Strange Darling (R)
My most old-fashioned take would have to be that movies were better in the 1970’s. The gritty, grimy aesthetic of ’70s thrillers, westerns and horror films was brash, bold, political, nasty and fun. It felt like there were bits of dirt and ash between the frames of movies like “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre,” “The Last House on the Left,” “Eraserhead,” “Black Christmas”, and even big-budget studio fare like “Jaws,” “Carrie” and “Rosemary’s Baby”. The filmmaking was aggressive and violent, the temperaments were un-sympathetic, screaming pitch and vitriol into a world that was slowly exploding at the seams. And audiences ate these movies up with a spoon; primed for an excuse to let out their baser emotions in the dark of the theater, beyond the prying eyes of polite society. With a reality of similar uncertainties swirling around us today, it makes sense that a scuzzier cinema might be birthed from the ooze of the modern world; a warped mirror of madness and blood showing ourselves in harsh relief for us to consider if we like what we see.
As Exhibit A to this thesis, may I present “Strange Darling.”
With a title card that proclaims the film to be ‘SHOT ENTIRELY ON 35MM’ along with an opening credit crawl that directly tickles the brain of anyone who worships at the bone altar of Tobe Hooper, “Strange Darling” feels like it was made in a lab for anyone who loves old fashioned chase movies that are inventive, clever, and mean. I couldn’t help but think of “The Hitcher” or even “Duel” while the film spilled out before our rapt audience; both films about seemingly good people thrown headlong into the path of unrelenting evil bent on mayhem and destruction. Rest assured, this is one of those films.
To describe the story of “Strange Darling” almost does it a disservice but I’ll do my best. Told in six distinct chapters that happen to play out of order, we follow the initial confrontation and eventual violent aftermath of a sexual rendezvous at a two-bit motel between a man and woman given the monikers of “THE DEMON” and “THE LADY.” The movie opens on CHAPTER 3 with The Lady burning rubber in a muscle car as The Demon chases behind with a suped-up truck and a big gun. The Lady is bloody and terrified. The Demon is inhaling cocaine in a murderous rampage. If you think you know what follows, trust me, you do not. Best I leave that for you to discover, and delight over, on your own.
Assuaging the usual dynamics of a ‘violent man chasing innocent victim’ type narrative, “Strange Darling” is always one step ahead of the audience’s expectation; utilizing its seemingly random structure to titillate and tease out a story with more twists and bloody turns than this writer expected. Featuring stellar performances from modern scream king Kyle Gallner (“Smile”) and a scorching turn as The Lady by Willa Fitzgerald (“The Fall of the House of Usher”) JT Mollner’s writing and direction is a magic trick, showing you something you think you understand before revealing it to be something much gnarlier. If the world is a just place, this movie will get at least two sequels and The Lady will take her place among the greats of her genre. It’s that good.
“Strange Darling” feels like the best kind of throwback horror, one that honors the past while delighting in its inventive skeeze like a trusty wooden roller coaster, full of wicked splinters and sketchy hills, that you talk yourself into going on against your better judgment.
Trust me, strap in and take the ride while you can. You won’t want to miss this one on the big screen.
“Strange Darling” is now playing at The Broad Theater.
Friday the 13th Part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan (R)
This Labor Day, your friends at Screamfest NOLA & Timecode have a treat to beat the heat, a 35th Anniversary of “Friday the 13th Part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan.” The last of the great middle run of Friday films, “Jason Takes Manhattan” is long remembered for its iconic final act where our machete-wielding friend leaves Crystal Lake behind and makes bad in the Big Apple. One of the goofier entries in the series, “Jason Takes Manhattan” is a blast from beginning to end and a fantastic transitional portal from the dog days of Summer into the cool, creep of Fall. Come for the patented “Friday” kills and stay for Horror trivia and prizes from Waxwork Records and Horror Pack. This will sell out so get your tickets now!
“Friday the 13th Part 8: Jason Takes Manhattan” is playing on Sept. 2 at The Broad Theater.
THE SEARCHERS (PG)
A certified classic from one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, John Ford’s “The Searchers” is coming back to the big screen this week at Prytania Uptown. Featuring John Wayne’s most nuanced and seismic performance as Ethan Edwards, a broken, violent man compelled to hunt down and “rescue” his niece (Natalie Wood) from a tribe of Comanche, this testament to the grand vistas and horrific implications of the western genre stands among its peers as a titan that transcends cinema history. A film that will be discussed and dissected long after all of us reading have parted this mortal coil, “The Searchers” is the kind of movie that deserves, nay demands, to be seen on a big screen. Check it out!
You’ll be glad you did.
“The Searchers” is playing on Sept. 1 and Sept. 4 at Prytania Theater Uptown.
