Horror Remix

Horror Remix Presents… RUSH
2 Hours of Sorority Slashers!

Wednesday, September 9th 10PM
3 TEXAS SHOWS! FREE!!!

Alamo Drafthouse
Austin (Lake Creek)

Alamo Drafthouse
Houston (West Oaks)

Studio Movie Grill
Addison, TX (North Dallas)

RUSH was the first remix theme picked without having a good idea which films I was going to show. But, knowing there were tons of fraternity / sorority horror films to choose from, the big question was “How will I choose only 3 films?” Well, apparently that wasn’t a problem.

First, let me show you all 14 films I saw preparing for this screening.

Dreamaniac
Sorority House Massacre
Sorority House Massacre 2
Killer Party
Pledge Night
Hell Night
Blood Sisters
House on Sorority Row
Silent Madness
Rush Week
Sisters of Death
Final Exam
Night of the Creeps
Happy Hell Night

Looking at that list of films, a trash film fan may think they are on the brink of awesomeness. No. This experience was far from awesome. More like work…really boring work. None the less, after 20 plus hours of video dumpster diving, I did find 2 hours of gold you are sure to enjoy.

First, I want to give a few dishonorable mentions to the films left out of the screening, aka Leftover Meat™. First, a big “bite my ass” to my nemesis, Dreamaniac (1986), for being boring and uninspired filmmaking. And for me, those are the worst adjectives to use for a film. I’ve always said behind every good horror film is a big bag of coke. Unfortunately, this theory only works if the filmmakers spend the movie budget on the movie, not the drugs. The whole damn thing takes place in an apartment and you can just imagine no one left the building during the whole shoot. Another dishonorable mention goes to Blood Sisters. Painfully boring. I dare anyone to watch this without hitting the >> button. Let’s move on to the good stuff…

Night of the Creeps is actually a perfect 80s horror film. I wouldn’t touch it. Highly recommend everyone check this out when it finally comes out on DVD this fall.

Final Exam, Rush Week, Pledge Night and Happy Hell Night all have something good to offer. But, I decided to scratch all the fraternity films (obvious reasons). The rest of the selections will be featured in RUSH at some capacity and featuring these 3 classics…

Killer Party (1986)
Killer Party never had a chance. While filming in the early 80s, the studio pulled the plug. A few years later they finished filming, supposedly cut out all the gore and released it in theaters. Around 1986, it was released on VHS, still cut. And that was that…what a cursed movie.

More than any movie, you can feel the juggling from one producer to the next. One director to the next. The beginning is a perfect example. Because of 2 fake openings sequences (a-drive-in-movie-within-a-music-video-within-a-movie) the actual film doesn’t start for 10 minutes (in a 91 minute movie)! It’s obvious these false starts are just leftovers from the earlier failed production.

The remaining 80 minutes feels like 3 different films. Same plot, same characters, but you can just feel the gears shift. First section is a screwball comedy, complete with hot tub babes and horny frat boys. This is very good. However, an hour goes by and there is no evidence that Killer Party is a horror film. Every time they build the suspense, the payoff is an impossible to conceive April Fool’s prank, which would be cool in a screwball comedy. But in a slasher, the film needs to deliver bloody bodies by the hour mark.

Next, the slasher section begins… and it sucks. As stated before, the only release of this film is believed to be heavily censored. Who knows, this section could have been insane, especially considering the murder weapons include a hammer, spear, trident(!) and guillotine. But the constant cut-aways are frustrating and you just know the next victim will be you; death by a kick to the peanuts. Finally, 10 minutes left and I start to feel something… Is this a touch of fear I’m experiencing? Hey wait, a horror film has broken out! Finally!

Notable Actor: Elaine Wilkes (Sixteen Candles)

Hell Night (1981)
This is a classy, big budget horror film. Really well filmed, beautiful sets and costumes. Nice, lush soundtrack too. Horror Remix disapproves of this. Thankfully, on the heels of Friday the 13th, the influence of the cheap-thrills-teen-slasher occasionally appears (which I believe was because of studio pressure – hey, “the man” was right)!

The only time this movie jumps off is when it dives in the gutter; sex, booze, pills and a few good kills really work, especially in the context of a well made film.

Notable Actor: Linda Blair (The Exorcist)
Notable Writer: Randy Feldman (Tango & Cash)

The House on Sorority Row (1983)
Just yesterday Horror Remix received the news that The House on Sorority Row was being remade. On top of that, the film drops Sept 11th, two days after this screening. For a couple of hours I started thinking about what film I would use to replace The House on Sorority Row. I just didn’t want anyone to think Horror Remix was associated with, or capitalizing on the remaking of this film. Frankly, I ‘m surprised this film is being remade. Oh well, I’m still going to screen the original. Maybe this will deter a handful of people from seeing the remake. If that happens, then I’ll be glad I stuck with it.

The House on Sorority Row is a really cool and clever film. Plus, sexy ladies, beautiful sets and lighting. It looks amazing. The only criticism is the pace. It’s really, really slow. That won’t be a problem on the remix. You may want to see the rest someday.

Notable Actor: Eileen Davidson (The Young and the Restless)

Horror Remix Presents… RUSH from Edward John on Vimeo.

So, bring your friends and GET THERE EARLY! And don’t forget, lots of fun extras, shorts and your puppet MCs, Cheesecake and Thunderclap.

SO BAD… IT’S GOOD! and FREE!!!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 11th, 2009 at 3:26 pm and is filed under Blog, Public Screening. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.