There have been a lot of movies made about Catholicism. This is probably just because a lot of filmmakers come out of New York City, a heavily Catholic area. Yet I think there's an argument to be made that the rituals and institutions of Catholicism are especially cinematic. The garb of the priests, the ritualized customs of communion and confession, the symbolism inherent in stained glass windows, collars, rosaries. Not to mention the long history of the church certainly provides lots of grist for storytellers. Naturally, the horror genre touches upon the Catholic Church frequently. At the opposite end of “The Exorcist,” where the Catholic Church saves the day, is “Alice, Sweet Alice.” Alfred Sole's infamous 1976 proto-slasher was so critical of the Church that it's been publicly condemned on more than one occasion.
In Paterson, New Jersey during the early sixties, Catherine does her best to raise her two daughters. While seven year old Karen is angelic and beloved, twelve year old Alice is moody, mischievous, and shunned. Catherine substitutes the girls' missing father – the two are divorced – with the Catholic Church. During Karen's first communion, tragedy strikes. The girl is strangled to death, her corpse set on fire, by a strange attacker in a feminine mask and a yellow rain slicker. Alice is widely suspected for the crime, due to her disturbing behavior, but she insists on her innocence. The killer continues to attack throughout the apartment complex, Alice and Karen's father being drawn into the mystery.
Invoking the rituals of the Catholic Church is a primary way “Alice, Sweet Alice” generates its eerie tone. This is a film where nothing ever feels right. A free-form menace floats in the air, the events simultaneously feeling dream-like and anxiety inducing. The similarly dreamy musical score helps further this tone. Into this atmosphere of uncertain, Sole introduces moments of shocking violence and uncomfortable suggestions of depravity. The murder scenes in “Alice, Sweet Alice” attack with an undeniably ferocity. The stairway stabbing sequence, undoubtedly the film's scariest moment, occurs in a closed-in, cramp location, a sensitive part of the body being pierced. A later stabbing is similarly claustrophobic in its execution, before the violence escalates with a brick smashed over the head and into the mouth, before the body is dropped out a window. If the violence doesn't make you flinch, the moments devoted to a morbidly obese landlord pawing at a young girl, or a cop commenting on the same twelve year old girl's breasts, most definitely will.
So what of Alice? It's interesting that, despite getting title billing, Alice does not end up being the killer. The mad-woman in the distinctive yellow slicker and off-putting transparent mask, with streaked harlot's make-up down its face, ends up being a minor supporting character, motivated by her own Catholic guilt to punish those she deems unworthy of God. Yet why is Alice's behavior so creepy? Why does she hide artifacts from her dead sister? Why does she seemed repulsed by the landlord in one scene and then seemingly attempts to seduce him in the next? Alice is rarely shown love throughout the film. She's usually yelled at and verbally punished. Even her mother, who tries to connect with Alice, is more off-put than anything else by her daughter. (This is why she keeps starting her period a secret.) Alice may not be our killer but she is symbolic of all the failings “Alice, Sweet Alice” exposes. Paula Shepphard, who was 18 at the time of filming, is deeply unnerving in the part.
Even though JD and I only spent one day at Monster-Mania this year, we still had certain traditions we tried to fulfill. Such as stopping by the VHS Preservation Society's booth and asking for a recommendation. As always, I asked them for something “weird and old.” I was pointed in the direction of “Forever Evil,” which shouldn't be confused with “Beyond Evil” or “Eternal Evil.” The way the film was described to me, it seemed abreast with flicks like “Demonwind,” “Hellgate,” or “Spookies.” Ya know, an oddball eighties horror flick about college kids in an isolated location encountering all sorts of demons, monsters, and weird shit. It turns out “Forever Evil” sort of belongs to this particular subgenre for its first few minutes before shifting towards something even goofier.
Marc joins a group of old college friends, including his pregnant girlfriend, for a retreat at a secluded cabin. The group is unaware that a supernatural cult is active in the near-by area. Demonic entities arise and kill everyone except Marc. In the following months, Marc becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth. He teams up with a police detective and a journalist to get to the bottom of things. He uncovers a conspiracy to bring an ancient god of evil, called Yog Kothag, into flesh-and-blood existence. Marc hunts down this evil, looking to destroy it before anymore innocents are killed.
Fans of gooey special effects and low-budget buffoonery will certainly find some things to entertain them in “Forever Evil.” The gore effects are mostly pretty crude, being limited to people smeared with fake blood... Save for some especially graphic gags. The highlight of the film is when Marc is haunted by spectres of his dead girlfriend and their unborn child. The only time the film comes to close to spooky at all is when a ghoulish baby crawls up to him out of the darkness. Another highlight is when the ghost of the girlfriend claws a fetus from her pregnant belly. That was pretty wicked. Most of the film's climax is devoted to fighting an undying zombie named Alfie, the earthly manifestation of Yog Kothag. Despite his threatening appearance, Alfie repeatedly gets the shit kicked out of him by the heroes. He's shot, stabbed, burned, and eventually blown up. Yet he just keeps coming, the make-up job getting gooier and messier. That's the kind of tenacity I respect in a monster.
If “Forever Evil” had run about a half-hour shorter and focused on its goofy low budget atmosphere and grisly special effects, it would've been a totally entertaining slice of eighties horror cheese. Instead, the filmmakers were a little too confident in their own story. The result is a bloated creature feature that the audience can barely be bothered to follow along with. It's a bummer too, as this one came real close to satisfying my desire for weirdo eighties cheese. By the way, the VHSPS disc includes a lo-fi trailer for something called “Murder Rap” at the start and features Oingo Boingo as the menu music. Now that I can get into! [5/10]
The Twilight Zone: Nightcrawlers
The enduring influence and popularity of “The Twilight Zone” means there have been several attempts to resurrect Rod Serling's series. Aside from the unlucky theatrical movie and a TV film, there's been three long form TV revivals. Before the most recent version with Jordan Peele, and a largely forgotten version with Forest Whittaker, there was the 1985 “Zone.” Notable filmmakers like Wes Craven, Peter Medak, and Joe Dante would be behind the camera, with authors like Ray Bradbury, Harlon Ellison, and Stephen King contributing stories. The eighties “Twilight Zone” never really caught on in its day, being canceled after two seasons, revived for a syndicated third season, and then canceled again. Since then, the show has developed a cult following. Of all the episodes, “Nightcrawlers,” from season one and directed by William Friedkin, seems especially well regarded.
State trooper Wells pulls into a roadside dinner. He's just come from a bullet-ridden crime scene at a local hotel. At that same time, a man named Price enters the establishment. Price soon reveals himself to be a Vietnam veteran. Disturbed by his memories of the war, Price also has the ability to manifest his dreams and nightmares. Soon, an alternation with the state trooper triggers a full-blown Vietnam flashback in the man. A series of undead soldiers descent on the dinner, emerging from Price's disturbed imagination.
“A New Binge” tries to pull off a fittingly grand finale on its very low budget. “The Final Battle” has Chris, having embraced his half-Crite lineage, facing off against the Bounty Hunters at his hometown's hot dog eating contest. The Crites, however, see the gathering as an excuse to start devouring everyone in their path. Utter chaos breaks out, the furry monsters killing indiscriminately. Realizing his alien brothers are just as bad as the Bounty Hunters, his friends and family endangered, Chris makes the hard decision to fight his own kind.
After a run of solidly entertaining episode, “A New Binge” stumbles a bit in its finale. There are solid gags here. Such as a hot dog eating contestant continuing to chow down, even after the monsters attack. Or Brian's attempt to dissuade the Bounty Hunters and Chris remembering his uncle not-so-inspiring words. However, the show ends up trying a little too hard in its final episode. The low budget really shows here. Though it's cool to see the Critters form into a giant ball again, a call-back to “Critters 2,” the special effects are not so special here. The last few minutes are a storm of Crites exploding in an unconvincing manner. The sequel hook for another season is pretty bad though. (And unlikely, considering how “A New Binge” got abandoned by its production company.) I'm happy to see “A New Binge” doesn't soften its monstrous invaders any, letting them be vicious killers here. And there's even an attempt at some pathos, as Chris' mom takes some drastic measure. However, the show remains too flippant and aggressively wacky for any real emotional resonance. [6/10]
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