I’ve recently been pointed towards two polar presentations as to what exactly Captivity represents. The first a YouTube interview with director Roland Joffé, the second a New York Times article about After Dark Films honcho Courtney Solomon’s plans for an absurdly immature Captivity release party.
Ya know what? Fuck Courtney Solomon. From the theatrical trailer that played in front of 1408 to Joffé’s YouTube testimonial, I’ll stake the claim that Captivity has the potential to be better than anyone will ever be willing to give it credit for, but I doubt those same anyones are going to ever take the flick seriously strictly because of Solomon’s attitude. And I don’t blame them. The man wants to scoff off the ‘torture porn’ label, to defend the artistic merit of Captivity - merit Joffé clearly believes is there - only to go on and throw a party in its honor featuring little more than internet call girls and S&M torture displays all while attempting a bully campaign to get Women Interest Groups to see the film before anyone else does. Christ, you must actually aspire to be that much of a jackass.
I have a profound respect for what After Dark Films attempted last year, but if the man who put Dungeons & Dragons to the big screen wants to throw all of that banked admiration (from Horrorfest, not D&D*) out the window, exactly what incentive does anyone have to see Academy Award Nominee Joffé’s "real life thriller?" Solomon’s pathetic grabs at attention are shooting his own distribution profits in the foot. And then the knee caps. And, assuming his mouth is still yattering opening weekend, eventually the head for a kill shot.
I’m in the minority here, but I actually want to see Captivity; even if ends up being precisely what everyone thinks it will be. I want Joffé to pull something, anything, off and I want Courtney Solomon - who wasn’t even a producer on the damn thing - to shut his maw before then. All the same I’m happy to give the film a theatrical shot, yet I likely won’t even be able to. I’ll be in the UK for work the day it opens in the US and the week or so following, so who the hell knows if reels of it will still be rolling by the time I get back.
*Bit of trivia, I sold this shirt design to Jinx.com for an unworthy $100.
People like Solomon (see also: Eli Roth) are doing more damage to the horror genre than the PTC or MRC or any other nutcase acronym-bearing “watchdog” group ever could.
Joffe has obviously had it and personally I couldn’t possibly be LESS interested in seeing CAPTIVITY. But these hucksters who like to clap themselves on the back and flash their shit-eating grins in the same mirror that less narcissistic people would be holding up to society need to have their knuckles severely rapped and their union cards taken away. Forever.
Sam Raimi, I’m talking to you too (albeit for different reasons).
William Castle left behind some pretty enormous shoes.
And your cloven hooves will NEVER do the job.
These are the kinds of scumbags who look back at the SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT fiasco with a mixture of fondness and disgust for all the wrong reasons. that is, if they even know their genre history that well.
i realize i’m not being concise. i’m probably not even making a point.
ranting, maybe.
can’t help it.
these choads piss me off.
Haha.
I don’t have any expectations for Captivity to be anything but a reflection of the current state of things. I just desperately want the people who make the movies, even if they blow, to be able to do just that without some jackass marketing the genre out of the market.
It blows. Predictable twists, no gore and only one moderately unpleasant scene on top of a bad script. Still better than Hostel mind, not that that makes it any good though.
Well, that settles that. :-\