A lot of unhappy endings: MALEVOLENCE (2004)

“He’s in the closet, waiting…patiently”

In 2004 I was knee deep into “Weird New Jersey” magazine. It was the most fascinating read I had come across in a long time. One evening while researching one of the legends online I came across the trailer for an upcoming film called “Malevolence”. WOW! This was one of the most well put together trailers I have ever seen. I was mesmerized and thus began my journey into the world of Martian Bristol. 

“Malevolence” begins with a statement about missing children and about 6 year old Martian Bristol who was abducted from his back yard swing. The film opens proper in 1989 with a young girl chained, arms above her head, in a slaughter stall. Into the next stall walks the killer with a large sack. He opens it to reveal a young boy with a deep cut across his cheek. The boy watches as the man walks into the other stall and stabs the young girl to death.

Obsession Jersey style: Red State (2011)

“YOU SAID THIS WAS GONNA BE A SIMPLE IN AND OUT. SIMPLE JUST SHIT ITSELF!”

Why do we love horror? It’s hard to say, different people love it for different reasons. Most psychologists will say it’s healthy because it releases fears and anxieties that we would otherwise keep locked up. Whatever the reason, whether healthy or not, we continue to watch, though sometimes we are limited in our choices.

However, the more we watch, the harder it is to shock us and the less the film makers even try. Every new film that comes out peaks my hopes for a new experience that will leave me unsettled and I am usually let down. Not to say that the films are bad or predictable, but they follow the standard formula. I didn’t know where I was gonna get my next fix, Eli Roth, Ti West? …Kevin Smith?!?

Red State is writer/Director Kevin Smith’s first foray outside his safety zone. The man who brought us “Clerks”, “Mallrats”, “Chasing Amy” and “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” among others does have more rattling around his head and it is brilliant.