“Television is
reality, and reality is less than television.”
First let me get this off my chest,
this movie is not for the children or the squeamish and it is certainly NSFW
(as the kids would say), but if you are into genre-bending, spine-tingling
horror films this is an exquisite masterpiece of a must-see film. Videodrome,
David Cronenberg’s dystopic vision of the future, is an achievement in the
genre of horror/science-fiction that has stayed relevant and continues to
mystify viewers. Unleashed upon the world in 1983, Videodrome contains
all of the aspects that make the horror genre great - blood, guts, suspense and
a hint of camp - but in addition to these aspects what makes this film so
special is the Cronenbergian additions of unexplainable mystery and a
captivating/unnerving visual style. Most horror films of this era tend to be
somewhat predictable and bold-faced, but Cronenberg’s stylistic touch of the
odd and macabre enliven this film, elevating it onto its own plane.
Not to overstate the ability of
this film to presage the future of our culturally bleak society that has become
distracted, disenchanted, and fascinated with the morbid, but it has all but
completely torn down the veil between 1983 and the future 31 years later. In
this unconventional horror flick set in some undetermined future (beginning
simply on Wednesday the 23rd) our ‘hero’ Max Renn (James Woods) is a
scummy cable television executive determined to find something that not only
pushes the boundary but “breaks through.” Dealing mostly in smut of the sexual
and violent varieties, Renn is obsessed with staying cutting edge. His
obsession leads him to seek out a convoluted transmission entitled ‘Videodrome’
that can only be described as ‘torture porn’ (again with this film’s prophetic
nature).
“I live in a highly
excited state of overstimulation”
Delving deeply into the seamy world
of Videodrome he and his girl friend, Nicki Brand (played by Blondie’s Debbie
Harry), begin to explore mixing pain and pleasure. What begins with a mostly
innocent exploration of sexuality quickly spirals as both begin hallucinating
and become completely consumed by the sadomasochistic videotapes that keep
finding their way into Renn’s position. Both Renn and Brand are fascinated with
the fact that the tapes blur the lines between reality and television. As their
society has grown more and more dependent upon their television sets as a
crutch (in their bedrooms, as their alarm clocks, and as all forms of
entertainment) the screen becomes synonymous with the retina of the eye. With
the connection between people and their televisions becoming more and more
symbiotic it is no wonder that the people of Cronenberg’s dystopia are
fascinated with and easily engulfed by a level of disarming and dangerous
reality. This is yet another area of the film that comes off as a bit of a
forewarning (read: current society’s obsession with reality television).
From this point the plot of the
film expands immensely as Brand searches for Videodrome in Pittsburgh to become
a ‘contestant’ and Renn has more trouble determining what is real and what is
hallucination. I won’t go too much further into the plot as the webs of
conspiracy that form are best experienced without spoilers. But I will say that
as the plot develops and the conspiracies unfold the lines between reality,
hallucination, and television become more beautifully convoluted as Max Renn
stumbles into the insane climax of the film
Aside from all of the
aforementioned reasons let me get to the real point of why I have chosen to
attempt to ‘turn you on’ to this demented prophetic horror flick (especially
this close to HALLOWEEN!), and that would be Cronenberg’s twisted aesthetic
vision. If you haven’t delved into Cronenberg’s filmography please dip your
toes in starting with this film. Every aspect of Cronenberg’s work is
meticulously skewed in an attempt to deliberately engage, confront, and
confound the viewer. Cronenberg’s style is visually arresting and he has an
uncanny ability to seamlessly merge a current reality with a fanciful strange
alternate reality. Watching any of Cronenberg’s films – such as Dead Ringers,
The Fly, Naked Lunch, and Cosmopolis, to name a few - will
immediately transport you to a new, strange and disarming world where fantasy
and reality blur.
In the end there are so many levels
to this movie and it can be read in many different ways - you simply must see
for yourself. So pick up the DVD (or invest in the Criterion Collection Blu-ray
release) and investigate this strange new world of Videodrome for
yourself. While you may be confused by it, you will not be sorry you checked
out this cult classic, because at the heart of it, it’s just a really COOL
twisted specimen of the horror/sci-fi genre.
“Death to Videodrome,
long live the new flesh!”
~Edward Hill
No comments:
Post a Comment