Chillerama (2011)
Directed by: Adam Green, Adam Rifkin, Joe Lynch, Tim Sullivan
Written by: Adam Green, Adam Rifkin, Joe Lynch, Tim Sullivan
Starring: Adam Rifkin, Eric Roberts, Joel David Moore, Kane Hodder, Kristina Klebe, Lin Shaye, Ray Wise, Richard Riehle, Sean Paul Lockhart
Chillerama (2011)
(TBC) Running time: 119 mins
Directors: Joe Lynch, Adam Rifkin, Tim Sullivan, Adam Green
Writers: Joe Lynch, Adam Rifkin, Tim Sullivan, Adam Green
Starring: Richard Riehle, Ray Wise, Eric Roberts, Adam Rifkin, Joel David Moore, Kristina Klebe, Kane Hodder, Sean Paul Lockhart, Lin Shaye
Reviewed by: Matt Wavish, official HCF critic
Chillerama made one Hell of an impression on the festival circuit this year, and it is also making a real cult name for itself in the US on region 1 DVD & Bluray. Sadly, here in the UK we are still waiting for a release date, but hopefully that date will come soon. Chillerama is a superb anthology of three horror comedies all locked together by one main story, and the theme here is drive-in movie. The anthology spans different decades in movies, and pretty much all the stories get their look and presentation spot on, however there is dud amongst the brilliance which sadly brings the score down slightly. This was very nearly perfect…
Joe Lynch ties the whole things together with his main theme about a drive-in movie and the kids who have come to enjoy a night of horror. Titled ‘Zom-B-Movie’ it gives a good idea of where this collection of half hour films intends to go. Lynch’s tale focuses on the drive-in movie theatre, with Cecil Kaufman (Riehle) celebrating his last night before it closes down, and a strange blue liquid which is turning people into sex mad zombies. This segment ties together the three other films really well, and serves as a decent story as a standalone, as well as a link for the other films. Young couples have come to make out, eat popcorn and enjoy the horror show from the comfort of their own car. The designs and outfits are all very old fashioned, very colourful and the characters all very likeable. The poor fella who wanted to get head off his buried dead girlfriend is now wandering around the area unsure of what is wrong with him. He is in fact a zombie, and since he is craving sex, he decides to pleasure himself, spilling his now bright blue sperm into the popcorn, and eventually infecting everyone. This is a great horror, charming and highly amusing with polished effects and superb characters. It leads to an almost Dawn of the Dead style climax and leads to a hugely satisfying end to the whole project.
The first short film of the three is probably the best, Adam Rifkin’s ‘Wadzilla’. A highly amusing, perverse and often grotesque horror comedy about a poor chap (played by Rifkin) who can only produce one sperm at a time. His Doctor (played by the always brilliant Ray Wise) tries not to laugh as he offers a solution, a test drug which will help. It does help, but instead of producing more sperm, it makes the one sperm grow enormous in size, and every time poor old Miles gets aroused he ends up in terrible pain. “You need to get it out!” warns his Doctor, “how?” asks Miles, “jerk off, fast!!” screams his Doctor in a highly amusing scene. Trouble is, Miles is about to go on a first date with a gorgeous girl, and if he gets aroused there will be trouble, and trouble there is. Seeing the girl’s low cut top sets poor Miles off, so he rushes to her bathroom only to release an enormous sperm which grows and eventually escapes in a hilarious scene. The race is now on to stop the giant sperm destroying the city! I haven’t laughed and cheered this much at a horror for quite sometime, this is incredible stuff, well timed and ultra funny comedy, superb B-Movie special effects and a massive sense of fun. If you don’t enjoy this segment then God help you!
The second short film is the weakest of the bunch, titled ‘I Was a Teenage Werebear’, director Tim Sullivan attempts to mix Grease style musical and outfits with the story of a Lost Boy’s type pack of so-called werewolves, and it doesn’t work. The songs are irritating, and the werewolves look stupid. The voiceover of the main character as he becomes a werewolf is very funny, as clearly a different actor does his voice, but apart from that and the odd bit of nudity, this segment is instantly forgettable.
The third and final segment, directed by Adam Green, brings the quality way back up as he does his own Nazi version of Frankenstein. Presented in black and white, and with English subtitles to actors talking German gibberish (it is made up!), this is a very effective and very funny story. It is not o the grand scale of Wadzilla, for this is confined to one experiment room where Hitler (superbly played by Joel David Moore) and his sexy nurses and soldiers are creating a super soldier out of dead body parts. Hitler prances around the room in full on gay mode, shouting, screaming and waving his arms around as if his life depended on it. The nurses are sexy and the soldiers barely say a word, this is Hitler’s show, until his creation is brought to life. Watching Hitler attempting to teach his Monster how to growl is priceless, and as you can imagine, things do not go according to plan.
Overall, Chillerama is a superb collection of tales, with all but one reaching heights of greatness, and these will be remembered in years to come as the film will no doubt take on cult status. The ideas on show are perfect, and the presentation is flawless. This is an anthology to put on with a few beers, a few mates and make sure you have your silly head on. This is pure B-Movie brilliance and it captures the excitement and good natured fun that comes with those sorts of films. This actually feels like an event movie, clearly on a small scale, but an event movie all the same. It is doubtful you will enjoy all the films on offer here, but the one’s you do enjoy will have you laughing and talking about for weeks. Word of mouth is gonna spread about Chillerama, and once it hits UK shores, this should go down a treat. Please, please, please let’s have another!
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