Best Worst Movie (2009)

Nearly two decades ago Troll 2 graced the straight to DVD category with the distinction of being the worst movie ever made, but what disguised itself as shame was in truth a cult phenomenon, and as the documentary lets way it is almost as big as Rocky Horror. Now eighteen years later the kid star of the film Michael Stephenson dredges up the film's success and gives us and update on our favorite bad Utah actors. The real face of Best Worst Movie is George Hardy who plays the dad, Michael Waits in the bad film, then and now a dentist he's an outgoing lovable guy with a huge personality. Coming in as a supporting role is Claudio Fragasso, a true Italian director at heart, who's passion for film making is not fazed by the actors confusion or the critics hate. As the film intertwines the where are they now with the cult following that is growing annually, the mission is simple enough, 'What the fuck is Troll 2?'

This documentary is not necessarily horror but it tries to explain how a horror film could go so disarray. The actors commentary is enduring and unique as no two opinions are the same, all have a brief moment of reflection on their careers and life, even Hardy who discusses one night after the high of a showing that his true love was in acting, but for the instability in the field he never pursued further. As a general the teen stars of the film lump it into an embarrassment especially Connie Young who played the daughter, even going as far as removing it from her resume. Others like Jason Steadman know that it's awful but don't mind so much as their careers went in different directions. Then there's the darker side of the film with Margo Prey and Don Packard who both are suffering from a mental illness of some sort (the latter admit-tingly and the former allegedly). But as mentioned Fragasso and Hardy steal the screen, as Hardy embraces his cult icon status and Fragasso stands firm on his work, despite when asked questions like "Why is the film called Troll 2 when there are no trolls in the movie?" Fragasso and his wife who wrote the screenplay claim that Troll 2 is a social commentary, on the American family...and vegetarians.

The other side, the fans who've escalated the film from secretion for fifteen years to a true embodiment of an audience, makes for an glimpse into the world of cult. You see the midnight screenings played out with two hundred people lined up outside, the energetic reenactments by the cast members of the infamous scenes, and then interviews of fans who try to get down to what they love about the film. Collectively most agree that it's Fragasso's vision and passion that make it not a bad movie but rather a movie that just failed on an epic level.

Ultimately I'm eager to see more from the director who captures the spirit of Troll 2 rather well. Best Worst Movie, like the film it focuses on, has a lot of heart. It's amusing in some places and somber in others, particularly when Hardy and other cast members realize that the film doesn't belong at the horror conventions or the Sci-Fi ones, which unfortunately plays out in the later half of the film. However, just as you feel your about to end the movie on a bit of a buzz killer as Hardy seems to have worn on his cult status, Stephenson asks him, "If Claudio asked you to do Troll 3 would you do it?" and without hesitation Hardy replies "Of course, what are you talking about? Of course I would", and it brings you right back up. At the end Stephenson achieves an understanding of the success for Troll 2, it's not a film for the critics, and it's not even a film for the average movie goer, it's for the bad movie addicts and the people who stumble across it. Troll 2 is clearly a cult classic and the documentary accurately portrays that, defiantly worth a watch.

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010)

Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy is a two part documentary series that does an in depth look into the making of all eight A Nightmare on Elm Street films. Spanning four hours (yes, it's painlessly long), the documentary collects interviews from original cast members, special fx and make up artists, and of course Robert Shaye, the guy who produced all eight films. Narrated with a fitting tone by original Freddy Krueger survivor Heather Langenkamp, between the extensive discussion time allotted and the equally lengthy bonus features which cover the unseen interviews Never Sleep Again leaves no questions unanswered.

The film has a cathartic honesty that's unanticipated, all films alike cast and crew admits to flaws and failures of their film(s), and a rectitude of explanation that's staggering at the least. They're not limited either, from The Kung Fu budget cut in The Dream Master to the complicated creative relationship between Robert Shaye and Wes Craven. Whether being Nightmare one or Nightmare six each film gets a fair share of screen time, which is all really done in respects to the fans of the film who lifted the franchise off the ground and stuck through it, even after the series lost its horror contour to the parody of memorabilia and classic lines. But what really makes this documentary luring, at least to my taste anyways, is the use of special effects and how it progressed through the ages. The documentary in itself is almost a brief side documentary on how Hollywood moved through the decade with the technology. And even an idea at what it takes to make a movie on an independent budget.

The interviews seem illimitable by the breadth of people involved. The previous cast members that directors Daniel Farrands and Andrew Kasch accumulated is incredulous, how they found Mark Patton, Jesse from Freddy's Revenge, is a testament in itself. As fans we don't get the 'big stars' such as Johnny Depp or Particia Arquette, but rather the big stars of the series like our heroines who took to Freddy more than once, Heather Langenkamp and Lisa Wilcox. And basically every victim in between. There's the usually disregarded behind the scenes crew who are as much apart of the series as Wes Craven is. They give you insight into the makeup process that it took to create the iconic look of Freddy and the imaginative deaths and the special effects that went into those. Wes Craven's commentary outside of his own work is not bitter, per say, but rather at a loss for the films that followed, save aside for a nice comment toward Renny Harlin. I basically enjoyed about everyone's opinions and insight into the films with the exception of Jack Sholder, as his came off rather arrogant.

The film makes room for a lot of humorous parts to pair with the light hearted fan base, the fangirl inside of me got really excited when I saw that Freddy Krueger and Jason Mewes actually existed in a world together. They even go into the pop culture gags that materialized after Nightmare three and four, where things like the Freddy doll and pajamas became available (as one interviewee ironically points out that Freddy originally was a child molester, and now you can wear him to bed). Band Dokken even stops in for a discussion on how their contribution to Dream Warriors was one of the first music videos available on VHS. At the end of the documentary as homage to the series and the Elm Street junkies each actor quotes their most memorable line during the credits. I mentioned this in the first Nightmare review but Never Sleep Again isn't just a documentary for the fans, even if you've only seen one out of the eight films in the franchise there's something to be savored here. I loved this documentary, as if you couldn't tell, and one that I'd watch again. I recommend to any fan of the genre, of the series, or just of film making in general. 



It's over. This proved to be rather draining task and I did not anticipate that watching all eight Nightmare films in a row would mentally wear me out, despite spacing them on a weekly basis (with the exception of Freddy vs. Jason). An oddly interesting fact the films that I had seen before I decided to watch them all (one, three, seven and eight) were the only four I liked. If I were to do it again, with another series of films, I'd do it every other week just to give myself a break from the excessive use of words (I'm dreadfully tired of typing the words 'Freddy' and 'Elm Street' and 'Imaginative') but I don't know if I could do it again, to be honest. I clearly have some masochistic qualities in film watching as I decided to watch all of the Hellraiser films; however I won't be writing reviews for that. I'm currently seven films in and most I don't have much of an opinion on. My recommendation for the series, film one through eight, is watch it. The films themselves hold reams of originality being eminent from that slasher outline, and hate or love them they are a prominent chapter in horror/film history.

Catfish (2010)

Catfish is an interesting documentary into our society's current status of social networking. The film stars Nev, a young photographer who is contacted by Abby, an 8 year old painter who likes his pictures. Nev and Abby soon start up a friendship that extends through the family and friends of the family, all on Facebook. Then Nev begins talking to Megan, Abby's older and attractive sister who has a crush on Nev. But as the relationship begins to develop further Nev starts to notice some things aren't making sense. So him, his brother, and his friend drive up to Michigan to confront Megan about the inconsistencies.

The previews make this out to be a scary movie and it's not. If anything the ending is just shocking. It doesn't have you gasping at the screen as soon as the big reveal comes, in fact there is no big reveal. Instead it unfolds subtly, showing you how deep it all goes. The big shock is more of the last forty minutes as a whole than it is in one single moment. I came across the term Catfish by accident so the 'big reveal' wasn't as much of a surprise as it may have been if I went into the film oblivious. Which is what I'd recommend as the best way to view it. Still, the critics are right, despite if you know what's coming the last forty minutes inflict a constant change of emotions for it's audience. At times you are sadden by the truth of the film, then intrigued, and ultimately disturbed.

To address the "Hitchcock" statement in the trailer, in my opinion the critics aren't too far off. It's hard to describe without spoiling anything but if you view Hitchcock films you'll notice most have a common element that contributes to the shock factor. Like I said there is no such moment in this as in Psycho when Norman Bates comes out dressed like his mother, but the nature of the films are alike. Between the suspense and the shock factor, Catfish is the subtle version of a Hitchcock film.



While the film itself isn't heavily relying on the use of technology it's just there throughout, making an impact on Nev and his friends along with Abby and her family. It's an important film to see in this century where technology is figure in our daily lives. It might not be for everyone and it may be crushed by its own hype but it was really good and I'd recommend to those who are interested.