Cauchemar sanglant

I auditioned for the film, I got the callback...and, alas, it was on a day where I simply couldn't make it to the filming site.

My ambition of appearing in a b-movie will have to wait. Still, fond memories of the audition, and I made some friends, including Rick Pawliewski, who handled the prosthetic makeup--he does excellent work.

Nowadays, the film's a treat to watch for Buffalo locations that aren't there anymore, including the old George and Company store on Main Street.

This is a film that should be watched in the proper spirit. It's good, cheesy, silly fun, and meant to be taken that way. Zebra mussels in Lake Erie?

I do wish they'd stuck with "Flesh Eating Cannibal Creatures from Cleveland," though.

Watching someone's incompetence can be entertaining. Now the question falls down to intentional or unintentional? The low-budget indie comedy-horror "SHADOW CREATURE" obviously wants be a parody on shoddy filmmaking. What starts off amusing enough eventually grows tiresome in its witless try hard attempts of wanting to make you laugh than naturally letting it fall into place. In the end it becomes what it's mocking and in doing so it gives this tackiness an unwanted polish. It's no Ed Wood production, because it simply lacked the sincere charm and naivety amongst the ineptness. If you want a comparison think more along the lines of John Landis' "SCHLOCK!", but for me less enjoyable.

In "SHADOW CREATURE" the acting is stilted; script is exaggeratedly awful, direction virtually non-existent and editing is just as messy as the daftly patchwork plot. I just found the execution very drab, therefore the supposed thrills is diluted due to the overplayed broadness of the wink attitude making it miss more so than it hit. At times it could be a drag if it wasn't focusing on its titular reptilian monster. Sometimes the delirious plot had too many unwanted distractions (corrupt mayor) getting in the way of the fun, when I just wanted some monster-on-the-loose carnage. Those moments are clumsily staged, but they look better thanks to nice gore FX involving icky, bubbling makeup effects. Usually that's not case with these types of films. Even the monster design (namely the impressive mask) comes off to a certain degree. Despite seeing it dressed in jeans and a long sleeve business shirt as it moves around like an ape swiping at its victims.

A hearty Shane Minor did have his moments as the reckless meathead of a detective who finds himself investigating a very unusual serial killer(?) case that sees a hair serum the cause of a genetic mutation that goes on a brutal rampage. His character sure did have a weak stomach, compared to everyone around him and the stifled way he delivered his lines added to the stupidity. Interesting to see Buffalo, New York masquerading as Cleveland, Ohio.

It can entertain in parts, just I expected a little bit more in the way of bad monster fun.

This low budget affair was advertised as a horror, let me be the first to say it sure as hell isn't.

Within moments the goofiness set my spidey sense off and the first comical sound effect confirmed it.

The trouble is though there is a monster this neither scary nor intense enough to constitute as a horror. Flipside, it's not funny enough to be a comedy either.

So with a highly mediocre cast, questionable sfx, distinct lack of story and those moronic out of place sound effects this didn't exactly leave a good impression.

The Good:

Monster wasn't entirely awful

The Bad:

Far too comedic to be considered a horror

Editor needed firing

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

Zebra mussels spawn mutant flesh eating monsters, who knew?

A detective discovers that a series of local murders is somehow linked to a hair tonic formula with some unusual properties. When some of the tonic is accidentally spilled into a tank of Zebra Mussels – the fun really starts.

A low budget, monster-on-the-loose flick with elements of horror and comedy blended together in equal measure. Some fine location photography and an exceptionally good soundtrack help offset the films general lack of suspense, a weak script and some wooden acting. The film could easily trim fifteen minutes off and it would be a nice, lean addition to the horror-comedy genre. As it stands, it starts off slow but gets into a nice rhythm in the second half and actually delivers some genuinely funny moments. The creature is acceptably gross and there's plenty of gore on hand for those into that type of thing.

This movie reminded me very highly of John Landis' "Schlock !" parody of "Monster on Campus"-style movies, though slicker, but not as good. All the actors are absolutely over the top and their enthusiastic, if sometimes inadequate, performance is worth seeing. Despite the whole deal's, er, schlockiness, somebody took good care of keeping the plot moving briskly (though, as Joe Bob Briggs would say, it sometimes gets in the way of the action) and the cinematography is excellent (better than the material deserves, some would say.) The moment when the hero gives the heroin a clichéd love sermon that seems out of Erich Segal's drunken nightmares is a guaranteed rib-tickler.

All in all, this is fun stuff, though not to everyone's taste. It was lately released in Paris as part of a weird mini-festival, along with "Slumber Paris - oops, Party - Massacre", "Freeway Maniac", "Humanoids from the deep", "Watchers 3" and "Watchers reborn" and "The Unborn 2". Why we lucky Froggy we are