[To get you into the spooky spirit, the Daily Dead team is spotlighting double features that we think would be fun to watch this Halloween season. Keep an eye on Daily Dead for more double feature recommendations, and check here for our previous Halloween 2017 coverage.]
It’s always been my dream to own a movie theater and program just my favorite genre fare. Of course, showing nothing but the oeuvre of William Girdler would leave me destitute within a month (okay, a week), so naturally I’d have to expand my programming. I’ve always found that double features are a great tool (and if anyone knows what it’s like to be a great tool, it’s me) for finding the connective tissue between films that may appear to be dissimilar upon a quick pass, or to highlight and illuminate similarities that create an entirely new experience.
First up in my double feature entitled "Why Am I Always The Last To Know?" is Herk Harvey’s Carnival of Souls (1962), a Twilight Zone-ish tale of a young woman who finds herself in a state of disconnect following a car accident, constantly followed by ghoulish visions at every turn. This is a film that cries out for the big screen, its stark black and white cinematography perfectly in tune with the sense of loss and unease felt by our heroine, Mary (Candace Hilligoss), as she wanders around a town she’s taken residence in as a church organist. And when she’s drawn towards the abandoned carnival by the sea, the desperate truth of her existence comes to a haunting conclusion…
Once you’ve had your “whoa” moment with Carnival of Souls (if you’ve never seen it, that is; I welcome all newcomers to my showing with open arms, and those who have already enjoyed the well-worn twist as well) head out to the lobby, stretch your legs, pick up another Coffee Crisp chocolate bar (this Canadian’s go-to) and head back in for our second feature, Gary Sherman’s Dead & Buried (1981), an all-time favorite of mine that has been gaining momentum in horror lovers’ hearts as a slept-on gem.
Coming out as it did right in the middle of the slasher boom, Dead & Buried’s hard-to-classify mixture of small-town menace, voodoo, and state of the art Stan Winston makeup (save for one unfortunate gag done post-principal photography without his involvement) passed unsure audiences right on by. Why they would want to miss the riveting tale of Sheriff Dan (James Farentino) investigating the disappearance of several visitors who then reappear as new citizens of the town is beyond me. But that’s why you’re at my double feature, where the formerly ignored have a permanent home on the big screen. (At least until they board the doors after my Grizzly/Day of the Animals/The Manitou triple feature. Which I guarantee will happen.)
Themes of loneliness and paranoia course through both films; Mary’s quest for the truth echoes right over to Dan’s own personal dilemma—not only is he trying to solve the murders (and subsequent reappearances), but he slowly feels a disconnect and lack of trust towards his wife, Janet (Melody Anderson), resulting in a panicked state not unlike that suffered by Mary. As both films progress, Mary and Dan begin to question the status of their mental health; Mary’s apparitions seem all too real, while Dan’s go one step further and manifest in the vacant smiles of the “new” townsfolk. Either way, their sanities drift away the closer they approach their respective final reels.
The seaside setting gives both films a forlorn feel; the gentle caress of the waves a lulling precursor to Dead’s first shocking murder, while water is integral as a character and feeds Carnival’s larger existential scope and questioning. While pretty much all of Carnival makes you face the big questions throughout, Dead saves it for the denouement as a punch line and stinger that, while tragic, adds a mist of dark comedy that will have you questioning everything you’ve seen before even as you chuckle.
That comedy, that lightness, is what sets the films apart and why I chose this running order. Well, that and the fact that Carnival relies solely on mood, whereas Dead engages the viewer in more standard methods of mystery, suspense, and some truly spectacular practical effects moments. Which isn’t to say that Dead doesn’t lather on the weird; the premise alone should have horror fans giddy, but Sherman also paces it beautifully, allowing the viewer to play along and keep up with Dan as he uncovers the secrets (not so) buried in Potter’s Bluff.
So Dead & Buried gets to be the big closer, but the opener gets to set the tone. Harvey was an industrial filmmaker before Carnival of Souls, and he tells a surprisingly poignant tale in a rather dry manner, focusing on a doom-laden mood that is hard to shake when done. Dead is designed to frighten, and succeeds; it’s a popcorn movie laced with Smarties (like M&M’s but better) throughout the whole bag and each handful offers new delights. It is fun, is what I’m trying to say. And as you stumble out of my double feature and back into the harsh realities of life, the least I can do is try to send you away with a smile—maybe some questions about your own place in the world, sure; but take a bit of solace in the knowledge that you’re not Mary or Dan. They really have identity crises.
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In case you missed it, check here to read our other special features that celebrate the Halloween season!
Scott Drebit lives and works in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He is happily married (back off ladies) with 2 grown kids. He has had a life-long, torrid, love affair with Horror films. He grew up watching Horror on VHS, and still tries to rewind his Blu-rays. Some of his favourite horror films include Phantasm, Alien, Burnt Offerings, Phantasm, Zombie, Halloween, and Black Christmas. Oh, and Phantasm.
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