Skip to main content

Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006) - Scott Glosserman

What would the world be like if famous killers and monsters from horror cinema were real? What if Jason Voorhees really killed all of those frisky camp counselors? What if Michael Myers really came back to kill his sister in the town of Haddonfield, PA? What if Freddy Kruger could really invade your dreams and kill you while you sleep? Behind the Mask is set in a world where all of these occurrences happened. Leslie Vernon, the main protagonist of the film, is inspired by these classic slashers and killers.

This is a twisted ride into the life of a rookie slasher. A camera crew is given a "behind the scenes" look into Leslie Vernon's life. They will walk and stalk with this crazed madman who is, in turn, being hunted by his own doctor Doc Halloran (Robert Englund) who wants to see an end to Leslie's killings. This movie is one of the most creative looks into the horror genre I have ever seen. The movie goes everywhere and references tons of horror films.

The movie switches between documentary footage and regular slasher horror movie footage. It really works in some places, except for the showdown scene, it just kind of jerks you out of the experience. The movie also screams "Spinal-Tap" to me and I was waiting the entire film for Leslie to get lost under a stage in Colorado somewhere (It was Colorado, right?).

So, in closing I think that if you like Spinal-Tap, Halloween, and Cloverfield-type first-person camera movies you will really enjoy Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. I am sure that you will enjoy the unique plot of the movie over the actual horror content. I am giving this movie a 7 of 10.

"Plants and turtles. I only keep pets I can eat"

S!D
Filmed in Banks, OR
There is a sequel in the works
There are tons of horror movie easter eggs, keep your eyes open

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Human Monster (1939) - Walter Summers

Bela Lugosi turns in a fantastic performance. It is right on par with the exact same films that had made him famous like Dracula . My personal favorite being The Black Cat . Like the latter, this film suffered from poor circulation and lack of advertisement. Either that or the public wasn't interested in seeing Lugosi in anything else other than his famous bloodsucker. This film has a broad and well acted plot that was rich with detail.  Lugosi has two sides in this picture. His well loved and compassionate side. The other is a strict, brutal lone shark that acts as a sinister villain to blind and handicapped people. He really brutalizes his victims. It's a macabre message to pay your bills.  The film is slow moving and plagued by the usual setbacks from its time. Most of the nation wasn't really that concerned with horror at the time. But studios knew that they would always have an audience. This film is a prime example of that. It's sad because it's 

Ju-On (2000) - Takashi Shimizu

Watching Japanese horror is similar to watching British comedy. If you enjoy dry whit then you probably enjoy the boys of Monty Python in drag. That's the joke, they're dressed like women. Get it? Well, that's British humor. But if you're like most Americans you probably prefer Adam Sandler farting his way across a football field and hooking up with chicks that are way out of his league. Americans usually prefer this more in your face, crass brand of humor. My point is funny in England is different from funny in the US. The same goes for J-Horror. What the Japanese consider scary is very different from what Americans consider scary and it shows in this horror film. Japanese horror is generally slow (a little too slow sometimes), suspenseful and creepy. Ju-On is a creepy effing film. The movie has almost no soundtrack. It is incredibly suspenseful and the pay-offs are pretty awesome, but I think that it was done better in the American version (cultural t

Inseminoid (1981) - Norman J. Warren

What can be said for mindless schlock pictures like this one. They were pumped out in droves during the eighties. Inseminoid !? give me a break! It sounds like some pre-pubescent teenage boys came up with the title. On the plus side the movie isn't horrible to look at and it has a decent amount of gore. If you can separate yourself from the political incorrectness, then you might have a perfectly decent Sci-Fi Monster Feature.  A research team exploring caves on Jupiter accidentally awakens an ancient alien that rapes and impregnates one of the team members. She suffers from terrible shock and trauma, leading to a complete mental breakdown as her pregnancy accelerates faster and faster. Feeling threatened she decides to kill anyone she deems a threat. Can the rest of the research team survive or will they all become victims of INSEMINOID! Apparently this movie had a million dollar budget. That's really shocking considering the outcome of the picture. The acting