“The whole point isn’t to make it look realistic. I don’t think that films were ever meant to be just an exercise in technical virtuosity.” – Ray Harryhausen
Warrenzone has posted his latest film, the home invasion/killer bear opus The Precursor. I often find myself at odds with people who can’t appreciate a film that lacks a professional sheen. Horror, more then any other genre, relies almost entirely on emotion for its effect. While most horror films try to replicate reality in their costumes, special effects and other visual components, this isn’t always the best way to go. Sometimes a sense of unreality, even cheapness, creates a discomforting effect that is infinitely preferable to simply looking “good”. The rather slipshod make-up in Fulci’s Zombie is a great example of this. And if a horror film manages to create even one indelible image, well, that’s just something money can’t buy. To be sure, The Precursor isn’t perfect, but anything that can creep me out without the benefit of audio while sitting in the library in the middle of the day must have some merit.
There is a band called ‘Street Trash’ from California who has that picture used above as their album cover.
Warrenzone is a straightedge graphic designer stationed in Southern California, so it’s entirely possible that he was inspired by/involved with Street Trash. However, that image originally came from the movie Motel Hell.