Friday, March 20, 2015

OCTOBER 12, 2013 7:52PM

Day 12: Most Disturbing Horror Movie

Rate: 1 Flag
  LOS 1

30 Day Horror Movie Challenge

Oct 12: Their Satanic Majesties Request

 (Source: imdb) Heidi, a radio DJ, is sent a box containing a record -- a "gift from the Lords." The sounds within the grooves trigger flashbacks of her town's violent past. Is Heidi going mad, or are the Lords back to take revenge on Salem, Massachusetts?
Rob Zombie is  a fiercely independent filmmaker.  With The Lords of Salem , he was independent enough to 'disappoint' horror fans who wanted another blatantly brutal grindhouse epic a la The Devil's Rejects.
Independent enough not to provide you with the titillating sophmoric nudity many horror fans enjoy (apart from one shot of Sherri's Moon).  But nudity he does bring you.  And it's not the happy kind...
LOS 2 
Independent enough to be unconcerned with either Christian or Wiccan sensibilities.  There is no Wiccan or witch of the peaceful, healing, goddess- centric variety here, nor what is known in some circles as a "fluff bunny."  There is no attempt to teach you the real history of Salem's witch trials and exonerate those poor women killed in a baseless wave of supernatural hysteria.
No, these witches are gruesome, malevolent baby killing hags through and through.  In fact, I changed my mind: was Zombie playing into evangelical sensibilities?  I could see Jack Chick or Pat Robertson getting down on their knees with tears of joy in their eyes and praising Jesus for The Lords of Salem, a film that depicts each and every last act and happenstance of what they think Wiccans, Buddhists, New Agers, Secular Humanists, etc etc really do with their spare time.  I'm shocked it hasn't sparked a new wave of satanic panic like the devil films of the 70s did.
 And so, after viewing the film, I was disturbed.  Not scared, not fearful, just left with racing nightmarish thoughts and a sense of sick lingering dread hat I couldn't shake for three nights.   This is all a result of trying to process the film's last act, which was waves upon waves of surreal misogynistic images, extreme blasphemy  and satanic psychedelia.
  LOS 3
Lords isn't a straightforward horror  film.  Many have called it 'art house' and have name checked Suspiria as one of its influences.
I don't know if I'll ever watch it again, but I'll never forget it.  And so, I have to applaud Zombie for his uncompromising way.
  LoS 4
 One bright spot: a trifecta of modern-day witches played by Judy Gleeson (To Sir With Love, no less!), Dee Wallace (The Howling, The House of the Devil), and Patricia Quinn, better known to midnight movie fans as Rocky Horror's Magenta.  These ladies are wicked good fun, their performances are wonderful (if very very evil), and again I applaud Zombie for recognizing the loveliness and superior talent of aging actresses instead of using a host of hot young vapid people.
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And they said backwards masking was a fraud, tsk tsk. Maybe that Satanic Panic in the attic is yet to come ...
VariousArtists
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