#16 - House of 1000 Corpses (2003)
(dir. Rob Zombie)
I think Rob Zombie is one of the best horror directors working today. His passion for the genre is clear in every film he makes, but this one especially comes across as a love letter to all things horror. The plot is basically a rehash of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and countless other "kids get lost, kids get dead" movies, but the story isn't what makes this an interesting film. Much like Captain Spaulding's museum and "murder ride", this movie is all about spectacle and nightmarish visuals.
While this film takes cues from all kinds of different sources, the single biggest influence has to be The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. Not only does it star Bill Moseley as a member of a killer redneck family, but it also captures the nightmare carnival feeling of that film perfectly. At times it also feels a bit like a music video - it's filled with random clips of old films and shots with psychedelic visual effects that serve no purpose other than to just look cool. That might sound like a criticism, but I think it works here.
Perhaps the best thing about this film is that it never holds back - it promises crazy rednecks doing some twisted shit to teenagers, and it does so without letting things like "character development" or "logic" get in the way. This is the film that all those crazy 1970's exploitation trailers promised, a film with wild ideas that are fully realized. Right out of the gate it goes full-tilt and never lets up, and the payoff for all the "Doctor Satan" talk delivers in spades.
Considered as a traditional film, there are a lot of flaws here, but I think they can be overlooked based on how much fun it is. This was Zombie's first film, and while I think he has improved immensely as a director over the past decade, I think it will be hard to top this one in terms of pure spectacle.
Comments
Post a Comment