Some time in the early 90's I bought a set of video tapes from a discount bookshop called "This is Horror: From the Archives of Stephen King's World of Horror". As best as I can tell they were cobbled together from a TV series which was made mainly to promote then recent (and in some cases, still in production) horror movies. One of the movies featured was Society, and I've been meaning to get around to seeing it ever since.
The thing is, there is a big shift in this movie 70 minutes into its 95 minute runtime, a shift in sub genre, I'll get into exactly what later (they'll be a spoiler warning, although the trailer does blow it to an extent), but all the footage on my old documentary VHS was from that final reel, and I was under the impression that this movie was wall-to-wall that genre.
Instead, for most of its runtime, it's a movie that would have bitterly disappointed my teenage self. The shift is an odd one, as I can imagine the twist being 'too much' for someone who went in blind, while being too late for someone who went in expecting it. In either case, I can see it being disappointing.
That said, a little older, I was able to appreciate the paranoid thriller that comprised the bulk of the movie, while my expectation prevented what followed from being a shock; whether this softening of the blow worked to the movies advantage is impossible to say; I'm hoping that Lisa has gone in blind, because I really want to know how well the shift works if you weren't expecting it.
Before I get to the last 20 minutes, I'd just like to mention that this movie is very much about how the rich are strange, bad, and not like us... I'm surprised this movie hasn't gained a new popularity in light of the 99% movement.
That said, a little older, I was able to appreciate the paranoid thriller that comprised the bulk of the movie, while my expectation prevented what followed from being a shock; whether this softening of the blow worked to the movies advantage is impossible to say; I'm hoping that Lisa has gone in blind, because I really want to know how well the shift works if you weren't expecting it.
Before I get to the last 20 minutes, I'd just like to mention that this movie is very much about how the rich are strange, bad, and not like us... I'm surprised this movie hasn't gained a new popularity in light of the 99% movement.
Definitely worth a look for fans of 80's movies.
MILD SPOILERS FROM HERE ON.
The genre switch it to body horror. It's hinted at a couple of times through the movie, with both Jenny and Bills love interest Clarissa being seen briefly to contort impossibly, but until the movie's final 20 minutes, these could have been Bill's imagination. My experience of the film wa, i think, somewhat changed by the cat that my "This is Horror" tape made the movie look like wall-to-wall deformed, melting and transmogrifying madness.
Ordinarily I wouldn't have mentioned it in a review, but a review would be incomplete without my mentioning the special makeup effects. They are superb, and serve as a reminder in this digital age at how much better physical effects can be for many things; I'd hate to see what the 'shunting' party would look like in CGI.
MILD SPOILERS FROM HERE ON.
The genre switch it to body horror. It's hinted at a couple of times through the movie, with both Jenny and Bills love interest Clarissa being seen briefly to contort impossibly, but until the movie's final 20 minutes, these could have been Bill's imagination. My experience of the film wa, i think, somewhat changed by the cat that my "This is Horror" tape made the movie look like wall-to-wall deformed, melting and transmogrifying madness.
Ordinarily I wouldn't have mentioned it in a review, but a review would be incomplete without my mentioning the special makeup effects. They are superb, and serve as a reminder in this digital age at how much better physical effects can be for many things; I'd hate to see what the 'shunting' party would look like in CGI.
I love that you recommended this and I hated it, lol.
ReplyDelete