Michelle reviews the off center horror film, Society.
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| "Everybody chill. I'm doing my best Uncle Jesse routine." |
There has always been a divide between the rich and the
poor. While the U.S. doesn’t officially have a caste system, some would say
that being rich in this country has less to do with hard work and more to do
with birthright. Brian Yuzna’s directorial debut Society manages to take a satirical look at the difference between
the “have” and the “have-nots” with a deliciously perverse undertone bubbling
just beneath the surface.
Society plays out
like a mystery of sorts as we follow rich kid Bill Whitney (Billy Warlock) in
his investigation of the seedy underbelly of his affluent family and neighbors.
The atmosphere teeters on the edge of insanity with bizarre flashes of
grotesque imagery tucked into the narrative. The acting isn’t great, with most
of it being on par with a made-for-TV movie, but it’s serviceable enough and
not bad enough to detract from the film. Warlock puts in an earnest performance,
but Ben Slack steals the show as Dr. Cleveland, Bill’s therapist. He has such a
snarky and hilarious persona and it’s especially amusing in the second half of
the film.
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| "I know. I'm amazing, right?" |
If we were to categorize Society
it would be billed as a dark comedy/body horror film. The entire film is
presented tongue-firmly-in-cheek and is filled with subversive themes and
thinly veiled barbs thrown at upper class society. As for the “body horror”
aspect, this film has absolutely outstanding practical gore work. The effects
were done by none-other-than “Screaming Mad George”, who is known for his incredibly
surreal make up work. He has done effects for films such as Big Trouble in Little China, Predator and the A Nightmare on Elm Street movies--most famously the infamous
cockroach scene in A Nightmare on Elm
Street 4: The Dream Master. His creations for Society are outstanding and utterly gross in the best kind of way.
This film definitely has that late ‘80s look to it, with a
brightly lit direct-to-video style of cinematography. For most of the film it
looks mediocre but functional, but the last thirty minutes is where it really
shines. Seriously, the latter half of the film is worth the price of admission
and has to be seen to be believed.
Horror and gore aficionados will be delighted to see the absolute mayhem
that emerges. Most horror films have the most basic of plots—mostly to set
characters up for eventual slaughter. Society
tries a little bit harder than that, and actually has some social commentary
mixed in with the gross-out scenes. It’s no masterpiece, but is an interesting
and unique little piece of horror cinema that is worth viewing at least once.
-Michelle Kisner