Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon ***1/2
Directed by Scott Glosserman
Written by Scott Glosserman and David J. Stieve
Starring:
Nathan Baesel as Leslie Vernon
Angela Goethals as Taylor Gentry
Kate Lang Johnson as Kelly
Robert Englund as Doc Halloran
Zelda Rubinstein as Mrs. Collinwood
Scott Wilson as Eugene
Bridgett Newton as Jamie
92 Minutes(Rated R for horror violence, language, some sexual content and brief drug use.)
---------------------------------------
"Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon" is a very entertaining mockumentary/horror/comedy that is as scary as it is small and witty. It is a take on the old horror cliches of the past, and goes play by play into how and why and killer like Freddy, Jason, and Michael Myers would choose to kill in that way. There is a reason why kids never break the windows in the house, and why the lights always seem to go out at that precise moments, and there is also a reason why the killer always ends up killing the couple having sex first. And the screenplay by Scott Glosserman and David J. Stieve is so smart that I've had the most fun I've had in a while watching this film.
"Behind the Mask" begins with the introduction of Taylor Gentry, a college news reporter. From her brief opening we learn that she was hired by Leslie Vernon, who claims that he is the next big killer in the vein of Freddy, Jason, and Michael Myers. Taylor and her two cameraman have been enlisted in giving audiences a play by play to Vernon's big plan. Vernon turns out to be an extremely likable and kind person whose only flaw may be that he is a mass killer. His plan is to attack Kelly, his virgin girl that he hopes will also survive her encounter with him. Kelly works at a local diner, and him and Taylor get her attention by doing the ol' have-her-think-there-is-someone-in-the-shadows-and-have-her-walk-in-that-direction-only-to-have-the-door-that-she-came-out-of-slam-shut-behind-her. He then details that the slasher killer is more of a calling than an actual revenge story. Vernon's story of revenge after the rape and murder of his mother is a complete fabrication, and he only uses it for a back story. He really just wants to slaughter a group of people and become a legend. And from that point on we follow Vernon's plan to kill a small group of teenagers in his house on the so called "Anniversary of His Death!" as Taylor and the camera crew begin to question Vernon's sanity, and if they really want to participate in the event at all.
The take on slasher film cliches is almost genius. I can still chuckle about Vernon and a punching bag, drenched in sweat, with him saying "You have no idea how much cardio I have to do. . . You have to keep up with all those young kids. . . and then you have to do that thing where it looks like you're walking, and somehow with all those kids running around like gazelles you manage to keep up." Other memorable sequences include his final touch ups on the house before the big night, where he describes why people go to the basement, why they don't smash windows, and why their cars won't start. Slasher killing is taken to an art form, and is never and idea off the top of Freddy or Jason's head. They have a goal and a purpose. There is also a little joke involving the reason why there are so many "Halloween," "Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Friday the 13th" films. Apparently most killer in the 70's would kill someone and then they would vanish forever, or be killed. But Jason and Freddy and Michael took killing to new heights and kept coming back until their presence almost seems like a curse.
Through the intelligent script, Scott Glosserman and David J. Stieve show that they both have a strong love for the slasher/horror genre, and instead of making a spoof film like what most happens, they make a smart satire. and then in the end the script takes a different turn and becomes the third act in most of these slasher flicks, and we see one by one as the kids die. But it is still smart ,and there is an ingenious script towards the end that I would have never seen coming. There is even a great cameo by Robert Englund, who played Freddy in all the "Nightmare on Elm Street movies." Ironically he is playing that one good character that knows exactly where Leslie is at all times, and exactly what he is up to and he intends to stop him. That was a nice touch by the film makers as well. Made with a cheaper than cheap budget(under a million dollars), "Behind the Mask" proves that a film maker could do a lot with a little. They have made an effective little movie that is doing exactly what they intended. This could join "Shaun of the Dead" as one of the best horror movie satires of all time, and "Behind the Mask" will please any horror buff, or even somebody who is tired of the old horror film cliches that the horror movies today are all victim to.
Directed by Scott Glosserman
Written by Scott Glosserman and David J. Stieve
Starring:
Nathan Baesel as Leslie Vernon
Angela Goethals as Taylor Gentry
Kate Lang Johnson as Kelly
Robert Englund as Doc Halloran
Zelda Rubinstein as Mrs. Collinwood
Scott Wilson as Eugene
Bridgett Newton as Jamie
92 Minutes(Rated R for horror violence, language, some sexual content and brief drug use.)
---------------------------------------
"Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon" is a very entertaining mockumentary/horror/comedy that is as scary as it is small and witty. It is a take on the old horror cliches of the past, and goes play by play into how and why and killer like Freddy, Jason, and Michael Myers would choose to kill in that way. There is a reason why kids never break the windows in the house, and why the lights always seem to go out at that precise moments, and there is also a reason why the killer always ends up killing the couple having sex first. And the screenplay by Scott Glosserman and David J. Stieve is so smart that I've had the most fun I've had in a while watching this film.
"Behind the Mask" begins with the introduction of Taylor Gentry, a college news reporter. From her brief opening we learn that she was hired by Leslie Vernon, who claims that he is the next big killer in the vein of Freddy, Jason, and Michael Myers. Taylor and her two cameraman have been enlisted in giving audiences a play by play to Vernon's big plan. Vernon turns out to be an extremely likable and kind person whose only flaw may be that he is a mass killer. His plan is to attack Kelly, his virgin girl that he hopes will also survive her encounter with him. Kelly works at a local diner, and him and Taylor get her attention by doing the ol' have-her-think-there-is-someone-in-the-shadows-and-have-her-walk-in-that-direction-only-to-have-the-door-that-she-came-out-of-slam-shut-behind-her. He then details that the slasher killer is more of a calling than an actual revenge story. Vernon's story of revenge after the rape and murder of his mother is a complete fabrication, and he only uses it for a back story. He really just wants to slaughter a group of people and become a legend. And from that point on we follow Vernon's plan to kill a small group of teenagers in his house on the so called "Anniversary of His Death!" as Taylor and the camera crew begin to question Vernon's sanity, and if they really want to participate in the event at all.
The take on slasher film cliches is almost genius. I can still chuckle about Vernon and a punching bag, drenched in sweat, with him saying "You have no idea how much cardio I have to do. . . You have to keep up with all those young kids. . . and then you have to do that thing where it looks like you're walking, and somehow with all those kids running around like gazelles you manage to keep up." Other memorable sequences include his final touch ups on the house before the big night, where he describes why people go to the basement, why they don't smash windows, and why their cars won't start. Slasher killing is taken to an art form, and is never and idea off the top of Freddy or Jason's head. They have a goal and a purpose. There is also a little joke involving the reason why there are so many "Halloween," "Nightmare on Elm Street" and "Friday the 13th" films. Apparently most killer in the 70's would kill someone and then they would vanish forever, or be killed. But Jason and Freddy and Michael took killing to new heights and kept coming back until their presence almost seems like a curse.
Through the intelligent script, Scott Glosserman and David J. Stieve show that they both have a strong love for the slasher/horror genre, and instead of making a spoof film like what most happens, they make a smart satire. and then in the end the script takes a different turn and becomes the third act in most of these slasher flicks, and we see one by one as the kids die. But it is still smart ,and there is an ingenious script towards the end that I would have never seen coming. There is even a great cameo by Robert Englund, who played Freddy in all the "Nightmare on Elm Street movies." Ironically he is playing that one good character that knows exactly where Leslie is at all times, and exactly what he is up to and he intends to stop him. That was a nice touch by the film makers as well. Made with a cheaper than cheap budget(under a million dollars), "Behind the Mask" proves that a film maker could do a lot with a little. They have made an effective little movie that is doing exactly what they intended. This could join "Shaun of the Dead" as one of the best horror movie satires of all time, and "Behind the Mask" will please any horror buff, or even somebody who is tired of the old horror film cliches that the horror movies today are all victim to.
posted by Eric at
1:04 PM
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