Directed by William Malone, Co-Written by William Malone.
Synopsis:
Ted Lonegran is a retired detective turned writer. Now seemingly carefree, he finds himself drawn into romance and ready to face the world again as an adult. His former partner, however, draws him into investigating a horrific string of murders. Even more terrifying is the true face of the murderer. How many more people will be scared to death by this creature?
Thoughts as I watch:
The movie is playing. This is what I think of it as it happens.
William Malone’s first full length movie begins with a yellow road sign reading the solitary word “end.” Thankfully, this was only the beginning. By the 4 minute mark, we are treated to the best kind of gratuitous horror movie nudity: the elusive full frontal.
My inner 16 year old already loves this movie.
My inner 16 year old is also feeling nostalgic. Phones that didn’t leave the table. Big hair. Cigarettes everywhere. Brown paper bags. Component stereo systems and twelve inches of black vinyl love. Electric typewriters with no “undo” feature. I remember living like that! William Malone as “Alex Waverly” is just a fun treat, given the nature of this blogging project.
And a love scene. First half of the woman’s eyeshadow abruptly vanishes. Then, she looks more than a little bored right as the act commences. Or maybe she’s really in the zone.
That has to have been the most effective use of roller skates I have ever seen in a horror film. In all film, I doubt anything can match the roller skates at end of Rock & Rule. This was cool enough to remind me of that.
Interesting choice of colors on this telephone conversation. Shades of blue on one end, shades of brown on the other. Each character’s shirt, phone, and backdrop all possessing a common hue. I would normally not think twice about this if not for having skimmed over Creature.
The blood effects get better as the movie goes on.
This woman looks like Velma from Scooby Doo with Joey Ramone’s hair. I find it extremely compelling, but can’t tell if it’s really hot or really unattractive.
Final Thoughts
The pacing was very interesting. Much of Scared to Death is relaxed, taking its time to let us know the characters before they meet the Syngenor. At times the relaxed pace borders on awkward, but it was really hard to launch a protest during that first drawn out nude scene.
You can definitely see that this movie came from a different time. All of that is nearly periphery. The focus on characters over the easier horror elements does a lot to make the technology less noticeable. The plot is almost ahead of its time, more resembling late 90s Japanese science fiction than late 70s creature features.
And the creature? Most of what we see is its face, which is a good thing. William Malone’s background is deeply rooted in monster effects, and it showed from the neck up. The biggest problem with the rest of the Syngenor is that none of its unique features were put to any use. Had it used those spikes for defense, offense, or simply its main purpose of eating, then the Syngenor itself would have appeared much scarier without a single change to its design.
The characters themselves are an eclectic mix of 1970s influence with 1980s buddy cop tones.
Overall, I can strongly see this movie mirrored against Parasomnia. Despite being a creature feature with Malone’s artwork at the purpose of the story, the focus is on the characters. This is what Malone does when he’s in charge: He draws us in with the lure of his artistic eye, and keeps us in with a story about his characters.