Wednesday, November 26, 2008

S&Man (2006)


Here's a little documentary which treads the line between horror and arousal.
If you've spent any time going to the various horror movie conventions in the US (Monster Mania, Chiller Theater, etc.) you will notice a fair number of indie movie producers who've set up shop hawking their latest slasher/monster/whatever film. They always have some hot chickee in tow to promote the flick because, as we all know, horror film buffs are overwhelmingly male. Getting their picture taken with some aspiring starlet in a skimpy costume may be the only female action some of these guys are ever going to get.
S&Man focuses on the rise of the indie stalker voyeur film. It has a number of interviews with the filmmakers themselves. There's also several interviews with the "scream queens" who star in them. Also, some discussion about the kind of person who watches these videos. There's even two sex doctors who are interviewed for it.
Most disturbing is the dude who creates fake snuff movies for his adoring fans. He hires a model, videos her daily life from a concealed angle, then kills her. All of this is staged, of course, and he even shows how to fake the final death scene. But you do have to wonder: what kind of person pays money to watch these things? And he's not the only one who makes these type of movies.
I was seriously creeped-out listening to "Bill Zebub" describe the murder scenes in his productions as "stroke material". Nor was my mental state improved by hearing the director of August Underground (a "found" video where you get to watch a serial killer at work) talk about all the people who want to be the victim in his latest production.
An interesting, if disturbing, look at the thin line between sex and death.

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