to encompassing the brilliance of film.
Event Contact:
Jonathan Carsten, PR Manager
PressReleased1@gmail.com
Connect with Us:
Website: https://www.newyorksci-fifest.com
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/nyscififilmfest
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/newyorkscififimfestival
Time: 8:30 - 10:00pm EST
Red Earth (2022)
Director: Georg Adrian Koszulinski
66 minutes, USA
Red Earth imagines a world in the late Anthropocene, where large parts of Earth have become inhospitable to life. The story follows three generations of Martians, from the first colonists to the first expedition to return to an Earth decimated by interplanetary war.
Q&A will follow.
Screenplays, Graphic Novels, and Virtual Reality
Coke and A Smoke (Best Short Screenplay)
Writer: Charli Brown
United States
Lotus (Best Short Screenplay)
Writer: Kyle Hatley
United States
I/O (Input-Output) (Best Short Screenplay)
Writer: Molly J Vernon
United States
Final Timefall (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Ivanhoe Flighter
Serbia
Robot Asteroid (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Paul May
Canada
The Age of Revenge (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Jason H. White
United States
The Age of Revenge (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Jason H. White
United States
Light Years (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Jaroslaw Gogolin
United Kingdom
Pocketful of Mondays (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Lindsey Morrison Grant
United States
Alpha Chase (Best Sci-Fi Screenplay)
Writer: Chuck Gordon
United States
Inversion (Best World Building Sci-Fi Prototyping Screenplay)
Writer: Suzy Stein, Fernando Perez
United States
Song of the Shadows (Best Supernatural/Horror Feature)
Writer: Les Zig
Australia
Sight Specific (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Peter Hardy
United States
If November Ends (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Michael Yurinko
United States
Restoration (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Don Stroud, Winter Mead
United States
Donavan Emery, The Android & Himself (Best Supernatural Screenplay)
Writer: Jesse Dorian
United States
The Panharmonion Chronicles (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Henry Chebaane
United Kingdom
MASTIFF #1 (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Big Tim Stiles
Australia
A Little Favor (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Russ Meyer
United States
Halloween Girl Book One: Promises to Keep (Best Graphic Novel or Manga)
Writer: Richard T. Wilson
United States
Asteroid Quest (Best Virtual Reality/Immersive Experience)
Director: Bertrand Jack Daniel Loyer
France
Festival Lineup and Passes:
The festival will be held on Saturday, September 14, 2024 at Stuart City Cinema and Cafe, located at 79 West St, Brooklyn, NY 11222. All shorts will be streamed online on Sunday, September 15. Event lineup subject to change. For more information on the full schedule and passes, visit https://www.newyorksci-fifest.com.
About The New York Science Fiction Film Festival:
Founded in 2017, The New York Science Fiction Film Festival celebrates freedom of expression and the unique approaches of independent filmmakers as a merit to the science fiction, horror, supernatural, and fantasy genres. By honoring a groundbreaking past and looking ahead to an unprecedented future, the festival is committed to encompassing the brilliance of film.
Event Contact:
Jonathan Carsten, PR Manager
PressReleased1@gmail.com
Connect with Us:
Website: https://www.newyorksci-fifest.com
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/nyscififilmfest
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/newyorkscififimfestival
- Published on
I've often said that -- generally speaking -- I don't find a great deal of Horror films truly frightening.
This isn't because I'm above being scared in any way. I'm just like all of you. What frightens us is, largely, similar across cultural boundaries. All I'm trying to say is that -- when it comes to cinematic experiences -- I'm just not moved strongly one way or the other unless there's something psychological about it. I get truly frightened when a story breaks the fourth wall and makes me consider something truly stark; and -- sigh -- just not a great deal of theatrical outings do that.
Now, that isn't always the case because some stories do better than others in ratching up that psychological component I do fine a requirement from the get-go. In that respect, I'm not seeing a lot of information about the forthcoming chilled Believer; but I do have some press materials received via email that I'm all-too-happy to share with the readership. That, and I'll be posting the trailer below.
As coming attractions go, I don't get a great deal beyond the initial set-up here. It looks as if the perpetrator might have the means to exercise some psychic abilities beyond those of mortal men, going so far as to perhaps even manipulate from beyond the grave with little more than a mere suggestion. That's decidedly spooky, so I'll definitely be checking out the reviews for this one once it gets closer to its street date.
As for now? Well, you know what to do.
This isn't because I'm above being scared in any way. I'm just like all of you. What frightens us is, largely, similar across cultural boundaries. All I'm trying to say is that -- when it comes to cinematic experiences -- I'm just not moved strongly one way or the other unless there's something psychological about it. I get truly frightened when a story breaks the fourth wall and makes me consider something truly stark; and -- sigh -- just not a great deal of theatrical outings do that.
Now, that isn't always the case because some stories do better than others in ratching up that psychological component I do fine a requirement from the get-go. In that respect, I'm not seeing a lot of information about the forthcoming chilled Believer; but I do have some press materials received via email that I'm all-too-happy to share with the readership. That, and I'll be posting the trailer below.
As coming attractions go, I don't get a great deal beyond the initial set-up here. It looks as if the perpetrator might have the means to exercise some psychic abilities beyond those of mortal men, going so far as to perhaps even manipulate from beyond the grave with little more than a mere suggestion. That's decidedly spooky, so I'll definitely be checking out the reviews for this one once it gets closer to its street date.
As for now? Well, you know what to do.
Check out the Official Poster and Trailer for Brainstorm Media's
BELIEVER
— IN THEATERS & ON DEMAND ON SEPTEMBER 13 --
BELIEVER
— IN THEATERS & ON DEMAND ON SEPTEMBER 13 --
Synopsis: A young writer is attacked by a notorious cult leader and mass murderer, a man who exerts inexplicable control over his followers. When she claims no memory of the attack, her family begins to question her motives
Directed by: Sheldon Wilson
Written by: Sheldon Wilson
Producers: Jonathan Soon-Shiong
Cast: Lauren Lee Smith, Ella Ballentine, Peter Mooney, Martin Roach, Ilan O’Driscoll, Jonathan Potts, Kris Holden-Ried
Running Time: 107 minutes
Directed by: Sheldon Wilson
Written by: Sheldon Wilson
Producers: Jonathan Soon-Shiong
Cast: Lauren Lee Smith, Ella Ballentine, Peter Mooney, Martin Roach, Ilan O’Driscoll, Jonathan Potts, Kris Holden-Ried
Running Time: 107 minutes
- Published on
Science Fiction wouldn’t be Science Fiction without its tropes. As a genre, it’s been around for some say over two centuries; and – as a consequence – it’s probably built up an ample supply of things we’ve seen before.
This isn’t to suggest in any way that incorporating something that’s either been done before or risks bordering on being downright cliché is necessarily a bad thing. The dirty little secret to being a fan of any genre is that we enter each and every project with a level of expectation we want to be met minimally: if a director, screenwriter, and assembled cast and crew go out of their way to give up something a bit too fresh or a bit too different, then we’re equally capable of tuning out, losing interest, and going elsewhere. Tropes are called tropes because they’re familiar – perhaps more so than we like – but that doesn’t make them cheap or inexcusable in and of themselves. A great story can still tread in amicable territory just so long as it doesn’t cheapen the whole trip.
For example, aliens coming down to Earth intent upon occupying our bodies while going about whatever nefarious agenda they seek to achieve has been glorified on screens big and small, but perhaps it’s never been any more glorious than it was aboard 1956’s Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Don Siegel directed the adaptation of the Jack Finney novel – simply titled “The Body Snatchers” and published in 1954 – and the effort gave big roles to Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Larry Gates, King Donovan, and Carolyn Jones. The original source material – along with this inaugural exploration – was so good that Hollywood has gone back to it for remakes not once but twice: 1978’s Invasion Of The Body Snatchers cast Donald Sutherland as its lead and it shifted the focus from the original small town setting to the big city while 1993’s Body Snatchers took a step back with choosing to establish its stomping ground as the great American military base. There are some who suggest that the 1978 version is the highpoint in realizing this particular story for audiences; while that might be true, I still prefer the original because it blazed the trail first in such a way that the project was eventually inducted into the U.S.’s National Film Registry because of its lasting cultural, historical, and aesthetic impact.
Still, when something works, I’ve always found it refreshing to know that – as a consumer of products – there are alternatives; and one such trope that’s fresh on my mind as of late has been the whole ‘body snatching’ phenomenon that, yes, has made the rounds in various ways across Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. So if body snatching is your thing, then here are a few other suggestions that might be worth your time and attention.
This isn’t to suggest in any way that incorporating something that’s either been done before or risks bordering on being downright cliché is necessarily a bad thing. The dirty little secret to being a fan of any genre is that we enter each and every project with a level of expectation we want to be met minimally: if a director, screenwriter, and assembled cast and crew go out of their way to give up something a bit too fresh or a bit too different, then we’re equally capable of tuning out, losing interest, and going elsewhere. Tropes are called tropes because they’re familiar – perhaps more so than we like – but that doesn’t make them cheap or inexcusable in and of themselves. A great story can still tread in amicable territory just so long as it doesn’t cheapen the whole trip.
For example, aliens coming down to Earth intent upon occupying our bodies while going about whatever nefarious agenda they seek to achieve has been glorified on screens big and small, but perhaps it’s never been any more glorious than it was aboard 1956’s Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Don Siegel directed the adaptation of the Jack Finney novel – simply titled “The Body Snatchers” and published in 1954 – and the effort gave big roles to Kevin McCarthy, Dana Wynter, Larry Gates, King Donovan, and Carolyn Jones. The original source material – along with this inaugural exploration – was so good that Hollywood has gone back to it for remakes not once but twice: 1978’s Invasion Of The Body Snatchers cast Donald Sutherland as its lead and it shifted the focus from the original small town setting to the big city while 1993’s Body Snatchers took a step back with choosing to establish its stomping ground as the great American military base. There are some who suggest that the 1978 version is the highpoint in realizing this particular story for audiences; while that might be true, I still prefer the original because it blazed the trail first in such a way that the project was eventually inducted into the U.S.’s National Film Registry because of its lasting cultural, historical, and aesthetic impact.
Still, when something works, I’ve always found it refreshing to know that – as a consumer of products – there are alternatives; and one such trope that’s fresh on my mind as of late has been the whole ‘body snatching’ phenomenon that, yes, has made the rounds in various ways across Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror. So if body snatching is your thing, then here are a few other suggestions that might be worth your time and attention.
Invaders From Mars (1953)
Of course, I realize that 1953’s Invaders From Mars predates the original Body Snatchers by a few years; and I suspect that there may be readers who show up suggesting that perhaps this article should be structured in such a way as to highlight the 1956 movie is more like a copy or iteration of it. Indeed, both flicks share a heady dose of paranoia that fuels a good portion of the narrative; and I suppose there’s nothing incorrect about suggesting that the latter may very well have been influenced by the former. However, Invaders ends – depending upon which version you’ve seen – with the strong indication that what audiences just saw was little more than a bad dream; and I prefer the greater sense of dread that pervades so much of Body Snatchers.
In any event, here’s the plot summary for the film as provided by IMDB.com:
“One night, young David McLean sees a spaceship crash into a nearby sandpit. His father goes to investigate, but comes back changed. Where once he was cheerful and affectionate, he's now sullen and snarlingly rude. Others fall into the sandpit and begin acting like him: cold, ill-tempered and conspiratorial. David knows that aliens are taking over the bodies of humans, but he'll soon discover there have been far more of these terrible thefts than he could have imagined. The young doom-monger finds some serious help in a lady doctor and a brilliant astronomer. Soon they meet the aliens: green creatures with insect-like eyes. These beings prove to be slaves to their leader: a large, silent head with ceaselessly shifting eyes and two tentacles on either side, each of which branches off into three smaller tentacles. It's up to the redoubtable earth trio to stop its evil plans.”
In any event, here’s the plot summary for the film as provided by IMDB.com:
“One night, young David McLean sees a spaceship crash into a nearby sandpit. His father goes to investigate, but comes back changed. Where once he was cheerful and affectionate, he's now sullen and snarlingly rude. Others fall into the sandpit and begin acting like him: cold, ill-tempered and conspiratorial. David knows that aliens are taking over the bodies of humans, but he'll soon discover there have been far more of these terrible thefts than he could have imagined. The young doom-monger finds some serious help in a lady doctor and a brilliant astronomer. Soon they meet the aliens: green creatures with insect-like eyes. These beings prove to be slaves to their leader: a large, silent head with ceaselessly shifting eyes and two tentacles on either side, each of which branches off into three smaller tentacles. It's up to the redoubtable earth trio to stop its evil plans.”
The Stepford Wives (1975)
In all honesty, 1975’s The Stepford Wives is a film that I haven’t seen in years. And – for the record – it isn’t thematically the same as Body Snatchers in that the folks responsible for the snatch-and-replace of the lovely Stepford women – the wives of important and powerful men – are most definitely not some aliens seeking to penetrate our culture. Still, the film operates largely on the same psychological level as it plays fast and loose on the fears of these ladies who find themselves disposable only so that they can be substituted with replicas who made for better ‘arm candy’ in the society in which they live.
Here's the plot summary as provided by our friends at IMDB.com:
“The Stepford Wives is about a small suburb where the women happily go about their housework - cleaning, doing laundry, and cooking gourmet meals - to please their husbands. Unfortunately, Bobbie and Joanna discover that the village's wives have been replaced with robots, and Joanna's husband wants in on the action.”
Here's the plot summary as provided by our friends at IMDB.com:
“The Stepford Wives is about a small suburb where the women happily go about their housework - cleaning, doing laundry, and cooking gourmet meals - to please their husbands. Unfortunately, Bobbie and Joanna discover that the village's wives have been replaced with robots, and Joanna's husband wants in on the action.”
The Hidden (1987)
Truly one of the great B-Movies to emerge from the late 1980’s, The Hidden is a great cat-and-mouse chase caper that has two body-swapping aliens – one a criminal, one a peacemaker – arriving on our planet and leaving a trail of mayhem in their pursuit. Part Science Fiction and part ‘buddy cop’ film, it’s the kind of story that subsists largely on the chemistry of its various players, including two fabulous grounding performances by Kyle MacLachlan (as the alien peacemaker) and Michael Nouri (as the Earth cop who joins him on his mission). While it may lack the scope that Body Snatchers’ impending invasion threatens, it makes up for it in action set pieces and a final act of redemption that suggests maybe the aliens are more human than some of us.
Here's the plot summary as provided by IMDB.com:
“An alien parasite with the ability to possess human bodies goes on a violent crime spree in LA, committing dozens of murders and robberies. In pursuit of the extraterrestrial criminal is an FBI agent, and the local officer investigating the rash of violence. As they close in on the vicious intruder, the city faces a brutal threat like no other it has ever encountered.”
Here's the plot summary as provided by IMDB.com:
“An alien parasite with the ability to possess human bodies goes on a violent crime spree in LA, committing dozens of murders and robberies. In pursuit of the extraterrestrial criminal is an FBI agent, and the local officer investigating the rash of violence. As they close in on the vicious intruder, the city faces a brutal threat like no other it has ever encountered.”
The Faculty (1998)
From what I recall of 1998’s The Faculty (and remember thinking at the time), the script from David Wechter, Bruce Kimmel, and Kevin Williamson essentially takes the Body Snatchers central idea – that of a force of invading aliens – and 90210’s it up, generating a teenage-set parable for the young and young-at-heart. While there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, I’ll still concede that I just didn’t find any of its performances all that memorable: they were good and occasionally interesting, but the terror and mistrust of the 1956 film never quite survives as anything greater than teen angst to some degree in the re-imagination. It has some good moments, most of which I think are owed to director Robert Rodriguez’s excellent execution of the big scenes.
Here's the plot summary as provided by IMDB.com:
“A horror tale set in a High School where the students suspect the teaching staff of being aliens, who are intent on making the students their victims.”
Here's the plot summary as provided by IMDB.com:
“A horror tale set in a High School where the students suspect the teaching staff of being aliens, who are intent on making the students their victims.”
The Becomers (2023)
Recently, I was provided streaming access to view 2023’s The Becomers, and that was the experience that served as the catalyst behind my penning this article. While it’s a low budget independent effort, the central premise aligns almost entirely with Body Snatchers, except for the fact that writer/director Zach Clark cleverly upends the paranoia of that original by inevitably saddling the aliens with it, making for some great comic bits in the second half. Mind you: the picture still has some problems, never quite investing much scope in its narrative, but there’s no denying the relationship between it and the vision novelist Finney spawned so many decades before.
Here's the plot summary as provided by IMDB.com:
“A body-snatching alien comes to Earth, reconnects with their partner, and tries to find their way in modern America.”
Here's the plot summary as provided by IMDB.com:
“A body-snatching alien comes to Earth, reconnects with their partner, and tries to find their way in modern America.”
Of course, it should go without saying that there are countless other films and television shows out there that tap this same vein in Science Fiction; and my humble suggestions are in no way, shape, or form intended to be considered independent of those. The point is that such tropes when they're used as narrative structures do not go out of style; and their re-invention -- or reconsideration -- from time to time suggest that not only might they be considered good DNA for storytelling but also audiences embrace them because they're the equivalent of visual comfort food. We've been here before. We've seen this somewhere else. It goes down easy ... so long as you don't push it too far from the norm.
Still, there's value in them there hills, and if body snatching makes you feel good then rest assured you're in good company if you try these side dishes.
-- EZ
Still, there's value in them there hills, and if body snatching makes you feel good then rest assured you're in good company if you try these side dishes.
-- EZ
- Published on
The beauty of a good Science Fiction idea is that – in so many ways – it’s timeless.
Now, for the record, I may not be using that word – timelessness – exactly the way you’re expecting because I’m not trying to suggest in any way that the resulting films themselves necessarily transcend their specific moment in history. While that may be inarguably true about some projects, there are others that may not mean as much to audiences today as they did for those of the era in which they were manufactured or intended by storytellers. Indeed, some tales are timeless simply because of their use of technology or the subject matter they breach, and others are ageless because of the social, artistic, or cultural impact they had on folks of the day. Those flicks are owed whatever reverence they earn, and I give them their due, respectively.
Essentially, what I’m talking about here is the boundless potential that a central construct of a good SciFi film – no matter when it’s used – is that it can be applied to any era in human history while, perhaps, swinging open doors to new and exciting reflections of those times. Some laugh off such genre tropes as inconsequential to any tale’s ‘moral of the story,’ and yet the more insightful narrators out there can still squeeze a bit of freshness from something others might immediately dismiss as cliché. Granted, it doesn’t happen all of the time – there’s a reason why stereotypes become stereotypes, after all – but keen eyes should be forever watchful for those instances wherein the introduction of something done before might still have relevance in the modern period. Though these times are a’changin’, that doesn’t mean we throw things out that still function, and that should be true of storytelling as well.
So … at first blush, you may think you’ve seen 2023’s The Becomers before … and I suppose you’d be correct. Body snatching isn’t new – yes, it’s been done before, many times, and will likely be done again – but Zach Clark’s SciFi/Comedy incorporates a sly but sometimes not-so-subtle commentary on who we’ve become as a people, especially over the last few years with the rise of COVID, the loss of identity, and the portability of culture. In the scope of an earnest 86 minutes, he demonstrates that the timelessness of a good narrative device should and might resonate long after the films that put such tricks to good use.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
Now, for the record, I may not be using that word – timelessness – exactly the way you’re expecting because I’m not trying to suggest in any way that the resulting films themselves necessarily transcend their specific moment in history. While that may be inarguably true about some projects, there are others that may not mean as much to audiences today as they did for those of the era in which they were manufactured or intended by storytellers. Indeed, some tales are timeless simply because of their use of technology or the subject matter they breach, and others are ageless because of the social, artistic, or cultural impact they had on folks of the day. Those flicks are owed whatever reverence they earn, and I give them their due, respectively.
Essentially, what I’m talking about here is the boundless potential that a central construct of a good SciFi film – no matter when it’s used – is that it can be applied to any era in human history while, perhaps, swinging open doors to new and exciting reflections of those times. Some laugh off such genre tropes as inconsequential to any tale’s ‘moral of the story,’ and yet the more insightful narrators out there can still squeeze a bit of freshness from something others might immediately dismiss as cliché. Granted, it doesn’t happen all of the time – there’s a reason why stereotypes become stereotypes, after all – but keen eyes should be forever watchful for those instances wherein the introduction of something done before might still have relevance in the modern period. Though these times are a’changin’, that doesn’t mean we throw things out that still function, and that should be true of storytelling as well.
So … at first blush, you may think you’ve seen 2023’s The Becomers before … and I suppose you’d be correct. Body snatching isn’t new – yes, it’s been done before, many times, and will likely be done again – but Zach Clark’s SciFi/Comedy incorporates a sly but sometimes not-so-subtle commentary on who we’ve become as a people, especially over the last few years with the rise of COVID, the loss of identity, and the portability of culture. In the scope of an earnest 86 minutes, he demonstrates that the timelessness of a good narrative device should and might resonate long after the films that put such tricks to good use.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last few paragraphs for the final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the film’s IMDB.com page citation:
“A body-snatching alien comes to Earth, reconnects with their partner, and tries to find their way in modern America.”
For those unaware, a little bit of education is in order to establish the groundwork for my thoughts on The Becomers (2023), an occasionally whimsical re-interpretation of Science Fiction’s ongoing fascination with the idea of alien body-snatching.
The first and arguably most successful use of it was in 1956’s groundbreaking Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Directed by Don Siegel and based on 1954’s “The Body Snatchers” novel, the film told the story of a somewhat isolated group of survivors who uncover an alien invasion slowly seeping across their small town and growing menacingly toward national proportions. It’s been said that, thematically, many believed the story was intended as an artistic response to the growing threat of McCarthyism – the political persecution of folks foisting what was seen as a decidedly un-American agenda on the United States. The dirty little secret, however, is that no single person involved in the film’s production either in front of the camera or behind it (allegedly not even the book’s author) deliberately inserted that political theme into the yarn. Still, we see in art what we wish, and that resulting indictment of paranoia remains to this day, so much so that it’s often difficult to separate the fact from fiction.
In 1978, director Philip Kaufman gave Invasion what many have deemed an even greater re-imaging when he cast Donald Sutherland, Leonard Nimoy, and Jeff Goldblum in his big city adaptation of basically the same core story. Special effects gave the film an added dimension, evoking a level of modest body horror that the original only hinted at; and, certainly, this incarnation could be said leaned somewhat heavily on the politics of the day. The great American debacles of the Vietnam War and Watergate had audiences wondering just how far big government’s reach had grown to affect the quality of life; and its script debatably suggested that a heavy dose of skepticism should be applied to any calls to action issued by once credible institutions … if not even your next-door neighbor.
1993 saw yet one more embodiment of the Jack Finney novel take shape when celebrated director Abel Ferrera picked up the trope and ran with it in his simply titled Body Snatchers for Warner Bros. Though I’ve read that the film had a relatively short theatrical run, it still managed to achieve some critical praise from those who like this sort of thing. Thematically, however, the assessment is that the script varies a bit too widely from the source material, instead engaging in arguments on feminism, conformity, and collectivism, even going so far as to question the usefulness of militarism in the modern world. Personally, I think it’s also interesting to note that Snatchers hit the consumer marketplace at or around the same time as Fox TV’s juggernaut The X-Files launched into the zeitgeist; while one is still being talked about in some circles even to this day, the flick is, largely, forgotten.
The point to all of this cinema history is not to discount the use of body-snatching as a trope in Science Fiction; rather, it’s to underscore that each repetition found a means to re-apply it for its respective time … and that brings me to (finally, I know) discussing my thoughts of The Becomers.
“A body-snatching alien comes to Earth, reconnects with their partner, and tries to find their way in modern America.”
For those unaware, a little bit of education is in order to establish the groundwork for my thoughts on The Becomers (2023), an occasionally whimsical re-interpretation of Science Fiction’s ongoing fascination with the idea of alien body-snatching.
The first and arguably most successful use of it was in 1956’s groundbreaking Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Directed by Don Siegel and based on 1954’s “The Body Snatchers” novel, the film told the story of a somewhat isolated group of survivors who uncover an alien invasion slowly seeping across their small town and growing menacingly toward national proportions. It’s been said that, thematically, many believed the story was intended as an artistic response to the growing threat of McCarthyism – the political persecution of folks foisting what was seen as a decidedly un-American agenda on the United States. The dirty little secret, however, is that no single person involved in the film’s production either in front of the camera or behind it (allegedly not even the book’s author) deliberately inserted that political theme into the yarn. Still, we see in art what we wish, and that resulting indictment of paranoia remains to this day, so much so that it’s often difficult to separate the fact from fiction.
In 1978, director Philip Kaufman gave Invasion what many have deemed an even greater re-imaging when he cast Donald Sutherland, Leonard Nimoy, and Jeff Goldblum in his big city adaptation of basically the same core story. Special effects gave the film an added dimension, evoking a level of modest body horror that the original only hinted at; and, certainly, this incarnation could be said leaned somewhat heavily on the politics of the day. The great American debacles of the Vietnam War and Watergate had audiences wondering just how far big government’s reach had grown to affect the quality of life; and its script debatably suggested that a heavy dose of skepticism should be applied to any calls to action issued by once credible institutions … if not even your next-door neighbor.
1993 saw yet one more embodiment of the Jack Finney novel take shape when celebrated director Abel Ferrera picked up the trope and ran with it in his simply titled Body Snatchers for Warner Bros. Though I’ve read that the film had a relatively short theatrical run, it still managed to achieve some critical praise from those who like this sort of thing. Thematically, however, the assessment is that the script varies a bit too widely from the source material, instead engaging in arguments on feminism, conformity, and collectivism, even going so far as to question the usefulness of militarism in the modern world. Personally, I think it’s also interesting to note that Snatchers hit the consumer marketplace at or around the same time as Fox TV’s juggernaut The X-Files launched into the zeitgeist; while one is still being talked about in some circles even to this day, the flick is, largely, forgotten.
The point to all of this cinema history is not to discount the use of body-snatching as a trope in Science Fiction; rather, it’s to underscore that each repetition found a means to re-apply it for its respective time … and that brings me to (finally, I know) discussing my thoughts of The Becomers.
In stark contrast to the versions that came before it, Clark’s fable dispenses with exploring the plight and perspective of we (pitiful) humans struggling against whatever troubles inhabit our days and instead weaves his tapestry from that of the occupiers: two aliens (played by different actors and actresses as the plot unspools) seek refuge on Earth after their civilization collapses (of sorts), and they spend the bulk of their time trying against the odds to find their way back to one another. So unlike those earlier attempts to explore body-snatching and/or body-swapping, this one is centered on being a love story; and it achieves only a measure of charm along the way. True, our two heroes (but are they?) do eventually achieve their sought-after, co-habitational bliss (but do they?), and yet the big finish really only underscores there’s much more to ‘happy ever after’ than we get to witness. Then, the real invasion begins, but that’s an epic for another day.
By switching the central focus from that of the endangered to those prosecuting their penetration of our species, Clark does achieve something that’s vastly more magical than his fish-out-of-water parable: he effectively removes the central paranoia of the victims and transplants it on the shoulders of the aggressors. With each exposure to a potential new human host or even casual human contact, the aliens are forced to reexamine what they think about our species and how they might slip into lockstep without being noticed for their infiltration. They – like us in those previous body-snatching films – just to survive, to retain their individuality, but (dammitall) if our pesky tribe doesn’t make it (dammitall) difficult. Before they know it, these extraterrestrials find themselves wrapped up in the toils and trouble of adapting to the life requirements during COVID lockdowns, adjusting to humdrum suburban life, and (inadvertently) joining a cult and kidnapping a governor.
This is, of course, satire; and, when it works, it’s really damn funny.
The problem therein is that it doesn’t work for considerable stretches of the tale’s connective tissues. Searching takes time, obviously, and those moments just aren’t as convincing as the ones when our galactic soulmates are finally conjoined. Because Clark chose to spin his yarn via an unseen narrator, I found it never as easy as it should’ve been to connect the bits and pieces of who these aliens were, precisely why they came to Earth, and why it seemed so patently easy for them to find one another despite never travelling all that far. A bit more set-up could’ve alleviated this confusion. In fact, it really wasn’t until The Becomers’ midpoint that the whole bite of its satirical potential became patently obvious (the cult’s attempt to videotape their message is the highpoint of the madness here); while that elevates the second half considerably, a bit more upfront could’ve done wonders for the vibe.
Furthermore, The Becomers makes great use of some practical make-up effects in briefly exploring the – ahem – sexuality of its body-snatchers. The truth of their technique is that their species cannot duplicate you or I precisely; apparently their powers of genetic reassembly don’t include to the human sex organs. (What can I say? Some of us don’t understand how they work either.) Puritanical viewers might take issue with – ahem – the alien ‘heavy petting’ as it gets rendered on film, but there’s still a tastefulness to romance as depicted. They’re hot. They’re heavy. They’re exploring as we all do. Yes, what transpires might qualify as body horror to some, but rather than it exploring a loss of identity it’s really only meant to draw comparisons to how these E.T.s’ necking might have curious similarities to our own. Consider it … equally gooey.
As for the talent? Keith Kelly does a great job. Mike Lopez needed a bit more grounding in places. And Molly Plunk? I’m smitten with your awkward appeal.
By switching the central focus from that of the endangered to those prosecuting their penetration of our species, Clark does achieve something that’s vastly more magical than his fish-out-of-water parable: he effectively removes the central paranoia of the victims and transplants it on the shoulders of the aggressors. With each exposure to a potential new human host or even casual human contact, the aliens are forced to reexamine what they think about our species and how they might slip into lockstep without being noticed for their infiltration. They – like us in those previous body-snatching films – just to survive, to retain their individuality, but (dammitall) if our pesky tribe doesn’t make it (dammitall) difficult. Before they know it, these extraterrestrials find themselves wrapped up in the toils and trouble of adapting to the life requirements during COVID lockdowns, adjusting to humdrum suburban life, and (inadvertently) joining a cult and kidnapping a governor.
This is, of course, satire; and, when it works, it’s really damn funny.
The problem therein is that it doesn’t work for considerable stretches of the tale’s connective tissues. Searching takes time, obviously, and those moments just aren’t as convincing as the ones when our galactic soulmates are finally conjoined. Because Clark chose to spin his yarn via an unseen narrator, I found it never as easy as it should’ve been to connect the bits and pieces of who these aliens were, precisely why they came to Earth, and why it seemed so patently easy for them to find one another despite never travelling all that far. A bit more set-up could’ve alleviated this confusion. In fact, it really wasn’t until The Becomers’ midpoint that the whole bite of its satirical potential became patently obvious (the cult’s attempt to videotape their message is the highpoint of the madness here); while that elevates the second half considerably, a bit more upfront could’ve done wonders for the vibe.
Furthermore, The Becomers makes great use of some practical make-up effects in briefly exploring the – ahem – sexuality of its body-snatchers. The truth of their technique is that their species cannot duplicate you or I precisely; apparently their powers of genetic reassembly don’t include to the human sex organs. (What can I say? Some of us don’t understand how they work either.) Puritanical viewers might take issue with – ahem – the alien ‘heavy petting’ as it gets rendered on film, but there’s still a tastefulness to romance as depicted. They’re hot. They’re heavy. They’re exploring as we all do. Yes, what transpires might qualify as body horror to some, but rather than it exploring a loss of identity it’s really only meant to draw comparisons to how these E.T.s’ necking might have curious similarities to our own. Consider it … equally gooey.
As for the talent? Keith Kelly does a great job. Mike Lopez needed a bit more grounding in places. And Molly Plunk? I’m smitten with your awkward appeal.
The Becomers (2023) was produced by Slasher Films. According to the press materials provided to me by Dark Star Pictures, the film is presently played via exclusive theatrical engagements but will be available VOD in late September, 2024. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert, I thought that the provided sights-and-sounds were pretty exceptional from start-to-finish: the effects budget was understandably modest – the picture never quite overcomes the texture of being an independent production, and that’s not intended as an insult – but they work fine as intended. Lastly, if you’re looking for special features? As I was provided only streaming access to the flick, there were no special features under consideration.
Recommended.
Look, folks: I’ll never apologize for (A) being a Science Fiction/Fantasy junkie or (B) being an unabashed fan of storytelling that tries to do something different … and, on those fronts, The Becomers (2023) is uneven, delightful, and quirky almost all at the same time. I enjoyed it, even if it could’ve used some tightening here and there. When it really finds itself and the potential of writer/director Clark’s vision, it excels with surprising laughs. The cast seemed to have no trouble buying into the economical nature of presenting something bigger-than-life with the modesty that goes with indie-style filmmaking. This is the kind of feature that should find a respectable cult following – not that there’s anything wrong with that – and it, too, might transcend time and space in the same way body-snatching seems to get reincarnated generationally. Only time will tell …
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Dark Star Pictures provided me with complimentary streaming access to The Becomers (2023) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
Recommended.
Look, folks: I’ll never apologize for (A) being a Science Fiction/Fantasy junkie or (B) being an unabashed fan of storytelling that tries to do something different … and, on those fronts, The Becomers (2023) is uneven, delightful, and quirky almost all at the same time. I enjoyed it, even if it could’ve used some tightening here and there. When it really finds itself and the potential of writer/director Clark’s vision, it excels with surprising laughs. The cast seemed to have no trouble buying into the economical nature of presenting something bigger-than-life with the modesty that goes with indie-style filmmaking. This is the kind of feature that should find a respectable cult following – not that there’s anything wrong with that – and it, too, might transcend time and space in the same way body-snatching seems to get reincarnated generationally. Only time will tell …
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Dark Star Pictures provided me with complimentary streaming access to The Becomers (2023) by request for the expressed purpose of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
- Published on
Folks, there are some days when it ain't easy being a lifelong Star Wars fan.
Now, I'm not trying to court any controversy, people. All I'm trying to do respectfully is demonstrate that fandom has its respective highs and lows. Rarely does something start out 'on top of the heap' and stay up there forever. We've all seen what Russell T. Davies has done to Doctor Who. We've all struggled with the utter narrative collapse of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And -- dare I mention it? -- our beloved Star Wars has found itself on hard times indeed as The Mandalorian Season 3 crapped the bed, Ahsoka turned out to be a visual Ambien, and now The Acolyte destroyed the Force in favor of the Thread where a cartel of Communist Space Witches gave immaculate birth to twin boring actresses. (Well, at least one actress, that is ...)
No, no, and no: I'm not making a statement on the quality or lack thereof of Kathleen Kennedy's latest disaster. I think it's pretty clear that the show's ratings speak for themselves. I didn't watch it. I've no desire to see it. Ever. And the sudden disappearance of its merchandise from the Disney online portal suggests maybe even the Mouse House would like that diversion to be forgotten. Only time will tell.
(Again: if you liked The Acolyte, then that's great. I'm glad you did. Keep fanning those flames, my friends, and maybe you'll get a bit more of the same. "You deserve what you accept," after all, and it is what it is.)
But ...
I'm happier sticking with what's tried-and-true, and the classic characters have never looked more adorable than they do at present with Doorables line of miniature figures. Yes, I've posted about them before in the space, and the reason I'm bringing them up again is that -- over the weekend -- I noticed at the local WalMart that they've finally put out a few more additions, these tied specifically to some themed sets. I passed at picking them up because some WalMart clerk had tagged them incorrectly (at a ridiculously exorbitant price, I might add), but now that the merchant has corrected them I'll likely pick one, two, or maybe even all of them up. These really are incredibly cute, and they make wonderful decor for those of us who still appreciate classic Star Wars and are willing to tolerate a face or two from the Disney iterations.
Pictures are below.
Now, I'm not trying to court any controversy, people. All I'm trying to do respectfully is demonstrate that fandom has its respective highs and lows. Rarely does something start out 'on top of the heap' and stay up there forever. We've all seen what Russell T. Davies has done to Doctor Who. We've all struggled with the utter narrative collapse of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And -- dare I mention it? -- our beloved Star Wars has found itself on hard times indeed as The Mandalorian Season 3 crapped the bed, Ahsoka turned out to be a visual Ambien, and now The Acolyte destroyed the Force in favor of the Thread where a cartel of Communist Space Witches gave immaculate birth to twin boring actresses. (Well, at least one actress, that is ...)
No, no, and no: I'm not making a statement on the quality or lack thereof of Kathleen Kennedy's latest disaster. I think it's pretty clear that the show's ratings speak for themselves. I didn't watch it. I've no desire to see it. Ever. And the sudden disappearance of its merchandise from the Disney online portal suggests maybe even the Mouse House would like that diversion to be forgotten. Only time will tell.
(Again: if you liked The Acolyte, then that's great. I'm glad you did. Keep fanning those flames, my friends, and maybe you'll get a bit more of the same. "You deserve what you accept," after all, and it is what it is.)
But ...
I'm happier sticking with what's tried-and-true, and the classic characters have never looked more adorable than they do at present with Doorables line of miniature figures. Yes, I've posted about them before in the space, and the reason I'm bringing them up again is that -- over the weekend -- I noticed at the local WalMart that they've finally put out a few more additions, these tied specifically to some themed sets. I passed at picking them up because some WalMart clerk had tagged them incorrectly (at a ridiculously exorbitant price, I might add), but now that the merchant has corrected them I'll likely pick one, two, or maybe even all of them up. These really are incredibly cute, and they make wonderful decor for those of us who still appreciate classic Star Wars and are willing to tolerate a face or two from the Disney iterations.
Pictures are below.
Of course, not that anybody's asking, but wouldn't it be cool to get a set based entirely on each of the movies in the original two trilogies? (Sorry, JJ and Kathleen, not a fan of the Sequel Trilogy ...) What better way to commemorate these motion pictures with a box on each film; and I think the hardest of the hardcore fans would be willing to pony up respectable pocket change for individual character additions they way they did in the days of their youth ... like, maybe, a Bounty Hunter set? Woof. That would be killer.
In any event, like and share the post as you like, kids. These things are wonderful -- the wifey concurs, even -- so get 'em while you can.
As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
In any event, like and share the post as you like, kids. These things are wonderful -- the wifey concurs, even -- so get 'em while you can.
As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
- Published on
Editor's note:
Folks, as I've mentioned before, I've been writing about film for far longer than many of you have even been alive! Back in the day, I was an Amazon.com Top 1,000 Reviewer -- the vast majority of my pieces were reviews on films I'd seen privately or via distributors -- but when that commercial juggernaut changed their rules all of my content was dumped into the aether. As time permits, I recover an old gem, dust it off a bit, and post it in this space ... where I have greater control. That's the case with my thoughts on 2013's Banshee Chapter. Enjoy!
Folks, as I've mentioned before, I've been writing about film for far longer than many of you have even been alive! Back in the day, I was an Amazon.com Top 1,000 Reviewer -- the vast majority of my pieces were reviews on films I'd seen privately or via distributors -- but when that commercial juggernaut changed their rules all of my content was dumped into the aether. As time permits, I recover an old gem, dust it off a bit, and post it in this space ... where I have greater control. That's the case with my thoughts on 2013's Banshee Chapter. Enjoy!
You know, long gone are the days when a Horror film just wanted to be a good Horror film.
These days – what with the widespread availability of digital equipment or even the prevalence of your top-of-the-line smartphone – any Tom, Dick, or Harry can pursue the dream of becoming an auteur. Still, why is it that every horror film coming down the pike these days has to be a concept film of some variety? Can’t we just simply scare viewers silly any longer? Why must a premise be deeper than that? Why is every storyteller trying to incorporate this narrative trick or that visual technique whenever possible and so little real effort being expended on just freaking the audience out with terror? What can’t a film just spin a good yarn and have that be enough? Are we overthinking the construct that much, or do the makers just no longer care?
That’s the question I found myself asking at the end of Banshee Chapter.
Hint: I did like the film.
The negative: it tried too hard to be something that it probably could never be when all it truly needed to be was right there in front of its face. Instead of going for broke with various tale-spinning devices, writer/director Blair Erickson really should’ve clocked some serious mileage in keeping this thing a lean, mean, scream-producing machine.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last three paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the packaging:
“On the trail of a missing friend (Michael McMillian) who had been experimenting with mind-altering drugs, a young journalist (Katia Winter) – aided by a rogue counter-culture writer (Ted Levine) – finds herself drawn into the dangerous world of top-secret government chemical research and the mystery of a disturbing radio signal of unknown origin.”
I’ll try to be as precise as I can in detailing what I didn’t like about Banshee Chapter, but, as I said above, let me get this out of the way once more first and foremost: I liked it. Even better said, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Writer/director Blair Erickson tapped a lot of veins here – conspiracy, found footage, documentary, ghost stories, etc. – and they all get mixed up in a pleasant enough concoction that I honestly figure it hard for anyone to not have some measure of fun with the experience. At 90 minutes, it's that perfect movie length long enough to convey the story in here … but it’s still really, really bloated with its narrative trickery … and not in a good way.
These days – what with the widespread availability of digital equipment or even the prevalence of your top-of-the-line smartphone – any Tom, Dick, or Harry can pursue the dream of becoming an auteur. Still, why is it that every horror film coming down the pike these days has to be a concept film of some variety? Can’t we just simply scare viewers silly any longer? Why must a premise be deeper than that? Why is every storyteller trying to incorporate this narrative trick or that visual technique whenever possible and so little real effort being expended on just freaking the audience out with terror? What can’t a film just spin a good yarn and have that be enough? Are we overthinking the construct that much, or do the makers just no longer care?
That’s the question I found myself asking at the end of Banshee Chapter.
Hint: I did like the film.
The negative: it tried too hard to be something that it probably could never be when all it truly needed to be was right there in front of its face. Instead of going for broke with various tale-spinning devices, writer/director Blair Erickson really should’ve clocked some serious mileage in keeping this thing a lean, mean, scream-producing machine.
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters. If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I’d encourage you to skip down to the last three paragraphs for my final assessment. If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)
From the packaging:
“On the trail of a missing friend (Michael McMillian) who had been experimenting with mind-altering drugs, a young journalist (Katia Winter) – aided by a rogue counter-culture writer (Ted Levine) – finds herself drawn into the dangerous world of top-secret government chemical research and the mystery of a disturbing radio signal of unknown origin.”
I’ll try to be as precise as I can in detailing what I didn’t like about Banshee Chapter, but, as I said above, let me get this out of the way once more first and foremost: I liked it. Even better said, I enjoyed it quite a bit. Writer/director Blair Erickson tapped a lot of veins here – conspiracy, found footage, documentary, ghost stories, etc. – and they all get mixed up in a pleasant enough concoction that I honestly figure it hard for anyone to not have some measure of fun with the experience. At 90 minutes, it's that perfect movie length long enough to convey the story in here … but it’s still really, really bloated with its narrative trickery … and not in a good way.
For example, I thought Chapter was going to fall into the category of the ‘found footage film’ right out of the gate. Indeed, those first scenes are constructed from archival footage surrounding the US government’s disclosure of a real-life scandal – the MK Ultra experiments – and then it segues nicely into Anne Roland’s narration. As those moments tick on and the reporter’s investigation deepens, Chapter starts to take on an almost documentary feel, gradually leaving behind the ‘found’ premise and instead going-for-broke in what starts to look like a real-time expose. (Some might suggest that two halves make a whole, sure, but there’s no denying they’re a bit uneven.) However, as those moments give way and suddenly breach an even broader story, I started to see that the resulting ordeal settled into a groove where Erickson decided the best way to spin the yarn was to combine these elements along with little more than a good old-fashioned ghost story.
Now … this is where I started to tire of the techniques. On their own, they each have strengths and weaknesses, and – depending upon the story – they work just fine. When they’re combined in such a way as happens here, the end result isn’t smooth. It’s more like I felt myself being pulled in a direction that should’ve been accomplished more naturally, more organically. For me, the artifice of forcing a story into being cheapens the thrill ride, even if I appreciate the thrills along the way.
There’s nothing wrong with a little misdirection.
In fact, many very good pictures (not just horror ones, mind you) make ample use of established plot devices to push you in one direction while concealing the big reveal for maximum effectiveness later. The problem here is that because of the elaborate set-up – because we, as an audience, are treated to Roland’s near-exhaustive construction (we’re led to believe that she’s recounting these events much after-the-fact) – we feel the rug pulled out from under us when the last scene – that big reveal – makes the set-up improbable if not downright impossible. Emilio Estevez ruined a respectable shot as a film director early in his career with a similar convention: he built his entire film up with him as the narrator, detailing for the audience a life of crime. Yet, once the story unfolds, we find out that he was already killed in the film’s closing moments. Uh … so who was that telling us the story all along? His ghost? His spirit from the beyond looking down from Heaven? Trickery of this sort must be used with greater restraint; otherwise, the fabric of an already fragile universe comes apart at the seams.
Banshee Chapter isn’t a failure. Rather, it’s pretty pleasant, and Katia Winter is awesome to look at for 90 minutes. I just expected more of this to make sense in the end, and it didn’t.
Banshee Chapter (2013) is produced by Sunchaser Entertainment, Before the Door Pictures, and Favorit Film. DVD distribution is being handled by XLRator Media. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert … yeah, the film looks and sounds fairly solid, though I’ll admit in advance that I had to really crank the volume up on this one (mixed too low?) in order to hear everything, and, even then, some of the dialogue sounded a bit muddled (some I suspect was deliberate but others not so much). As for the special features? Well, the packaging promises an in-depth look at the making of the film, but the few shorts here clocked in at about three minutes a piece, and they really offered up no great substance at all. I found them disappointing, only because I would’ve liked to know more. I always do.
Recommended.
Banshee Chapter (2013) is probably everything you expect it to be. First, it’s a Horror film. Second, it’s still a Horror film. And, lastly, it’ll always likely be nothing more than just a Horror film. It’s a fairly clever picking-and-choosing of what works best in the genre, and it’s liberally spread it all around in such a way as to, basically, delight (and scare!) the audience. It’s a carnival thrill ride. It’s meant to be enjoyed in the moment, remembered while you’re putting it away, and (most likely) forgotten tomorrow. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. If you expect it to mean more? Well, apart from your curious visuals, you’re probably barking up the wrong tree. (To the film’s credit, it did earn a bit of extra love from a screening on the film festival circuit, so there’s that. And all of it is apparently derived from a story by H.P. Lovecraft, so that’s another significant plus.)
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at XLRator Media provided me with a DVD copy of Banshee Chapter by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
Now … this is where I started to tire of the techniques. On their own, they each have strengths and weaknesses, and – depending upon the story – they work just fine. When they’re combined in such a way as happens here, the end result isn’t smooth. It’s more like I felt myself being pulled in a direction that should’ve been accomplished more naturally, more organically. For me, the artifice of forcing a story into being cheapens the thrill ride, even if I appreciate the thrills along the way.
There’s nothing wrong with a little misdirection.
In fact, many very good pictures (not just horror ones, mind you) make ample use of established plot devices to push you in one direction while concealing the big reveal for maximum effectiveness later. The problem here is that because of the elaborate set-up – because we, as an audience, are treated to Roland’s near-exhaustive construction (we’re led to believe that she’s recounting these events much after-the-fact) – we feel the rug pulled out from under us when the last scene – that big reveal – makes the set-up improbable if not downright impossible. Emilio Estevez ruined a respectable shot as a film director early in his career with a similar convention: he built his entire film up with him as the narrator, detailing for the audience a life of crime. Yet, once the story unfolds, we find out that he was already killed in the film’s closing moments. Uh … so who was that telling us the story all along? His ghost? His spirit from the beyond looking down from Heaven? Trickery of this sort must be used with greater restraint; otherwise, the fabric of an already fragile universe comes apart at the seams.
Banshee Chapter isn’t a failure. Rather, it’s pretty pleasant, and Katia Winter is awesome to look at for 90 minutes. I just expected more of this to make sense in the end, and it didn’t.
Banshee Chapter (2013) is produced by Sunchaser Entertainment, Before the Door Pictures, and Favorit Film. DVD distribution is being handled by XLRator Media. As for the technical specifications? While I’m no trained video expert … yeah, the film looks and sounds fairly solid, though I’ll admit in advance that I had to really crank the volume up on this one (mixed too low?) in order to hear everything, and, even then, some of the dialogue sounded a bit muddled (some I suspect was deliberate but others not so much). As for the special features? Well, the packaging promises an in-depth look at the making of the film, but the few shorts here clocked in at about three minutes a piece, and they really offered up no great substance at all. I found them disappointing, only because I would’ve liked to know more. I always do.
Recommended.
Banshee Chapter (2013) is probably everything you expect it to be. First, it’s a Horror film. Second, it’s still a Horror film. And, lastly, it’ll always likely be nothing more than just a Horror film. It’s a fairly clever picking-and-choosing of what works best in the genre, and it’s liberally spread it all around in such a way as to, basically, delight (and scare!) the audience. It’s a carnival thrill ride. It’s meant to be enjoyed in the moment, remembered while you’re putting it away, and (most likely) forgotten tomorrow. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. If you expect it to mean more? Well, apart from your curious visuals, you’re probably barking up the wrong tree. (To the film’s credit, it did earn a bit of extra love from a screening on the film festival circuit, so there’s that. And all of it is apparently derived from a story by H.P. Lovecraft, so that’s another significant plus.)
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at XLRator Media provided me with a DVD copy of Banshee Chapter by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review. Their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
-- EZ
- Published on
I know a good number of you missed out on Psycho Goreman, a bit of delightful otherworldly lunacy that came about in 2020, and that's a crying shame. While I realize that its offbeat humor might not have been for everyone, I suspect there was honestly something in there for everyone, be it the skewered perspective of anti-Spielbergian kid performances or even Goreman's unquenchable desire for galactic domination. In the end, I thought it was downright fun -- and I said as much in my review right here -- and I still find myself recommended it to folks who show up asking for something fresh, bold, different, and unheard of.
Now ... I've no way to know whether or not Frankie Freako will ultimately be in the same vein of unpredictability. It does boast an association back to Goreman -- same writer and director -- so that arguably bodes well so far as I'm concerned. The effects in the trailer all look and feel a bit more intrusive by comparison to Goreman's modest insertions, but -- again -- I rarely put a great deal of weight into coming attractions. They're usually crafted with one goal in mind -- putting butts in the seats -- and I'm always one who prefers waiting to see the finished product. Call me old-fashioned, if you will.
Whatever the truth may be, I've received some of the promotional materials for Freako, so I'll be doing the dutiful copy-and-paste below, along with posting the trailer. This one is on-tap for later this year -- October, I believe -- so maybe put it on the calendar as one to check out when the time is right.
You know what to do.
Now ... I've no way to know whether or not Frankie Freako will ultimately be in the same vein of unpredictability. It does boast an association back to Goreman -- same writer and director -- so that arguably bodes well so far as I'm concerned. The effects in the trailer all look and feel a bit more intrusive by comparison to Goreman's modest insertions, but -- again -- I rarely put a great deal of weight into coming attractions. They're usually crafted with one goal in mind -- putting butts in the seats -- and I'm always one who prefers waiting to see the finished product. Call me old-fashioned, if you will.
Whatever the truth may be, I've received some of the promotional materials for Freako, so I'll be doing the dutiful copy-and-paste below, along with posting the trailer. This one is on-tap for later this year -- October, I believe -- so maybe put it on the calendar as one to check out when the time is right.
You know what to do.
FRANKIE FREAKO
In Select Theaters on October 4th
In Select Theaters on October 4th
Synopsis:
Workaholic yuppie Conor Sweeney (star of “The Editor”, “Father’s Day”) has a dilemma: no one in his life respects him! Not his boss, not his coworkers, not even his wife Kristina, who thinks he’s an uptight “square”! Conor sees no way out of this existential rut until one night channel-surfing he catches a bizarre ad for a party hotline hosted by a strange dancing goblin: FRANKIE FREAKO. Conor is entranced by Frankie’s promises of wild and freaky adventures, just a phone call away - could this be the recipe to spice up his flavorless life?
Home alone for the weekend, Conor works up the courage to dial the number for the Frankie Freako hotline. As soon as the call connects, it unleashes CHAOS into his white-collar world, releasing Frankie and his troublemaker friends from their dimensional prison. It’s a race against time as Conor must defeat the rambunctious ruffians and clean up their trail of destruction before Kristina returns from her trip, all while going on an unexpected journey of self-discovery. It’s a wacky FX-driven horror-comedy in the style of “Gremlins 2” and “Ghoulies 3: Ghoulies go to College”.
Written/Directed by: Steven Kostanski
Produced by: Steven Kostanski, Pasha Patriki
and Melanie Murray
Starring: Conor Sweeney, Adam Brooks, Kristy Woodsworth
Workaholic yuppie Conor Sweeney (star of “The Editor”, “Father’s Day”) has a dilemma: no one in his life respects him! Not his boss, not his coworkers, not even his wife Kristina, who thinks he’s an uptight “square”! Conor sees no way out of this existential rut until one night channel-surfing he catches a bizarre ad for a party hotline hosted by a strange dancing goblin: FRANKIE FREAKO. Conor is entranced by Frankie’s promises of wild and freaky adventures, just a phone call away - could this be the recipe to spice up his flavorless life?
Home alone for the weekend, Conor works up the courage to dial the number for the Frankie Freako hotline. As soon as the call connects, it unleashes CHAOS into his white-collar world, releasing Frankie and his troublemaker friends from their dimensional prison. It’s a race against time as Conor must defeat the rambunctious ruffians and clean up their trail of destruction before Kristina returns from her trip, all while going on an unexpected journey of self-discovery. It’s a wacky FX-driven horror-comedy in the style of “Gremlins 2” and “Ghoulies 3: Ghoulies go to College”.
Written/Directed by: Steven Kostanski
Produced by: Steven Kostanski, Pasha Patriki
and Melanie Murray
Starring: Conor Sweeney, Adam Brooks, Kristy Woodsworth
- Published on
Just to clarify ... no, I'm not gloating.
As I've said several times when I've been asked by fans on my opinion of Star Wars Disney+ streaming series The Acolyte is that I didn't watch it. In fact, I've confessed that I cancelled my subscription after the dismal finale to Star Wars: The Bad Batch, an animated diversion that I enjoyed up until its last season in which creator Dave Filoni kinda/sorta switched dynamics and went in a markedly different direction with the ensemble project. (No, I didn't hate the last episode or two, but I was disappointed.) Since I've never seen so much as a single episode of The Acolyte, I can't effectively comment on it critically.
Now, I can say that I followed a lot of the program's controversy, along with the drubbing it took online from fans. While I'll concede that some of the criticisms were occasionally over the top, I think a good portion of what I saw seemed logical, cogent, and well-conceived. No, I didn't see -- as has been widely reported in the media -- a "bunch of bigots" spouting out their shared hatred of people who look and/or act differently than they do; instead, I watched and listened to thinkers dissecting why scenes and characters and even settings didn't quite work as seamlessly as the way even a modestly produced effort should. Truth can be difficult to swallow, but that doesn't suggest one opinion is any more divisive or ill-founded than others. Reality is likely somewhere in the middle.
But I did see yesterday that word has finally reached the World Wide Web of The Acolyte's cancellation; and I can't say that I'm all that surprised. The show's ratings were not good, and -- ahem -- the way the studio, the stars, and the showrunners were lashing out at anyone who held an assessment contrary to theirs probably didn't exactly win over the vast majority of potential viewers who were 'sitting on the fence minding their own business.' Rarely do such campaigns turn out well, and had any employee with an understanding of history been behind-the-scenes then perhaps a cautionary word or two might've brought a different fate. Again, truth can be difficult to swallow ... but I've already said as much.
At the very least, The Acolyte joins that growing mountain of Science Fiction and Fantasy shows that were fortunate enough to get a single season but not relevant enough to earn a second. That's no testament to quality, frankly, as a great many shows have come and gone in the same fashion, some of the good, some of them bad. Having been around on this Big Blue Marble longer than most, I can tell you my heart, too, has been broken from having suffered alongside fans in the 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, and more; so -- if nothing else -- those of you who enjoyed The Acolyte have minimally my understanding and an appreciation for how you're feeling today. Yes, it hurts ... but you'll get over it.
Here's the thing, though ...
History also tells us that just because a studio cancels something that doesn't mean that fandom simply walks away.
Indeed, where would we be if those legendary Star Trek fans -- Trekkies, Trekkers, general Trek enthusiasts, etc. -- had left the Final Frontier behind? Each and every time the television show was up for cancellation, they responded. They bought the adventures of Captain James T. Kirk and his crew a full three seasons; and even then when the show resurfaced in television syndication they kept pushing and pushing and pushing for more. It wasn't all that long before an animated incarnation turned up -- along with novels, fanfiction, and the like -- and then once Star Wars lit the fuse it was inevitable that Paramount followed suit with the franchise of their own.
The Acolyte can live on ... but only if you lift it up.
Yes, it'll take a significant amount of effort. Yes, it's likely going to be an uphill battle. But if enough of you can convince the powers that be -- along with Harvey Weinstein employee Leslye Headland -- that you want more, then you're likely going to get something. It might be a graphic novel or a series of books. It could even be an animated show. The sky's the limit ... but you're going to have to show them that it's worth the investment. That's what scores of folks did back in Trek's days; and if you're willing to roll up your sleeves and do a good day's work then you, too, can seize the day.
Regardless ... The Force can still be with us.
-- EZ
As I've said several times when I've been asked by fans on my opinion of Star Wars Disney+ streaming series The Acolyte is that I didn't watch it. In fact, I've confessed that I cancelled my subscription after the dismal finale to Star Wars: The Bad Batch, an animated diversion that I enjoyed up until its last season in which creator Dave Filoni kinda/sorta switched dynamics and went in a markedly different direction with the ensemble project. (No, I didn't hate the last episode or two, but I was disappointed.) Since I've never seen so much as a single episode of The Acolyte, I can't effectively comment on it critically.
Now, I can say that I followed a lot of the program's controversy, along with the drubbing it took online from fans. While I'll concede that some of the criticisms were occasionally over the top, I think a good portion of what I saw seemed logical, cogent, and well-conceived. No, I didn't see -- as has been widely reported in the media -- a "bunch of bigots" spouting out their shared hatred of people who look and/or act differently than they do; instead, I watched and listened to thinkers dissecting why scenes and characters and even settings didn't quite work as seamlessly as the way even a modestly produced effort should. Truth can be difficult to swallow, but that doesn't suggest one opinion is any more divisive or ill-founded than others. Reality is likely somewhere in the middle.
But I did see yesterday that word has finally reached the World Wide Web of The Acolyte's cancellation; and I can't say that I'm all that surprised. The show's ratings were not good, and -- ahem -- the way the studio, the stars, and the showrunners were lashing out at anyone who held an assessment contrary to theirs probably didn't exactly win over the vast majority of potential viewers who were 'sitting on the fence minding their own business.' Rarely do such campaigns turn out well, and had any employee with an understanding of history been behind-the-scenes then perhaps a cautionary word or two might've brought a different fate. Again, truth can be difficult to swallow ... but I've already said as much.
At the very least, The Acolyte joins that growing mountain of Science Fiction and Fantasy shows that were fortunate enough to get a single season but not relevant enough to earn a second. That's no testament to quality, frankly, as a great many shows have come and gone in the same fashion, some of the good, some of them bad. Having been around on this Big Blue Marble longer than most, I can tell you my heart, too, has been broken from having suffered alongside fans in the 1970's, 1980's, 1990's, and more; so -- if nothing else -- those of you who enjoyed The Acolyte have minimally my understanding and an appreciation for how you're feeling today. Yes, it hurts ... but you'll get over it.
Here's the thing, though ...
History also tells us that just because a studio cancels something that doesn't mean that fandom simply walks away.
Indeed, where would we be if those legendary Star Trek fans -- Trekkies, Trekkers, general Trek enthusiasts, etc. -- had left the Final Frontier behind? Each and every time the television show was up for cancellation, they responded. They bought the adventures of Captain James T. Kirk and his crew a full three seasons; and even then when the show resurfaced in television syndication they kept pushing and pushing and pushing for more. It wasn't all that long before an animated incarnation turned up -- along with novels, fanfiction, and the like -- and then once Star Wars lit the fuse it was inevitable that Paramount followed suit with the franchise of their own.
The Acolyte can live on ... but only if you lift it up.
Yes, it'll take a significant amount of effort. Yes, it's likely going to be an uphill battle. But if enough of you can convince the powers that be -- along with Harvey Weinstein employee Leslye Headland -- that you want more, then you're likely going to get something. It might be a graphic novel or a series of books. It could even be an animated show. The sky's the limit ... but you're going to have to show them that it's worth the investment. That's what scores of folks did back in Trek's days; and if you're willing to roll up your sleeves and do a good day's work then you, too, can seize the day.
Regardless ... The Force can still be with us.
-- EZ
- Published on
At the core, each and every 'body snatching' movie I've had the good fortune to watch has had something relatable to say about the loss of identity.
In fact, I think I'd once read a treatise on that whole idea -- that the trend of 'body snatching' flicks in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror were fundamentally meant to be more social commentary -- that we inevitably lose ourselves in some way, shape, or form -- to something else. While I don't find that conceit hard to accept on any level, it is interesting that these productions do continue popping up with each successive generation. If anything, that trend underscores that stylistically those fears never go out of style; storytellers just keep finding new ways to express and explore such deep-rooted fears, sometimes with comic intentions and sometimes without.
Woof. I said a mouthful, eh?
In any event, I truly just wanted to pop by to alert the readership that there's one more on the horizon: Dark Star Pictures' The Becomers looks to spawn theatrically just this Friday (August 23rd) with a proposed VOD release that'll follow starting Tuesday, September 24th. Those of you looking to know a bit more can check out the press announcement located below, and I've also posted the trailer (available online) for your perusal.
You know what to do ...
In fact, I think I'd once read a treatise on that whole idea -- that the trend of 'body snatching' flicks in Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror were fundamentally meant to be more social commentary -- that we inevitably lose ourselves in some way, shape, or form -- to something else. While I don't find that conceit hard to accept on any level, it is interesting that these productions do continue popping up with each successive generation. If anything, that trend underscores that stylistically those fears never go out of style; storytellers just keep finding new ways to express and explore such deep-rooted fears, sometimes with comic intentions and sometimes without.
Woof. I said a mouthful, eh?
In any event, I truly just wanted to pop by to alert the readership that there's one more on the horizon: Dark Star Pictures' The Becomers looks to spawn theatrically just this Friday (August 23rd) with a proposed VOD release that'll follow starting Tuesday, September 24th. Those of you looking to know a bit more can check out the press announcement located below, and I've also posted the trailer (available online) for your perusal.
You know what to do ...
OPENING THIS WEEK!
Zach Clark’s Sci-Fi Genre-Bender
THE BECOMERS
Opening from Dark Star Pictures on Friday, August 23
Arriving on VOD Tuesday, September 24
Zach Clark’s Sci-Fi Genre-Bender
THE BECOMERS
Opening from Dark Star Pictures on Friday, August 23
Arriving on VOD Tuesday, September 24
Writer/director Zach Clark’s acclaimed sci-fi genre-bender THE BECOMERS kicks off its U.S. theatrical release on Friday, August, 23rd and arrives on VOD in North America on Tuesday, September 24th. The film will open in New York on August 23rd at Cinema Village, in Los Angeles on August 30th at Lumiere Music Hall, and in Chicago on September 13th at Music Box Theatre, with more cities listed below.
The latest film from the celebrated American indie filmmaker, a visually striking homage to retro science fiction that reverberates with the pulse of politics and cultural trends of the last five years —drawing from COVID, Qanon, and constant states of anxiety— while exploring themes of confusion, isolation, and the deep need for human connection through the story of two body-snatching alien lovers. The cast includes Molly Plunk (LITTLE SISTER, SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY), Mike Lopez (MAY DECEMBER), Keith Kelly, Isabel Alamin, and Frank V. Ross (DRINKING BUDDIES), with narration by Russell Mael, lead singer of the renowned musical duo Sparks.
Best known for the critically acclaimed WHITE REINDEER, released by IFC Films, and LITTLE SISTER, featuring Addison Timlin and Ally Sheedy, THE BECOMERS is Clark’s fifth feature. Also a celebrated editor outside of his own films, his credits include Sophia Takal’s ALWAYS SHINE, Hannah Fidell’s THE LONG DUMB ROAD, Michael Tully’s DON’T LEAVE HOME, and Michael M. Bilandic’s indie cult film JOBE’Z WORLD.
THE BECOMERS was shot in Chicago and is produced by Joe Swanberg (HAPPY CHRISTMAS, DIGGING FOR FIRE) and Eric Ashworth. Eddie Linker (GHOSTLIGHT, QUEEN OF EARTH) produced for Slasher Film Company. Daryl Pittman lensed, Fritz Myers composed the film’s original score, and Glamhag production designed.
Synopsis:
"Forced to flee their dying planet, two body-snatching alien lovers arrive separately on Earth. Determined to find each other, the aliens jump from body to body, but they quickly learn that it's not easy to inhabit their new, fleshy hosts, and that life in modern-day America is more complicated than they could have ever imagined."
The latest film from the celebrated American indie filmmaker, a visually striking homage to retro science fiction that reverberates with the pulse of politics and cultural trends of the last five years —drawing from COVID, Qanon, and constant states of anxiety— while exploring themes of confusion, isolation, and the deep need for human connection through the story of two body-snatching alien lovers. The cast includes Molly Plunk (LITTLE SISTER, SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY), Mike Lopez (MAY DECEMBER), Keith Kelly, Isabel Alamin, and Frank V. Ross (DRINKING BUDDIES), with narration by Russell Mael, lead singer of the renowned musical duo Sparks.
Best known for the critically acclaimed WHITE REINDEER, released by IFC Films, and LITTLE SISTER, featuring Addison Timlin and Ally Sheedy, THE BECOMERS is Clark’s fifth feature. Also a celebrated editor outside of his own films, his credits include Sophia Takal’s ALWAYS SHINE, Hannah Fidell’s THE LONG DUMB ROAD, Michael Tully’s DON’T LEAVE HOME, and Michael M. Bilandic’s indie cult film JOBE’Z WORLD.
THE BECOMERS was shot in Chicago and is produced by Joe Swanberg (HAPPY CHRISTMAS, DIGGING FOR FIRE) and Eric Ashworth. Eddie Linker (GHOSTLIGHT, QUEEN OF EARTH) produced for Slasher Film Company. Daryl Pittman lensed, Fritz Myers composed the film’s original score, and Glamhag production designed.
Synopsis:
"Forced to flee their dying planet, two body-snatching alien lovers arrive separately on Earth. Determined to find each other, the aliens jump from body to body, but they quickly learn that it's not easy to inhabit their new, fleshy hosts, and that life in modern-day America is more complicated than they could have ever imagined."
What Critics Are Saying:
“Toggling between a Jarmusch cool and a Linklater chill”
- Erik Luers, Filmmaker
“An intriguing amalgamation of cringe love and Cronenbergian body horror”
- Marco Vito Oddo, Collider
“Director Zach Clark looks to create his own science fiction cult favorite with the offbeat The Becomers”
- Allyson Johnson, But Why Tho?
"Each generation gets the Body Snatchers it deserves, and this year deserves chaos. The Becomers brings it in buckets"
- Jason Adams, Mashable
"With low-fi effects and a big heart, Zach Clark’s sci-fi dramedy offers a close encounter of the weird (and wonderful) kind"
- Emily Gagne, Dread Central
"A gender and genre defying adventure with the universal desire for connection at its heart, The Becomers is a sweet and much needed reminder that love conquers all"
- Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, AWFJ.org
“An ambitious voyage aimed to challenge perceptions and occasionally the gag reflex as it examines the power of love amidst a turbulent world... The Becomers becomes a satire within a satire, nestling social critique within a sci-fi subversion”
- Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
ABOUT DARK STAR PICTURES:
Dark Star Pictures is a new-age North American distribution company, focused on bringing unique and targeted content to audiences across the country. We are committed to releasing auteur-driven, original cinema in the theatrical, digital and home video space. Our goal is to create original marketing campaigns directly catered to audiences who will embrace our brand of thought-provoking cinema.
“Toggling between a Jarmusch cool and a Linklater chill”
- Erik Luers, Filmmaker
“An intriguing amalgamation of cringe love and Cronenbergian body horror”
- Marco Vito Oddo, Collider
“Director Zach Clark looks to create his own science fiction cult favorite with the offbeat The Becomers”
- Allyson Johnson, But Why Tho?
"Each generation gets the Body Snatchers it deserves, and this year deserves chaos. The Becomers brings it in buckets"
- Jason Adams, Mashable
"With low-fi effects and a big heart, Zach Clark’s sci-fi dramedy offers a close encounter of the weird (and wonderful) kind"
- Emily Gagne, Dread Central
"A gender and genre defying adventure with the universal desire for connection at its heart, The Becomers is a sweet and much needed reminder that love conquers all"
- Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, AWFJ.org
“An ambitious voyage aimed to challenge perceptions and occasionally the gag reflex as it examines the power of love amidst a turbulent world... The Becomers becomes a satire within a satire, nestling social critique within a sci-fi subversion”
- Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
ABOUT DARK STAR PICTURES:
Dark Star Pictures is a new-age North American distribution company, focused on bringing unique and targeted content to audiences across the country. We are committed to releasing auteur-driven, original cinema in the theatrical, digital and home video space. Our goal is to create original marketing campaigns directly catered to audiences who will embrace our brand of thought-provoking cinema.