I hardly got any sleep the night before, because I knew today I would be spending my first day at the New York City Horror Film Festival (NYCHFF). I am a veteran of several film festivals, including some of the largest and most renown ones such as Cannes and Sundance, but what makes this one more exciting and special for myself is that this time around I wouldn't be surrounding by a bunch of snooty film critics, who all seem to have a strong distaste and even larger prejudices towards the genre we are all love. I knew that at the NYCHFF I would be in company with people like myself and that was quite refreshing and made for a very enjoyable day.
I arrived in NYC around 11am and made my way down to the Tribeca Cinema on Canal St. All the times I have been in NYC, I really never have ventured in Greenwich Village, so I didn’t know what to expect. As I left the subway station, my eyes lite up as I saw the marquee announcing the New York City Horror Film Festival. I was in Mecca and my pilgrimage to further horror enlightenment was well on its way. I quickly made my way inside and was cheerfully greeted by the wonderful festival staff that assisted me in making my viewing decision for the day, because there are so many films to choose from and so little time. This is the fourth year for the festival and Programming Director Anthony Pepe has diligently assembled a collection of 50 feature films, documentaries, and shorts. There is no other film festival that I am aware which can boost such a robust selection of films for the horror fan.
Throughout the day there were many short features shown with the fan favorite coming from New Zealand and fittingly entitle Zombie Movie. The short comes in at a mere 15 minutes and was directed by Michael J. Asquith and Ben Stenbeck. In my humble opinion, it was far superior to the most recent zombie film released by the king of the zombies himself, George A. Romero. It tells the story of three mates trapped in a car surrounded by zombies. Talk about claustrophobia and with their food supply quickly dwindling, the greatest obstacle to surviving is themselves. Check out the official website for more info
Another short that caught my attention comes from a newcomer in filmmaking, Jerald Fine. I had great discussion with Fine in the bar while I was killing time between showings. Actually, I couldn’t stomach the screening of David Michael Latt attempt, and I use that work lightly, of H.G. Wells’ classic War of the World starring C. Thomas Howell. While chatting with Fine, he seemed genuinely interested in what the genre fan was looking for in a film and the importance of the director’s role in telling a good and scary story. His entry, The Predator’s Return, is about a concentration camp survivor’s confrontation with the same Nazi officer who murdered his family sixty years earlier. The short had wonderful production values and is very well done. It is hard to believe that Fine is a stockbroker by day.
The final film short that I found quite interesting and one that many slasher fan’s of the 80’s would enjoy was entitled The Drifter. It was directed by Garo Setian who by day, and I and sure many long nights, is resposible for cutting the trailers for many of our favorite Lions Gate Films. The film tells the story of the New Bedford Butcher, a serial killer that terrorized the Mass. back roads in 1988. When he happens upon a stranded female motorist, he tries to fight his urges to kill. Will he be able to control himself or kill again? I'll never tell, you'll just have to wait to this little gem gets a proper release. Garo Setian is a hardcore fan who seems to have a geniune interest in the genre. He is someone we should all keep our eyes on in the future.
During the rest of the day, I caught several other interesting shorts including Mexican Hat (Richard Harrah): a period piece that deals with UFO’s, cattle mutations, and the old west, The Ten Steps (Brendan Muldowney): a perfectly spooky chiller that deals with a old house and little girls fear of the basement, and Tom Savini’s Chiller Factor (Tom Savini): a tale of a desperate mother trying to get help for her sick son who thinks he is a vampire. All the shorts were excellent and it is so refreshing to see that there is some original though brewing deep in the underground world of horror filmmaking.
Also, during the day, as if these shorts weren’t enough, I was treated to three feature (four in you include that crappy War of the World’s mockery) films. The first feature in this case was a documentary entitled Horror Business directed by Christopher Garetano. This disjointed look at the world of underground filmmaking may perfectly reflect the current status of our genre. All horror fans should check out this cool little doco. Click here to visit the official site.
The next feature up and the one I most wanted to see was the upcoming Lions Gate Films release of Three… Extremes (Full Review). This “triptych of horror” as it has come to be called is a horror anthology much in the same mold as Tales from the Crypt, (1972), Trilogy of Terror (1975), and Creepshow (1982), and Tales from the Hood (1995). Each of the three segments were assembled by a different director. First up was Director Fruit Chan’s “Dumpling”. It is the story of an aging starlet’s search for the fountain of youth. Little does Qing Li (Miriam Yeung Chin Wah) realize that price of tasting these sweet little dumplings will drive her to extreme measures.
The second story, and my personal favorite, comes from Director Park Chan-wook (Oldboy). It is entitled “Cut”. Ryu Ji-Ho (Bying-hun Lee) is a successfully film director who has earned the respect of everyone from the film critics to the fans. This respect has translated in to much monetary success which has afforded him a nice house and a beautiful wife. Life couldn’t be better for him, until one night when he is confronted at home by deranged stranger who just happens to have be an extra in each of his film. As the situation slowly deteriorates into madness, so does Ryu's sanity, pushing him to his own extremes.
The third segment comes from one of my new favorite directors Takashi Miike (Audition, Ichi the Killer, and Fudoh: The New Generation). The story is entitled “Box” and deals with a successfully novelist (Mitsuru Akaboshi) who is haunted by a reoccurring dream of her pending demise. All the while she continues to deal with the death of her twin and it is this dark little secret that will continue to haunt her.
Three…Extremes goes beyond any horror anthology you have ever seen in visual and artistic value. Where most of the anthologies play more on the comical side of its storyteller, Three…Extremes offers up hardcore visceral imagery. These stories are not for the faint of heart, so if you are looking for a Tales from the Crypt type film, I suggest skipping this it. This is not to say that Three…Extremes isn’t overly gory, but the subject matter is quite intense. I would recommend this film to all fans of the genre. It is so refreshing to see a horror film not made for the PG-13 crowd.
The final feature of the night, at least for me, since I had to catch the train back home, was Michael J. Hein’s (Festival Founder and Director) Dead Serious. The best way for me to describe the plot of this film is to say that it is From Dusk till Dawn in a gay bar. It breaks all the rules in political and moral correctness which is good thing. You can really see the passion the cast and crew had during the making of this film and I would highly recommend it to all looking for something not polluted by the politics of the system (i.e Hollywood). Check out the official site here.
Unfortunately, I was unable to stay for the awarding of the Lifetime Achievement Award to Roger Corman. I am sure it was a blast. I would just like to take this time to thank Michael, Anthony, and all the ghoulish staff at the NYCHFF for their wonderful contribution to the genre we all love. We also appreciate the opportunity of being able share our experience at this years' festival with all the fans. Please make sure to visit the official site and and support these guys. As soon as they post dates for next years events we will be posting right here, so stay tuned!!!
