A great horror movie makes more of an impression on the psyche than any other kind of film. Hell, even a bad horror flick can scar you for life. There’s a phrase that every seasoned horror fan loves to hear: “Have you ever seen . . . ?”
For the next 31 days, John E. Meredith will unearth some of his personal favorites that fell through the cracks, that are not so obvious, the kind that might even sneak up on you while you’re trying to sleep.
The Loved Ones 2009, Australia. Written and directed by Sean Byrne. Starring Robin Mcleavy and Xavier Samuel.
When he shuts his locker, Lola is standing there. Big doe-eyed pout, she meekly asks if he will go to the dance with her. He’s nice enough, but no, he’s going with Holly, his girlfriend. Lola is obviously hurt, but there’s something more hiding in her face as well. Something maybe more than just a little not-right.
After school Brent and Holly are getting it on in her car. The scene is sweet and tender, but steamy. Brent puts his hand against the window in a moment of ecstasy, smearing the steam away to reveal Lola standing just outside the car. Watching.
His father’s death early in the movie has left Brent, as Holly says, “an emotional retard.” He’s lost in the heavy metal blasting through his headphones, the razor blade he wears like a dog-tag, and the unending temptation to take his own life.
Then he wakes up at Lola’s house, bound to a chair, sitting across from a crudely lobotomized woman that Lola and her father call Bright Eyes. Lola fills a syringe with bleach and jams it into Brent’s voice box so he cannot scream. There’s a disco ball floating above, lots of pink glitter, and some bloody power tools – welcome to your prom, buddy.
One of the things that make this a great horror movie is the same thing that makes any movie great, and that’s characters that ring true. In just a few scenes before the shit hits the fan, we can truly feel the pain of this guy and his desolate wish to maybe be dead. We get a glimpse of Lola as well, alone in her room with a teenage dream scrapbook, all in pink, a song about not being pretty enough playing gently in the background. Yeah, she’s a throbbing psycho-mess, but she’s no cardboard cut-out vixen. She’s real, and the horror gets pretty real soon.
One of my favorite details of this movie is Brent’s friend and his own smokin’ hot black-hearted punk rock girlfriend, toking up and headbanging in the car before going in to the dance. We’re not sure how they fit into the bigger picture at first, but when we find out it adds more sadness and horror to the entire film.
As I’ve said, survival is our greatest instinct, and the seemingly deathward march of autumn reflects this. It’s all about making it through to the other side. This flick is a perfect answer to that: you might think you want to die, but as soon as there’s a power drill pressed to your skull, you will do damn near anything to live.