Familiarity, of course, can breed contempt. Although he's directed three of the "Saw" films, Darren Lynn Bousman, 30, says he's frustrated by the lack of fresh ideas. His 2008 horror musical "Repo! The Genetic Opera" received some blistering reviews when it was released in November and grossed less than $200,000 during its initial run. But the movie -- set in a future in which people are addicted to plastic surgery but run the risk of losing their designer organs when they can no longer pay for them -- is unlike anything released in recent memory.
This month, Bousman's opted to take his show on the road, driving cross-country to screen "Repo!" for sellout crowds who are turning up in costume (think "The Rocky Horror Picture Show") to show their love for its cult aesthetic. Bousman insists that the capacity audiences prove there is a hunger for original ideas.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 32 words Type of Material: Correction
Horror films: An article in Sunday Calendar on the popularity of horror films said that Patrick Lussier made his directorial debut with "My Bloody Valentine 3-D." He directed several features before that.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Sunday, February 01, 2009 Home Edition Sunday Calendar Part E Page 2 Calendar Desk 1 inches; 31 words Type of Material: Correction
Horror films: An article last Sunday on the popularity of horror films said that Patrick Lussier made his directorial debut with "My Bloody Valentine 3-D." He previously had directed several features.
"The reason I made 'Repo!' [is] if you look at horror films right now, the majority of them are sequels and remakes and reimaginings," he said. "I wanted to see something original. Whether you love 'Repo!' or hate 'Repo!' it's not like anything else out there. The hope would be that we'd see some more original content."
The challenge now, most of the filmmakers say, is to keep the level of quality high and to keep pushing boundaries. Aja is excited about the possibilities afforded by advances in technology, which he'll be employing for his next project, "Piranha 3-D."
"The genre is a very hard genre because people get used to the tricks you're putting on the screen to scare them," he said. "I have the feeling that the only way to reinvent horror today [is 3-D]. When you're making a horror movie, you're trying to get people into the movie. You're not trying to have them watching a story but having them live the story along with the characters. The best tool to create that immersion is 3-D."
Craven isn't convinced that 3-D will change the face of horror just yet -- though he did describe "My Bloody Valentine" as "goofy" and "fun." He does believe that filmmakers will continue to deliver challenging movies, some more cerebral than others, that will mirror our collective fears. "I've been doing it a long time and I constantly get people telling me, 'You gave me nightmares for a year. Thank you,' " Craven said. "I can't even figure it out except to make up theories that we need to have this stuff exorcised."
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gina.mcintyre@latimes.com
