PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Like it or not, everybody, and their brother (sometimes literally), in the late 90’s-early aughts, were making direct-to-video horror films. Shooting and editing were quick, easy, and relatively cheap, and distribution was everywhere to feed rental stores hungry for product. Predictively, lots of ripe turds were shat out onto shelves, but the truly inspired films rose above…sometimes. Fortunately, with their Visual Vengeance series, Wildeye Releasing is giving a much welcome mulligan to films like The Screaming.
Synopsis
Money challenged college student Bob Martin rents a room from sexy Crystal Traum. She pushes her new age religion on him, Crystalnetics. Bob joins the organization and his outlook and health sharply improve. However, a German detective warns Bob of the many people who died mysteriously from this cult. Bob learns the terrifying secret of “Crystalnetics” and the cult’s monstrous leader.
Much to my surprise, director Jeff Leroy (Rat Scratch Fever) hasn’t, to date anyways, been disappeared by the Church of Scientology (but I’m sure Tom Cruise is aware…). You could see where they might be a bit miffed after viewing The Screaming. In a brutal take-down of both that “church” and the whole of “new age” culture, Leroy’s The Screaming has cash strapped anthropology student Bob (Vinnie Bilancio; Sorority House Massacre) an expert on ancient superstitions and blood sacrifice, renting an apartment from the sexy Crystal (Wendi Winburn; Life on Mars) a fit, mysterious girl with designs on improving Bob’s life.
After a short time of creeping on Crystal exercising while he chain-smokes and slams beers, a cynical Bob accepts Crystal’s offer of joining her on a journey of physical fitness and enlightenment through Crystalnetics, her new age religion founded by the enigmatic R. R. Depak (totally not inspired by L. Ron Hubbard or Deepak Chopra…). After being hypnotized into quitting smoking by Crystal’s super-hot friend Manny (Elizabeth Barris; Inner Shadow), Bob is caught between his growing feelings for Crystal (who looks great for being 2200 years old) and his nagging suspicions about her cult, and it’s seemingly ageless members.
Grizzled Detective Ketchum (Curt Swobel) is unrelenting in his pursuit of the head of the blood cult, and Bob’s professor (John F. Goff; The Fog and “that one cop” in, like, every 80’s flick) is quick with advice and caution as our reluctant hero brings the ancient evil down!
Nuttier than a whole compound of Xenu worshippers, I enjoyed The Screaming way much more than I thought I would. Sarcastic wit, smirky cynicism and wink-and-nods to everything wrong with celebrity driven quasi-religious movements, The Screaming perfectly skewers all of it’s targets with equal bile. There’s even an on-screen surrogate for the above-mentioned Cruise in Dusty (Tim Gannon; Friday the 13th: The Series) a sinister heart-throb who lures young starlets into the cult’s web.
Everything is played with a sardonic humor, however, so The Screaming never comes off as a preachy, iconoclastic circle-jerk, rather it makes fun of “new age” culture without taking itself too seriously, and sliding into mean-spiritedness. Lots of blood, a measure of gratuitous nudity, plenty of jokes that actually land, some awesome stop motion effects, and some very cool Hammer inspired “return to dust” scenes offer plenty to genre fans that love a well done horror/comedy on the cheap.
Bilancio and Winburn have some great chemistry on-screen and play well together, and Barris brings a sexy cruelty to her character. Leroy shows a deft hand at toeing the line between scares and laughs while getting the most out of his production, particularly in Jay Woefel’s (Heartland of Darkness) score, which belies the obvious low budget.
As expected, Visual Vengeance delivers the goods with this release! Commentaries, a “making of” featurette (a lot of the sets were built in Bilancio’s garage!), an interview with Woefel, a Leroy remastered alternate version (The Screaming: Reborn) of the film, trailers and a CD of Woefel’s soundtrack are among the copious extras. Packaging, again as expected from a VV release, features a slipcover, reversible art, mini poster and the requisite VV video store stickers all tucked neatly into a clear slipcase. The film itself is as clear as possible from an SD master, with no noticeable dirt, scratches, or noise.
Cynical, funny, punk-as-Hell and way more entertaining than it should be, The Screaming was a welcome surprise-I wasn’t planning on loving it as much as I did. With a perfect riff on Scientology, celebrity worship, and dubious “faith” organizations, The Screaming is a high-water mark in indie cinema that was both way ahead of it’s time, and punches way above it’s weight class budget wise. A near perfect little film! But I’m pretty sure nobody in their right mind works out in head-to-toe denim. Hang on a sec…I think Tom Cruise is at my door…
Wildeye Releasing’s Visual Vengeance Blu-ray of The Screaming is available now from fine retailers.
