I Spit on Your Grave (2010, Review) Anchor Bay Entertainment
Director: Steven R. Monroe
Cast: Sarah Butler, Chad Lindberg, Rodney Eastman, Daniel Franzese, Tracey Walter, Jeff Branson, Andrew Howard, Saxon Sharbino, Mollie Milligan, Amber Dawn Landrum
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In the past decade of horror has been a disaster of terrible remakes of films that twenty-something years ago, appalled, shocked, and ultimately entertained. They have since gained cult status for the very fact that, back then, these were the films that had something fresh and exhilarating to offer the viewers. Exploitation and horror were breaking down the barriers of conventional cinema. The William Castle and Alfred Hitchcock-style fright classics were being tossed aside to make way for the gritty, more gruesome works of filmmakers like H.G. Lewis, Bob Clark, Meir Zarchi and Wes Craven. Quite possibly two of the most important and controversial films of all time, Craven & Sean S. Cunningham’s The Last House on the Left, and Zarchi’s I Spit on Your Grave have also inspired what have been the most well-crafted, and ‘true to the source’ horror remakes in recent years—or ever really, for that matter. The latter—Steve R. Monroe’s remake of I Spit on Your Grave is pending an anticipated theatrical release date and currently being screened at film festivals across North America. I was shocked and ecstatic upon finding out that one of the few Canadian premiere dates happened to be here at Edmonton Alberta’s only horror festival, DEDfest.
Director Steven. R Monroe said in a recent interview I did with him, that he was very passionate going into the project, because Zarchi’s original had a huge impact on him at a young age and “it’s just one of those movies that can be remade”. I thought about this while watching the movie, and also considering all of the flaws of other horror remakes of the past few years (Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween). I’ve come to realize that potential for success of a horror remake lies in the heart or subject matter of the original of which it is based. Attempting to merely ‘revamp’ a genre icon like those featured in the aforementioned slasher titles has been proven to be an impossible task. It’s safe to say that our favorite masked murderers of the ’80s are forces not to be reckoned with. Monroe wasn’t about to make the same mistake as Sam Beyer, Rob Zombie, and Marcus Nispel. What he did was re-create a scenario, one that not a lot of people had the balls to capture on camera to begin with and replayed it in the present day. Only this time around, he was able to pull off the emotional integrity that the original lacked due to technological and other various limitations of the time in which it was produced.
The premise of the remake follows that of the originals with precision, never veering off the path of solid plot progression, never distorted by unexpected, unnecessary twists. From the moment the character’s all come face-to-face with one another for the first time, we know what to expect—even if you haven’t seen the original. Jennifer Hill is a city girl novelist, seeking solitude in a cabin in the woods where she plans to write her next book. Her retreat is interrupted by a group of small town vagrants who proceed to degrade and humiliate her. She manages to escape to the woods, runs into the town Sheriff who—surprise, surprise—is just as much of a sleazy sadistic pervert as the townies. Unspeakable acts of physical, sexual, and psychological abuse are inflicted upon her and as karma will have it, Jennifer will not rest until she has her revenge.
The simplicity of the story allows for more attention to be focused on the interactions between the characters and the build-up of what’s to come. For her first time ‘big-screen’ presence, Sarah Butler put on astounding performance. The real pain and vexation that she suffered as a bi-product of the terribly tragic but triumphant role of “Jennifer” always evident in the way that she portrays herself as that person. Although some of the parts during the first half of the film when she played the role of ‘the victim’ seemed a little under-acted, she manages to swipe up her game in a fit of vengeful feminine fury and she doesn’t stop until jaded justice prevails. I was particularly impressed by Chad Lindberg’s role as the mentally-handicapped “Matthew”. He’s a guy that can pull off a tough role like that with natural ease. I felt a genuine sense of sympathy for that character. Someone who doesn’t actually possess the mentally capacity to distinguish right from wrong in a situation like that, like a child being peer-pressured into committing a heinous crime. Another casting highlight of the film featured Rodney Eastman AKA Joey ‘the mute’ Crusel from Nightmare on Elm Street parts 3 and 4 as vagrant townie ‘Andy’.
One thing is for certain; Mr. Monroe was most definitely not speaking pretentiously when he spoke of the increased brutality of his remake in comparison to the original. I recognized the potential for some truly horrific stuff just from watching trailers and reading ‘zine sites but I can honestly say that what I witnessed in the theatre that night blew me out of the freak’n water. Judging by the gasps and ‘awes’ of the audience, the director succeeded at fulfilling his intentions of presenting viewers with something that would stir emotions, conjure thoughts, and downright disturb. Jason Colins of Autonomous FX Inc. cooked up some of THE GNARLIEST special effects I’ve seen in any 2010 genre feature, enhancing some of the craziest, most creative death scenes EVER. The kills are few but most definitely not far between with the way in which the third act of the movie plays out. The ongoing sense of impending death is lengthened, ultimately intensifying the whole torturous ordeal that the assailant’s are forced to endure until the very last bit of blood has dropped.
With the twenty-six years of well-rounded experience in the film industry that Steven R. Monroe is packing, I’m really not surprised with how good his remake of I Spit on Your Grave turned out to be and I have to admit, I left the premiere with a new found hope for modern day takes on some of my favorite cult-classics. I’m curious now more than ever to see what awaits on the horizon of new-age horror.
