Jun 2015 *
A low budget horror comedy film that’s set on Halloween (is there any better time of year to set a horror film?), that also happens to be a real gem. Written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier, it’s a clever mix of horror and comedy with a butt ton of Halloween imagery and critiques the pretentious urban artists and hipster types.
The film opens with various shots of Halloween decorations, jack-o-lanterns, and trick or treaters to establish the atmosphere and setting. We’re then introduced to our main character, Christopher (Chris Sharp), a lonely man who works for the NYPD and gives people parking tickets. He doesn’t live a very exciting life and by chance, he stumbles upon an invitation to a “Murder Party” on the street. Instead of spending Halloween night staying in and watching horror flicks with his cat, he decides to attend the party. He constructs a shitty knight costume out of cardboard & duct tape, bakes a loaf of pumpkin bread (with non-organic raisins), and ventures out to attend the party. Once he arrives, he’s horrified to discover that the hosts of the party, pretentious art students intend to murder him for the sake of art by doing so in a profound way.
What makes the film so great is that the art students take themselves too seriously; we as viewers can’t help but find it humorous. They’re condescending towards Christopher and consider themselves to be “important artists” and aren’t above criticizing and mocking each other. Alexander (Alex Barnett) is the leader and happens to be the biggest self-absorbed douche of all. The rest of the group includes: Macon (Macon Blair), dressed as a werewolf, Lexi (Stacy Rock), dressed as the Darryl Hannah replicant from Blade Runner, Sky (Skei Saulnier), dressed as a female zombie cheerleader, Paul (Paul Goldblatt), dressed as goth/vampire, and Bill (William Lacey), dressed as Baseball Fury from The Warriors. Alexander also brings his friend, Zycho (Bill Tangrandi), a drug dealer who loves fish and chips just because he does. As the film progresses, their insecurities get the better of them and when some dark & comedic mishaps occur, the film to really lives up to its title.
Also, you can’t help but feel bad for Christopher as he witnesses the horror. You’re rooting for him to survive the whole ordeal, a tense and bloody climatic chase scene in particular. He just wanted to get out for once and have a little fun and unfortunately for him, he ended up attending the wrong party. The moral of the film: If you happen to stumble upon an invite to a mysterious party, just ignore it, stay home and watch some damn horror flicks instead!
Overall, it’s a fun low budget horror comedy film with excellent cinematography and surprisingly great acting. I highly recommend it if you’re looking to watch a film that’s set on Halloween.
A low budget horror comedy film that’s set on Halloween (is there any better time of year to set a horror film?), that also happens to be a real gem. Written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier, it’s a clever mix of horror and comedy with a butt ton of Halloween imagery and critiques the pretentious urban artists and hipster types.
The film opens with various shots of Halloween decorations, jack-o-lanterns, and trick or treaters to establish the atmosphere and setting. We’re then introduced to our main character, Christopher (Chris Sharp), a lonely man who works for the NYPD and gives people parking tickets. He doesn’t live a very exciting life and by chance, he stumbles upon an invitation to a “Murder Party” on the street. Instead of spending Halloween night staying in and watching horror flicks with his cat, he decides to attend the party. He constructs a shitty knight costume out of cardboard & duct tape, bakes a loaf of pumpkin bread (with non-organic raisins), and ventures out to attend the party. Once he arrives, he’s horrified to discover that the hosts of the party, pretentious art students intend to murder him for the sake of art by doing so in a profound way.
What makes the film so great is that the art students take themselves too seriously; we as viewers can’t help but find it humorous. They’re condescending towards Christopher and consider themselves to be “important artists” and aren’t above criticizing and mocking each other. Alexander (Alex Barnett) is the leader and happens to be the biggest self-absorbed douche of all. The rest of the group includes: Macon (Macon Blair), dressed as a werewolf, Lexi (Stacy Rock), dressed as the Darryl Hannah replicant from Blade Runner, Sky (Skei Saulnier), dressed as a female zombie cheerleader, Paul (Paul Goldblatt), dressed as goth/vampire, and Bill (William Lacey), dressed as Baseball Fury from The Warriors. Alexander also brings his friend, Zycho (Bill Tangrandi), a drug dealer who loves fish and chips just because he does. As the film progresses, their insecurities get the better of them and when some dark & comedic mishaps occur, the film to really lives up to its title.
Also, you can’t help but feel bad for Christopher as he witnesses the horror. You’re rooting for him to survive the whole ordeal, a tense and bloody climatic chase scene in particular. He just wanted to get out for once and have a little fun and unfortunately for him, he ended up attending the wrong party. The moral of the film: If you happen to stumble upon an invite to a mysterious party, just ignore it, stay home and watch some damn horror flicks instead!
Overall, it’s a fun low budget horror comedy film with excellent cinematography and surprisingly great acting. I highly recommend it if you’re looking to watch a film that’s set on Halloween.
