Monday 27 October 2008

Day 27: Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon

Somehow, somehow, this recent-ish one managed to get away... Which is surprising because I’m usually all over a slasher movie that gets a half-decent review anywhere. As it happens, Behind the Mask has had plenty of favourable write-ups, but something must’ve been holding me back because I still haven’t seen it. Perfect stuff for Sham Shocktober, then.

My problem might be that it’s not immediately obvious from the reviews and publicity how far down the path of comedy this film goes. I mean, I heart comedy and I double-heart horror, but mixing the two doesn’t always produce hearty results (though you should never let anyone tell you that Haunted Honeymoon is anything less than a masterpiece).

From the sound of things, Behind the Mask follows, in documentary fashion, the preparations made by a wannabe serial killer for his big night of slaughter in a small town. We’ve seen film crews following psychos before (Man Bites Dog) and we’ve also seen comedic Jason Voorhees copycats (Freak Out) but a middle ground between those two movies is hard to imagine: the former is as bleak and nasty as they get, while the latter is so low-budget it would actually look like a documentary if it weren’t so silly.

So someone please tell me: what will I find when I look behind this mask?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Paradise Lost.

If you list Haunted Honeymoon and Freak Out as movies you've SEEN, much less ENJOYED, then, quite frankly, you are waaaay overdue for BTM.

LV

Reel Whore said...

I have not only seen Leslie Vernon but went on to own it. For me, it was 2nd only to Grindhouse for best 2007 horror.

Nathan Baesel strikes that perfect chord of a horror leading man. One minute charismatic, the next psychotic.

Watch it and you'll love it!

Anonymous said...

I have not seen this one either. It's gotten a mixed response, but definitely leans more towards the positive, so it's probably a safe bet!

I'll be sad when this month is over...

Ross Horsley said...

LV: Is that really you, Leslie?! Between your comments and Reel Whore's, I'm definitely sold on watching this one soon.

ABN: Yes, Sham Shocktober's definitely been a ride :-)

Corey said...

i envy your 'leslie vernon' virginity. i love this movie so much... and soon (hopefully), so will you.