A Sociedade dos Amigos do Diabo

Here's a reasonably funny slime-fest from producer/director Brian Yuzna of Re-Animator fame. It makes one nostalgic for the 80's thriller cinema, when a low-budget exploiter like this was commonplace, instead of the middle-brow crapola that passes for a fright flick these days. The latex-and-slime special effects are effectively old school and quite memorable. Enjoy.

Bill Whitney is a teenager who feels he doesn't fit in with his upper-class family. He thinks they might be hiding something evil, and though he attends therapy, it doesn't assuage his fears. One day Bill sees a strange vision of his sister transforming into a grotesque creature and- after her ex-boyfriend David gives him a cassette that seems to confirm his suspicions- he is determined to get to the bottom of whatever is going on. After David is murdered, Bill is thrust into a race against time, battling a force more powerful and monstrous than he could have ever imagined.

Directed by Brian Yuzna- who wrote 'Honey, I Shrunk the Kids'- and written by Zeph E. Daniel and Rick Fry, 'Society' is a fiendishly dark satire about the class system, containing make-up effects that rival those in John Carpenter's 'The Thing'. A bizarre, eerie journey into the hidden world of the rich and powerful, it draws inspiration from other cult classics, such as David Cronenberg's 'Videodrome' or David Lynch's 'Blue Velvet'. The narrative- though cliched in places- explores interesting themes, among them the corruption of the elite and the alienation of the outsider. Its thesis is that the rich- quite literally- feed off the poor, which is a common enough trope; though Yuzna makes good use of it.

The film has a comedic edge, and is full of fantastical body horror, as disturbing as it is inventive. The special effects and make-up from Joji Tani- known professionally as Screaming Mad George- are truly out of this world. In the latter half especially, Tani's bizarre and brilliant work is on full display, and could be seen as the real star of the show. His clever and creative effects make the film- which suffers from having a bloated first half, laden down with an unnecessary romantic sub-plot- unsettlingly unforgettable.

Matthew C. Jacobs's production design and Kelle DeForrest's art direction are similarly inspired, poking fun at the bourgeois, with their perfectly trimmed lawns and gaudy home furnishings. Additionally, Mark Ryder and Phil Davies's ironic soundtrack adds to the film's elements of parody, mocking the clichés and conventions of horror films. Furthermore, Rick Fichter's dynamic cinematography creates a contrast between the bright world of the upper class and the dark, gloomy one of the lower classes. He utilises shadows and lighting to great effect, juxtaposing the colourful with the dull, adding to the film's themes and overall message.

'Society' finds Billy Warlock starring as Bill Whitney, alongside Tim Bartell as David, Patrice Jennings as Bill's sister Jenny and Devin DeVasquez as his love interest, the mysterious Clarissa. Warlock possesses the same boyish charm that Michael J. Fox had, and delivers a witty, charismatic performance of no vanity. He endears himself to the audience immediately, and portrays Bill's confusion, fear, and anger with aplomb, as he delves deeper into a nightmare of paranoia and betrayal.

His supporting cast are a bit of a mixed bag, thanks in large part to Fry and Daniel's scant secondary characterisation. Bartell and Jennings do decent work, though it's not much to write home about. DeVasquez is a little wooden, and doesn't have much chemistry with Warlock, while Ben Meyerson's over-the-top performance as Bill's nemesis Ted Ferguson is simply irritating. The real stand out is David Wiley, in the all too small role of Judge Carter. Menacing and slimy, his work lingers in the mind long after the credits have rolled.

In closing, Brian Yuzna's 'Society' is a memorable movie, though it is far from perfect. The narrative is peppered with unnecessary sub-plots and cliches, while screenwriters Fry and Daniel's secondary characterisation leaves a lot to be desired. Conversely, its satire works well, and most of the humour lands. Moreover, the special effects from Screaming Mad George are captivatingly creepy and hard to forget, while star Billy Warlock's central performance is engaging and commendable. The production design is of a high quality, and, though 'Society' has its problems; it is definitely worth a watch for fans of the grotesque and macabre.

Parts Blue Velvet and Videodrome, parts Repo Man and Braindead, this thing rocks and is surely one of the cult classics from the decade that you just have to see (forget The Warriors).

The 80's had a strange resonance. It seemed as though nothing was happening, nothing beyond spending and watching TV. It was morning again in America, but a kind of peculiarly false morning as though someone had reached out with a brush and painted false skies. You couldn't even trust it was day, much less anything else. So, something had to be happening that wasn't so clear at first sight, had to. It had to be ugly, since everything looked idyllic. It couldn't be that Watergate had been exposed and that was that.

But it couldn't be a political cinema anymore either, not in a convincing manner, since the people seemed satisfied. So Taxi Driver transformed into Videodrome. Both films are about a helpless observer of a life awash with foulness, but in the second case, he's a corporate type, and he's watching a TV broadcast, a TV broadcast that reveals something malicious in the airwaves that transmit reality that is just gnarly and insane beyond belief. Both films perceptively suggest the damage is in the retina of the mind's eye, and that damage is not a simple madness: the images madden.

This is much less strategic, of course. It was made near the end of the decade, so with enough hindsight to pass around buckets of paranoid blame. The satire is screamingly obvious, because who'd believe something so simple anyway, a conspiracy so pervasive, so blatantly evil, which is the clever little device used here: the film delivers subversive blows in the same channel as the people consumed reality on TV, the channel that played soap opera and assured life was something like it.

Watching the rich and privileged for weeks on end engage with utmost seriousness in lachrimose trifles about sex and power, is rendered here as a kind of goofy, since it was a TV lifestyle, malevolent conspiracy for sex and power over the viewer.

This alone would make the film required 80's viewing. It's a lot of fun, sunny, increasingly unhinged. It's strongly anchored on this end by having a famous TV star of the time in the role of the (paranoid) observer.

The icing on the cake is the unforgettable finale that parodies its own soap-operatic parody: the sexual games mockingly turn into an actual orgy for power. You get to see an actual 'butthead', among other slimy things.

The best film directed by Brian Yuzna (producer of Re-Animator) is this strange horror/sci-fi satire on the yuppie way of life.

Beverly Hills teen begins to suspect that there's something very wrong with his snobbish family, is he imagining it or are they... inhuman?!

Society is one original and shocking black comedy. There's never a dull moment in the engulfing plot, which starts out as a paranoia mystery then only gets increasingly weird from there on out. It all builds to a warped finale that you won't forget! It's one of those surreal and gruesome terrors that makes you wonder if you should be laughing or screaming at what you're seeing. The makeup work of Screaming Mad George (great name) is very effectively disturbing. The direction of Yuzna is well-done and the addition of the Eton Boat Song as the films theme is a clever touch.

The cast is spot on in their performances, the best being young star Billy Warlock as our perplexed and horrified hero.

Society is one of those unique genre oddities that must be seen to be fully realized. It's one very wild trip that's well deserving of a cult status.

*** out of ****

I know that sounds weird to say when you're writing a review. But just trust me the less you know about what happens in this movie the better.

So go watch it. And Good luck and godspeed.