Pod of Horror #54

Mark Justice and Nanci Kalanta have given us an Independence Day gift, as the 54th edition of the outstanding Pod of Horror is now available for download at Horror World. This episode features authors David Morrell and James Rollins, as well as horror news from Ms. Kalanta and other features.
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I Spit On Your Grave

Unredeemable trash, or misunderstood pro-feminist classic?

I’m going to give you the entire plot of the movie. Don’t worry, it won’t take long, because the only way a movie could have less plot is if you accidentally put a blank DVD in the player.

Jennifer Hills (Camille Keaton) wants to write a novel, so she rents a secluded cabin. There, she catches the attention of three cretin and their mentally disabled (for real) friend. They grab her and rape and sodomize her repeatedly, forcing her to perform every possible act. This scene goes on long past what you think you can stand. It is long enough to take a break to use the bathroom, then fix yourself a sandwich and eat it. When they’ve finally done everything they can to the woman, they leave their retarded sidekick to stab her to death. He can’t bring himself to do it, and leaves her alive, although he tells the others she’s dead (considering what happens later, I wonder at the message of this. Use a competent member of your group to kill your victim?).

Having survived, Jennifer slowly heals. You might think she would go to the police, but she has other ideas. When she’s recovered, she returns to the location of her violation and puts the move on her attackers. Most people in their position would flee to Brazil when they saw her alive, but these nitwits actually believe the woman they brutalized would be attracted to them. Once she has them off guard, she kills them in various ways, with the one who spared her life going first and possibly most painfully. I guessed he regretted his one moment of kindness at the end.

When it was released in 1978, almost all critics were in agreement: The movie was trash. Since then, some contrarians have come up with the idea the movie has a strong feminist message, that the victimized woman is empowered when she takes matters into her own hands to get revenge. The original title of the movie, Day of the Woman (it was re-titled for a 1980 re-release, perhaps to fool people a second time), offers some support that the filmmakers had that in mind.

I just can’t buy it. The fact that the woman wins in the end can’t make up for the leering, overwrought multiple rape scene. I honestly believe the people who made the movie thought if they made a rape-filled movie, it would attract a certain type of viewer. But how to present this without looking like a pervert? Have the woman win in the end. If you look for a message and a deeper meaning in any film, you can find it, of course, but here I don’t think there was any real purpose other than to titillate some raincoaters.

Trivia note: The shapely rear on the poster (above) is not that of Ms. Keaton. There is a persistent legend the model was none other than Demi Moore, but I would think this about as likely as me being the King of France.
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Organizm

Stop the presses! We have a movie from the Sci-Fi Channel that didn’t suck. While I didn’t think Organizm (also known as Living Hell) re-invented the genre, or will replace Citizen Kane on the best movies lists, it was a competent little low-budget sci-fi horror movie.

The movie starts in 1958, where a small boy watches his Mom freak out. She very much wants him to remember “Vault 12, Level 3”. She is obviously concerned the kid has memory retention problems, because she cuts the info into the palms of his hands with a knife. Yikes. I would have gone with flash cards, but that is pretty effective. Just to make the day a little more memorable, Mom then shoots the dad to death, before committing suicide herself, all with the kid watching. This could lead to problems down the road, psychologically speaking, although I’m no professional at that stuff.

Jump forward to the more-or-less present. The kid is now a grown-up Frank Sears (genre favorite Johnathon Schaech, Quarantine, the Prom Night remake), but he hasn’t forgotten what his Mom told him, thanks to the extensive scarring. When he hears the military base his Mom worked at is due for demolition, he drives across the country to warn the authorities about Vault 12. There, Colonel Maitland (James McDaniel, NYPD Blue) is in charge of de-commissioning the base so it can be turned over to the local Indian tribe. If there’s anything we know, it is when the government gives anything to the Indians, there will be a catch. The decontamination team is led by a soldier of indeterminate rank, Carrie Freeborn (Erica Leerhsen, Blair Witch Project 2, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake)

Sears tries to get into the base, gets arrested, and tells Maitland about Vault 12. Although the vault has been searched and found empty, Maitland orders a second search, which discovers a secret room with an ominous tank in it. Freeborn wants to follow protocol in dealing with the tank, but Maitland say screw it, just open the thing, what could be the harm? This will turn out to be a mistake.

They open the tank, and in due course, most of the base is dead due to some fast-growing tentacles that snake out, covering everything and killing everyone they touch. Apparently our biological warfare folks back in the 50s were aces. Pretty soon, the town has been overrun by the tentacles, and the world is next. It’s up to Freeborn and Sears to find a way to stop the monster, as all the other military personnel are morons.

The movie has its flaws. Some of the special effects shots are pretty terrible, but I’m sure they did what they could with the budget they had. The story is fairly predictable and familiar, but is still fun. The script is reasonably tight, the story is told in a coherent fashion, and I thought the cast was good. Not a Best Picture nominee by any means, but if you are looking for a Sci-Fi Channel Original that is several cuts above their usual fare, I think this is it.
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Moran

So I'm posting a comment on someone else's blog, and the word verification widget comes up. My word? "moran".

Damn you, Blogger Interface, you know me too well.

Fire Serpent

With a name like Fire Serpent, you know it has to be…fiery, I guess. This creature feature was on the wife and my picks for a Saturday night flick recently. The movie originally aired on the Sci-Fi channel, and it won’t be the movie that breaks the string of duds.

You see, there are these creatures that look like dragons (made of fire) that live in the Sun. Really. No kidding. Occasionally, one of them escapes, gets expelled, or something, and ends of on Earth. (This is extremely unlikely to happen randomly due to the vastness of the inner solar system. I’m pointing out a scientific flaw in a movie about a dragon made of fire). When they reach Earth, they want to burn things up, especially people. Why? Who the hell knows. They can also lurk for a long time, hide from water (The sequel will hopefully be Fire Serpent vs. Water Serpent, where the natural enemies fight), and possess people. It’s better not to ask about that one.

Way back in the 60s a young fireman sees one of the creatures barbeque his fiancée, and embarks on a lifelong crusade to stop them. Everyone needs a hobby. In the present day, a new fire serpent, or possibly the old one, is braising the countryside. The now older fireman joins with a younger fireman and a plucky lady who is leading the local investigation. There is also a high-ranking fed involved who is evil because, well, the fed is always a bad guy in these movies. A lot of stuff burns up against a backdrop of incredibly bad special effects.

Randolph Mantooth (from the 70s show Emergency!, and he’s held up well) plays the older fireman, Nicholas Brendan (Xander from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) players the younger fireman, and Sandrine Holt (24) is the love interest/local agent. Robert Beltran is the evil fed. The movie is based on an original concept by William Shatner (!). Watch it if this seems in any way appealing to you. The DVD cover is better than the movie, which is often the case.
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Deathbringer

It took me a while to track down Bryan Smith’s Deathbringer, probably because people are starting to realize he is the next big thing. But it was worth the wait. This is Smith’s take on the zombie genre, but is much less derivative of the classic zombies than most.

In the supernatural realm, there are entities known as Reapers, whose job is to collect the souls of the dead. One of these Reapers desires more power, and has come up with a plan to challenge God himself. He goes to the town of Dandridge, Tennessee (that Tennessee is the locus of evil doesn’t surprise me), where a mystical book (shades of The Evil Dead!) is placed in the hands of Mike O’Bannon, a young police officer grieving over the murder of his fiancée. O’Bannon reads from the book, which causes the dead of Dandridge to begin to rise from their graves, killing the living and converting them into part of the undead army. This will ultimately able the Reaper to exterminate all life on Earth, and provoke a confrontation with the All-Mighty. There is a representative of the other side sent to stop him, but is he up to the task?

The zombies of Deathbringer are fast-moving and sentient, which makes them more dangerous than the usual crowd. They also retain the memories of their human lives, and can feel some remorse for their actions, which adds depth. As is usual with Smith’s books, the story is action-packed and fast moving. As with his other novels, I would highly recommend it.

A couple of quick additional notes:

In searching for a cover photo to steal use, I had the misfortune of running across the Amazon reviews for this book, which are mostly incomprehensible. I guess some people get kicks by tearing things down. Yes, it is like looking into a disturbing mirror.

I had the fortune of getting a sneak peek at Smith’s next book, Depraved, which will be out from Leisure later this year. Don’t miss it, it might be the best book of 2009.
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Wyoming

Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming Wyoming*













* According to Google Analytics, it's the only state from which I have not had a visitor in the last year, and I'm trying to complete the set.