¡QUÉ HORROR! 2012 [10 of 13] The Eduardo Sánchez Slot

A Rundown of the 13 (plus) Best Horror Movies I've Seen in the Past Year
[10 of 13]
The Eduardo Sánchez Slot

Yes, Sánchez appears on one title as director, and on the other as producer, but hell, it’s still Sánchez, and these two films are still amazing…

So...

LOVELY MOLLY

(September 2011)

Once again, Eduardo Sánchez directs the sh!t out of material born from his fruitful collaboration with co-writer Jamie Nash; they worked together on both Altered and Seventh Moon.

This time out, it’s Lovely Molly, where Molly Reynolds (Gretchen Lodge, in her impressive feature film debut) returns to her childhood home with her brand new husband, to make a go at a brand new life, only to have the terrible ghosts of her troubled past rise and eclipse her married existence.

Lodge, whose background lies in London theatre, acts the sh!t out of this one, too, as does Alexandra Holden, who plays Molly’s sister, Hannah.

I really shouldn’t say too much about Lovely Molly, other than perhaps, it’s about (among other things) the ugly malevolence of transgressions, both past and present.
The fact that Johnny Lewis--who played Molly's husband, Tim--died late last month under violent and tragic circumstances makes the effect of this title even more potent today.

MIDNIGHT SON

(July 2011)

Let’s get down to brass tacks: writer/director Scott Leberecht’s debut feature, Midnight Son, is an excellent vampire film, the sort of atypical bloodsucker title that I’ve always been predisposed to.

As with Tomas Alfredson’s Låt Den Rätte Komma In, the centerpiece of Midnight Son is a burgeoning relationship between a human and a vampire, though in this case, it’s a decidedly adult relationship. There’s also the added complication of the vampire (Zak Kilberg’s Jacob) not even knowing what it is he’s becoming exactly.

There are muted strains of body horror in this, as Jacob gradually succumbs to the bizarre urges that are consuming him, which then neatly segue into vampirism as metaphor for addiction.

This may be the kind of vampire film that isn’t for everyone, but as I said before, I’m a (heh) sucker for atypical vampire films.

And let’s face it, these days, any vampire that doesn’t do the whole Sparkle Motion thing, that’s instantly a big plus in my book.

In addition, this has got Eduardo Sánchez (whose Altered, Seventh Moon, and as indicated above, Lovely Molly I love) as one of its executive producers, and as I’ve clearly found myself to be predisposed to Sánchez’s post-Blair Witch films, it made putting Midnight Son up here an awesome doubleplusgood.

Parting shot: Speaking of doubleplusgood, I’m also so looking forward to what Leberecht chooses to direct next, as well as, and I've mentioned this before, Sánchez’s Bigfoot movie, Exists.

(Lovely Molly OS courtesy of bloody-disgusting.com; Midnight Son OS' courtesy of shocktillyoudrop.com & aintitcool.com.)