The Creep Behind the Camera

Even though I had seen trailers for this film and had firm expectations walking into the screening, I still found myself surprised and dumbfounded by the story told and the way it was revealed. The directions the film takes by careening back and forth between interviews with the people involved in the original production of "The Creeping Terror" and the behind-the-scenes reenactments had me laughing out loud at the sheer Hollywood absurdity while I was cringing in abject revulsion.

Josh Phillips's portrayal of the psychotic creep, Art Nelson, was haunting and dark, while Jodi Lynn Thomas and Bill LeVasseur shine on screen.

This film is a fun, eerie, outlandish, weird retro ride through the darkest valleys of the Hollywood hills. I recommend it.

Stylistically dynamic. Unique narrative combining true doc (1/3) and re-enactment (2/3). A very compelling storyline. Solid acting, sometimes breakaway good. Fantastic set design and costuming. Self- aware and darkly comedic. Better effects than the original Creeping Terror, which is ironic. A brave overall effort that entertains throughout. All the while, the theme shines through so wonderfully. And visually, the DP and Director create a seamless creation. Intriguing and forward moving, it is rare to see a movie that does all this. For those who love classic sci-fi, this will be a wonderful experience. For those who don't, this is still a fun movie. You will walk out with a smile, a smirk and head-shaking disbelief all at the same time.

This shrill, low-budget recreation of the making of The Creeping Terror isn't as bad as the movie it's about, but it's not that much better. At least they didn't lose the soundtrack, but there's no question that The Creeping Terror isn't more fun to watch. The acting here is generally bad, the dialogue filled with inexplicable pauses, the lead creepy but charmless. It is interspersed with talking heads recounting stories of the actual making, and they're interesting. This should have been a straight documentary.

The Creep Behind the Camera (2014)

*** (out of 4)

THE CREEPING TERROR is considered by many to be one of the very worst films ever made. THE CREEP BEHIND THE CAMERA tells the story of its making. We meet Art Nelson (Josh Phillips) who is your typical con man who decides that he wants to break into show business. He finds someone willing to put up the money and he sets out to make the greatest monster movie ever made but falls well short.

THE CREEP BEHIND THE CAMERA apparently started off as a regular documentary on the making of THE CREEPING TERROR but somewhere along the way they decided to do much more than that. This film is pretty uneven and a bit all over the place but there's no question that it's very well-made and features some great performances. Part of it is a documentary on THE CREEPING TERROR as we get interviews with many of the cast and crew. The other part of this is a re-enactment or actual film about its director who is best known as Vic Savage.

To be honest, I wish this thing had been two separate movies because when you mix an actual documentary with an actual film it just doesn't quite work as well as it could have. I really loved the B&W interviews with the original cast and crew but sadly there's not too much of this. I would have really enjoyed seeing these interviews put together in the form of a featurette to where we could have gotten to hear more of their stories about what it was like on the set of THE CREEPING TERROR. I'm sure there were many more crazy stories that could have been told but instead we get the re-enactment stuff.

As far as that goes, it seems the main goal of this movie was to show you what an evil person Vic Savage was. Throughout the re-enactment footage we get clips of him physically, mentally and sexually abusing his wife. We learn that he liked nine-year-old girls and we learn that he was a druggie, a loser and just not a very good person. Whenever that isn't happening we get behind-the-scenes footage of them making THE CREEPING TERROR. Again, this re-enactment footage makes for a great film but then you've got the previously mentioned B&W clips from the real people commenting. I just don't think the two went well together but separately they work.

I will add that I thought Phillips was extremely good in the lead role and that Jodi Lynn Thomas was also excellent in her part of the wife. Bill LeVasseur and Brian McCulley are also very good as are the rest of the supporting cast. THE CREEP BEHIND THE CAMERA is certainly flawed and somewhat uneven but at the same time I give the filmmakers credit for trying to do something different.

Had a chance to see this movie in Colorado. Great story! It was fun to see how crappy horror movies like The Creeping Terror actually made it to film, and the back story about the slimy director conning everybody to be in it. Especially liked the cutaways to the interviews of the actual people involved in making the original film.

Solid acting and great photography and sound... even if it's not a multi-million dollar budget movie. If you are a fan of "bad" horror movies, you'll definitely have to watch this movie! Makes me want to watch The Creeping Terror again with new eyes this time!

Loved the last scene with the Bee Gee's "I started a joke"! (I won't spoil it for you)