Think “Scream” was the last word on deconstructing the horror movie? Not even close.
“Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon” takes the concept a few bloody steps further. Join budding slasher star Leslie (Nathan Baesel) as he tells a documentary crew how he prepares to kills his prey (gotta do plenty of cardio, he warns).
Consider this recommendation with two caveats:
It’s got a microscopically small budget, and it shows.
Plus, if you’re looking for scares, this isn’t your primo choice. It’s more interested in mocking the slasher film, not giving you the creeps.
Still, it’s rigorously clever and flew straight under the radar in its 2007 release.
(Photo: A wannabe Jason/Michael/Freddie is ready for his close up in “Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon.”)
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Karma 10.23.08 at 6:34 pm
CT– No review of Fireproof? I read a review of it posted… I dunno, it was a Daily Beast link– and they just skewered it. Was wondering what you thought of it. You had the ads for the movie release on your site, but no review? Why?
cftoto 10.23.08 at 6:44 pm
Karma - I try to see as many movies as possible, and if they pass me by after they open I tend to let them go (I’ll review ‘em later on DVD, plus my nights/weekends are stuffed with movie watching as it is — I know, woe is me!)
I don’t control the ads for this site … I use a service that checks out keywords on the site and puts out ads accordingly. It’s not perfect, but the vast majority of ads are for TV shows/movies/DVDs which I’m very happy about. That’s targeted info for my readers. If the ads being delivered were about Ivory Soap or Chef Boy Ar Dee, I’d be concerned. Not that there’s anything wrong with those fine products!
James Frazier 10.23.08 at 8:36 pm
I was just telling someone about this movie the other day! I’ve never actually seen it, though. Perhaps I’ll kick it up the nEtflix queue.
dimitrios 10.24.08 at 2:34 pm
I totally loved this movie and the low budget adds to its charm. One of my favorite sequences is when Vernon explains how he seems to always catch up to his prey when it looks like he is only walking.
With a bigger budget and real distribution this film could have been the Scream of this millenium. I remember seeing the trailer on quicktime.com and the next time I saw anything on the movie was seeing the DVD at Blockbuster.