First, the bad news. It appears as if the Midnite Movie Mamacita has given in to the dark side. This was my first visit to the new space, and it appears as if they are not even equipped with any kind of film projector. It's all digital now, baby.
That being said, the space is very intimate and the screen is HUGE, so it is still the best possible experience you can have under the circumstances. At least they never have to worry about problems with delays due to projection concerns.
Now, onto the good news. My night began with
Human Centipede 2. Yes, it is every bit as disgusting, foul and unsettling as you have been told, even more so than you could possibly imagine. At the same time, the twisted humor and overall meta sensibility makes for an interesting, albeit discomforting experience. The decision to go B&W I think helped maintain a sense of surreal detachment. There is a disturbing, subtle deep bass underscore that permeates the movie and the silent lead character is also creepy as hell.
Next we have Lucky McKee's
The Woman, and I must say this was probably the highlight of the night for me. A lot of the time, a low budget indie can be dragged down by less than stellar acting performances. This was not the case as the acting in this film was one of it's strong points. There is one hell of a plot twist, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around the meaning of the ending. I also admire it's originality and it's ability to convey a strong metaphor and combine some outrageously over the top moments with a mostly realistic environment. Highly recommended for horror and gore fans alike.
There was a selection of trailers during the next intermission because Fulci's
Zombie was a part of a "Cult Classics" series. These included
Rocktober Blood,
Nightmare City,
Burke & Hare, a brutally violent spoilerific
Dawn of the Dead trailer that was advertised as "Dario Argento Presents Zombie Dawn of the Dead," a German language trailer for Zombie which had it titled as "Woodoo," and an Italian language trailer for
Dellamorte Dellamore (more on that later).
This was actually my first time ever seeing Fulci's classic
Zombie. It was more straightforward and atmospheric than I was led to believe, shark scene notwithstanding. I understand it's appeal and I am very glad I got to finally see it. Probably liked it better than
The Beyond.
Okay, so next the actual "secret screenings" marathon began. It kicked off with an excellent somewhat obscure but not unwelcome choice,
Cemetery Man. I had only seen it once, when it premiered at the 1996 SciFi Marathon. I didn't know what to make of it then and neither did most of the audience, but this was a cool re-discovery. Not quite a classic, but a different take on zombies, and a goofy allegorical structure.
Next up, Tobe Hooper's underrated gem
The Funhouse, which was the one movie of the four I had not seen. Very cool atmospheric slasher. Don't know how I missed this one.
Next was my only disappointment of the night,
Hellraiser. Not disappointing because of the film, which is still great but only because I had seen it last weekend.
And finally, the morning was capped off with
Creepshow. Still one of my all time favorites, and it had been a while since I had seen the whole thing.
Unfortunate that everything is now all digital, but I still had a fun night. My highest recommendation would be for everyone to check out
The Woman if you get a chance.