Movies inspired by the writing of HP Lovecraft are often so heavy that they can be draining. Lovecraft’s most media (apart from sharp stock and the whole idea was that we lived in a howling, empty, empty cosmos that despised humanity at its best, and was so hostile that even the sight of the true horrors of the world would drive most people mad.
And yet some filmmakers have found light humor in Lovecraft’s stories — sometimes for good satirical goalsbut sometimes without losing the cosmic sense of the horror of the heart of his work. Chief among Lovecraft Horror-comedy directors is Stuart Gordon, whose Re-Animator, From beyondand Dagon to the horror of a certain Amorecraft lend a certain With the joy of bloody new movie Suitable meat, Mayhem and Knights of Badassdom director Joe Lynch is clearly working in the manner of Stuart Gordon. He helped out in the best possible way: Or writer Dennis Paoli, who wrote all three of Gordon’s films, and is in his element here, loosely adapting the 1937 short story “The Thing Over the Door.”
It’s easy to get impatient with streamers that I’ve never seen From beyond In particular, I would miss the sound of Lynch and Paoli’s cunt for with Suitable meat. They might turn it down early, thinking that it feels cheap, flat, and polished, that the action is too broad, or that the emotions on display feel too fervent. All those no-nos are set in a very realistic horror setting. But the old disputes will disappear; in time Suitable meat reaches its peak and fully displays the intentions of the creators, a bacchanal of wild violence, over-the-top humor, and true cosmic terror.
Photo: RLJE Films/horreo
Heather Graham stars as Elizabeth Derby, a sailing psychiatrist who has introduced the usual disease of psychiatrists in horror movies. Faced with events that the average horror movie character will quickly accept as supernatural if only to advance the story, Elizabeth looks for rational psychological reasons. And even when she begins to accept that she cannot rationally explain the things she experiences, her colleagues try to pathologize her, attacking the trivial scientific facts in every event she experiences. (See also: Rose Cotter in Laughtermuch less a funny, let alone a Lovecraftian horror movie that would still make a perfect double bill Suitable meat.
Elizabeth’s late patient, Asa (Judah Lewis), is an emotionally scorned young man who is furious that someone will listen to him, even if most of what he says doesn’t make sense. His attempts to explain his anxieties are woefully obscure: When he talks about his father Ephraim (Bruce Davison), trying to get rid of his body, he could be talking about anything from sexual assault to paranoid schizophrenic delusion. Elizabeth initially accepts this, especially after she sees Asa undergo a surprisingly violent process that winds up with him, adopting a completely different personality. He immediately decides that she suffers from dissociative identity disorder – which makes her completely unlikely to be attracted to him in any way.
What ensues between them is a half-rapture horror, half-playful lover’s stupor, all with the film panting for a scene of the fairer sex that’s a little too funny or meant to be an overt satire. But in the balance to the kidnapper’s body, the end is sharply transferred when Ephraim decides that he does not intend to claim Elizabeth’s body multiple times. When Elizabeth discovers that Asa’s father really can use hidden powers to force body swaps — the first few of them temporary, to a permanent one — she only has a few chances to stop him before he ends up in someone else’s closet. less suitable for meat.
Suitable meat it is a very important message. It moves breathlessly from a solidly crafted psychological thriller The army of darkness The level of slapstick violence – between scenes involving a van behind the camera is a must see for any true fan of spotting horror movie effects. Its broad structure is classic horror, with Elizabeth trying to overcome her doubts about what she’s experiencing, as well as trying to convince other people that she’s not just having a psychotic break. All the while, he aims for a trusted, competent enemy who knows far more than he does, and is almost always three steps ahead. (Just in terms of plot, these films also make a solid double feature with the original A Nightmare on Elm Street).
Photo: RLJE Films/Everett Collection
Suitable meat It’s an “is” and “a movie that just keeps on packing in the new packs. It’s a cosmic horror movie that looks at the intentions and concerns of Lovecraft’s “The Thing Over the Threshold.” It’s a satire of that era’s classic chameleon potboiler of romantic civilians, at least for some scenes. A cat and mouse thriller between two unique adversaries.It’s a light-hearted movie that pushes its physical routines just enough to make even the dedicated veins feel like they’re watching a horror movie. Sideshow Bob rakes himself in In the simpsons. And It’s a mystery with a little ’80s throwback style and a little for-fun nodding to Lovecraft p. (“Filmed in Cthuluscope” theon the film proudly declares.
It’s a lot to take in, and they don’t always work together in a way that makes the film more tonally cohesive and cohesive. The variations don’t always serve Graham well, either – sometimes it’s hard to buy her character from scene to scene, because the scenes put her in such varied places of mind and emotions, some of which are more ornate to the actor. than others.
The whole thing gets in the way of the final climax, which serves as a “serious situation, slightly stupid execution”. Re-Animator and From beyond so good For such a film is gathered together, the kitchens are submerged; Suitable meat It comes to a memorable conclusion that is perfect for watching a group of celebrities, whether you’re looking for an impromptu time in a local multiplex with other horror fans, or at home with a group of friends and a stack of Stuart Gordon DVDs.
Lynch and Paoli are clearly aiming this one at an audience that loves a labor of love, but doesn’t take it so seriously that they’re bound to come away depressed and overwhelmed by any love of art film. This is a deliberately infused one for every Stuart Gordon fan who’s worried no one else has ever made a movie quite like it. His legacy is in good hands.
Suitable meat is in theaters and is available for rental or purchase Amazon, Voodooand other digital platforms.