Sci-fi/Horror Round-Up, pt 1: Introduction

I don't even attempt to hide the fact that I love science fiction and horror movies, even the terrible ones. And by "terrible ones," I mean "most science fiction and horror movies." The two genres are a cesspool of terrible filmmaking, in part because they are the starting ground for many talentless would-be filmmakers. It's easy for directors to start out in sci-fi/horror, because the genres themselves are the attraction to the audience. There's no need for recognizable actors or a coherent script. Just grab some women willing to get topless, a bucket of corn syrup, some red food coloring, and a piece of raw chicken with some rubber hose tentacles stapled on. There, you now have the makings for a sci-fi horror movie. And believe me, lots of people go this route in an attempt to build a career in the movie business.

But what makes these genres so artistically appalling is what can also make them great. Science fiction and horror give a free pass to the filmmakers to do whatever the Hell they want. It's a playground of wild invention and ambition. It exposes a filmmaker's raw talent, or lack thereof. Don't believe me? James Cameron wrote and directed the highest grossing movie in history. His first film was Piranha 2: The Spawning. Yes, killer fish that fly. Peter Jackson started with Bad Taste. Roger Corman is infamous for producing some of the worst sci-fi/horror schlock to ever touch celluloid. His terrible films are also famous for launching the careers of Martin Scorcese, Francis Ford Coppola, John Sayles, Joe Dante, Jack Nicholson, Johnathan Demme, Gale Anne Hurd, Peter Bogdanovich, and Ron Howard's directing career. So suck on that, all other genres!

There is a ton of crap to wade through, but it's always an awarding experience to discover that 1-in-1000 movie that actually manages to have new ideas, or a talented director putting a fresh spin on an old one. It feels special to see a natural filmmaker in their larval stage, struggling to make something original and entertaining with a budget that wouldn't fund a 30-second tampon commercial.

Maybe it has something to do with 9/11 (because if anything changed between 2001 and 2009, it is legally required that the change be attributed to 9/11), but the terrible sci-fi/horror drought of the 90's ("Let's see how many Scream knock-offs we can release in a single year!") gave way to a surprisingly large number of original, well-made movies. The mainstream theatrical releases were still mostly crap, with only a few exceptions (The Descent, Grindhouse, the grossly-underrated Silent Hill). And one of horror's biggest theatrical success stories, The Ring, probably did more harm than good with the number of terrible remakes it inspired. But the indie world has been grinding out respectable films at a steady pace throughout the decade. Not since the 70's has indie sci-fi/horror been this good.

So over the next few posts, I will be commenting on some of these overlooked films. I imagine several of them will have dedicated cult following within the next few years, and some may even eventually be looked back on as landmark moments in the genre (Hyperbole? Never heard of it.)