For those who don’t already know, I program and host a bi-monthly midnight horror movie series called Friday Night Frights at The Cinefamily in West Hollywood with CHUD forum regular Sebastian O’Brien. Our first three shows were raging successes, with Rare Exports, Tucker & Dale vs Evil, and Rubber all completely sold out. But our show this coming Friday is a special one. Along with bringing Los Angeles horror fans the best in upcoming, unreleased films, our goal is also to screen some old classics and weirdo gems that don’t get trucked out to the revival theaters that often. Weirdo gems like…
The Howling III: The Marsupials!
Surely many of you are already familiar with this bonkers film. Or maybe you just remember it from its featured clips in Not Quite Hollywood. Or maybe this is the first you’re hearing of it. For those new to the film, here’s the lowdown from our FNF calendar.
Philippe Mora’s gonzo entry in the Howling franchise is easily the most wild of the bunch, even topping his own Howling II (aka Stirba: Werewolf Bitch)! Relocating the lycanthrope action to his native Australia, Mora (who also directed ‘80s faves The Beast Within and Communion) concocts the meta-textual story of a runaway werewolf girl who becomes romantically involved with a young man who’s working on a movie about — you guessed it — werewolves. Besides nods to the original Howling’s blend of horror and post-modern parody, you’ve also got hilarious piles of pseudo-science, a corpulent Hitchcock-wannabe director of the film-within-the-film, gooey marsupial/werewolf hybrids (g’day!), and a ballet dancer transformation that rivals Black Swan for sheer overheated ridiculousness.
And director Phillipe Mora will be there Friday night to answer all of your stupid questions!
CONTEST
As always I am giving away a two-person couch, which not only allows you to lounge in comfort, but gives you a front row seat for the Q&A. I am also giving away FREE TICKETS, each of which include a +1 for a guest. Entering the contest is simple, just send an email to wormmiller@gmail.com with HOWLING in the subject line, and give me your pick for the worst werewolf transformation you’ve ever seen.
Even if you don’t win any tickets, I hope to see you there!