Terror of the Undead: My Filmography

Terror of the Undead. The mere title of this 30-year-old independent American horror film is enough to make older genre fans' eyes mist over with fond memories. Where were they in the summer of 1980 (or somewhere around then) when this film was crafted by a bunch of young teenagers in Manitowoc, Wisconsin?

Just like the hundreds of film vets who got their starts working for B-movie king Roger Corman, Terror of the Undead provided the training ground and launchpad for such modern film legends as mmmmbbllee mummble mummblle and mummble mmrrmerr mummble. This movie is a great example of what art can be created if enough talent is deployed, along with blood, sweat, tears, and about 15 minutes of pre-production planning. Just like you witnessed with the guerilla filmmaking techniques used by The Blair Witch Project, you'll be amazed at the shaky camera work (accomplished using the pre-digital effects technique known as we didn't know how to hold the camera steady).

The acting is, if I may say so myself, sublime. I was honored at this point in my junior high school career to be offered the lead role of "the reporter" in Terror of the Undead. I had been dissatisfied with the scripts being sent to me, and I was on the verge of seeking new representation when the Terror opportunity presented itself, and I recognized it immediately as the career-changing role it was. (Seriously, career-changing. I'm now a magazine editor.)

As I told the Actors Studio's James Lipton, I've never gone in for that old-fashioned method acting stuff. For me, it's enough to know the camera is on and that I remember I'm supposed to look (a) pensive, (b) unemotional, or (c) expressionless. Though I was beaten out at the Oscars that year (damn you, Dustin Hoffman!), I think the industry appreciated my "new-wave" approach to fleshing out and humanizing "the reporter."

Go ahead, watch the film. When you see me, I'm sure you'll immediately say, "Oh, wow, you had a full head of hair back then." No, no. I was a bald 12-year-old, too, but I made you believe that I had a full head of hair. That's called acting.

Watch the entire film – free of commercials or film industry censorship!!! – here.

Response to Fangoria: Should Horror Films Be Scary or Fun?

Brian Matus has posted a short article at Fangoria.com asking, "Are Horror Films Supposed to Be Scary or Fun?" There are already a number of responses, which you can read there, and there are responses elsewhere on the web, such as Marc Patterson's thoughtful article. I'll let those responses take care of exploring the question directly.

As is my wont, I'll take this in another direction. Last week, I went to Borders and purchased a copy of Stephen King's new tomb -- I mean, tome -- Under the Dome. I'm not an automatic buyer of King's books, but I have found them to be absorbing and well-done, so I bought the book. As I was paying the cashier, he asked, "Have you ever actually been scared by any novel Stephen King has written?"

The question was just check-out counter conversation, and I don't think he meant it as a criticism of King nor of me as a buyer. But it made me think. I've read a fair number of King's books: The Stand, Firestarter, Salem's Lot, The Shining, The Dead Zone, Danse Macabre, Pet Semetary, Thinner, Misery, The Tommyknockers, and Cell. Did any of them scare me?

Thinking about the question, I had to consider what "scare" means. I have never had one of those scary jolts of shock in a King book that you get in some films, where the cat jumps out of nowhere or the villain suddenly appears from the shadows. But that's too narrow of a definition. Most of the time in my life when I've experienced fear, it has been a dread of something that might or might not happen. And I've certainly felt that in King's novels (especially in my favorite, The Shining), and in the best horror films. (The best parts of Alien, in my opinion, were not the shock parts but rather the incredible scene-setting at the beginning, where we get to see and experience just how isolated the Nostromo is, then just how isolated the shipmates are -- including from each other -- and then just how isolated the alien ship is.)

I enjoy a well-done book (or film) that is able to create that sense of dread, of fear-inducing atmosphere. I've got a lot of books in line to read before Under the Dome, but when I get to it, I'll let you know if it scares me. Or something better.