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Published in 2002 by iUniverse, ShockDecember is
the story of three friends: Matt Farley, Charles Roxburgh, and Tom Scalzo, who decided to watch 21 horror movies in 48 hours. This brave feat is documented in the reviews of films such as
The Stepfather, The Hitcher, The Beyond, Sleepaway Camp 3: Teenage
Wasteland, Bride of Re-animator, etc. Each member of the ShockDecember team reviews the movie with his own perspective and then awards are issued at the end of the 120 pages. The awards include Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Movie, and Worst Movie.
Being a moviethoner myself, I had to check out this book. It’s a quick read and I blasted through it easily. It is an entertaining look at what must have been a wonderful experience for these three gentlemen. Unfortunately, I was left with many nagging misgivings about what I’d just read.
The preface describes the timetable and their method of viewing the films. I wanted this section to be much longer. Some elaboration on the experience of watching 21 horror films in 48 hours would be great here. At only a page and a half long, I was left wanting more. This could easily have been stretched out and made into a fine companion piece to the reviews.
Now, onto the reviews... I’m trying not to disagree outright with their opinions on films such as
The Changeling, The Beyond, or even the much reviled Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 because one reviewer’s opinion is just as good as another. However, Matt Farley’s review of
The Beyond is this: “I’m sorry, I just didn’t like this movie at all. I have nothing more to say” (page 75). Regardless of whether or not he enjoyed the film, I can’t believe he had nothing to say about a Fulci film.
The Beyond is a loaded choice for any reviewer. You can rant and rave about the continuity and logic problems, revel in the gore, or gush lovingly about the cinematography. Either way, there’s much to be said about this film and it’s childish to dismiss a film without even trying to explain yourself.
One odd aspect of the book is the films they choose to review. Many of the films are sequels and the reviewers often admit they haven’t seen the original. For instance, Tom Scalzo admits that he’s never seen the original
Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I have to do a double take here. I can’t believe anyone remotely interested in horror films hasn’t seen the original. Granted,
TCM2 is in no way a favorite of horror fans (I happen to love it) and doesn’t have that much to do with the first film (other than some returning characters), I still think the first film is required viewing before reviewing the sequel. Scalzo also admits to never having seen
The Hills Have Eyes while reviewing its sequel (not that I
disapprove of the authors' skewering of this pitiful Wes Craven directed
sequel).
There are many reviews that are a pleasure to read. The three reviewers are unanimous in their praise of
Son of Blob, a film I’ve never seen but based on their reviews I’m going to have to check out. One of the funniest parts of the book happens at the beginning with their first choice of movies to kick off the marathon. It’s some piece of garbage called
Fair Game and it’s hilarious to see their reaction as the film nearly derails the ShockDecember mission.
I also like the details that caught the viewers’ eyes as they watched the film. They point them out using the “Things I learned from this movie” or “Things to watch for” shtick. Many reviewers use this method to point out a film’s highlights and it’s put to good use here. Horror movie dialogue and especially horror movie logic are often the most amusing aspects of even the worst films. This is one of the finer points of the book.
Overall, I can recommend ShockDecember to horror fans, not as a source of trivia or particularly insightful reviews, but rather as a fun read and companion piece to the films reviewed therein. My biggest complaints about the book don't keep it from being a fun addition to a horror movie reference library. Despite its lack of illustrations and/or screenshots, the book is of a very fine quality. I only wish that the authors had expounded upon their experiences during what must have been one hell of a moviethon and pushed the book beyond its 120+ pages.
For more information, check out
iUniverse.
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