Happy Sunday, everyone! I am sure some of you are recovering from a wicked night out, and there’s nothing better for a hangover than vegging out on the couch, eating some junk food, and watching a good movie.
And what better than a movie about a man going out for a Hallowe’en party and meeting some unexpected results to help you relive your own late-night memories? Wait – no one else got invited to a murder party? That’s a shame, a damn shame. Guess you’ll just have to watch the 2007 horror-comedy film Murder Party to see what you missed. This film was written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier and stars Chris Sharp, Sandy Barnett, Macon Blair, Paul Goldblatt, William Lacey and Stacy Rock.
The film centers around a lonely man who happens to find an anonymous invitation on the sidewalk for a Hallowe’en party not ominously-at-all labelled a Murder Party. Thinking nothing could be amiss and wanting company other than his taciturn cat, our guy makes a pretty wicked knight costume out of cardboard. He bakes some delicious bread to bring to the party and heads on his way. One thing to be said about our villains – crazed art students obsessed with unleashing their talents to the most messed up levels – they didn’t falsely advertise. Poor protagonist walked right into his own doom. These maniacal art students tie him up and start brain-storming the best way to artfully kill the guy. Things don’t go according to plan and things get ridiculous fast!
Highlights
- Very appealing, adorably well-meaning main character
- Hilarious gags and gore
- Excellent acting and character arc on behalf of the cat
- A completely unpredictable ride from start to finish
Score 8/10
Watch It On: Netflix
One of the strongest points to the film are its unique and interesting characters. The protagonist is weirdly pathetic but loveable and the miscreant band of artists are all super weird – but in a good way. The gore in this film was done well and not over used. I also felt that the concept of artists wanting to murder someone to make art rather interesting and the movie’s focus on the “snobby artist” tropes and the hilarity of when people mistake something as high-brow art when it’s not, really funny. Overall, I truly enjoyed this film. You should definitely watch this if you need a light-hearted horror film that isn’t afraid to make fun of artists and the art industry.
Three more sleeps til Hallowe’en, folks!
Also, if you’re interested in seeing more about my life (like my Hallowe’en decorations) you should follow me on Twitter (@AuthorPLM!)
Til next time!
x P.L. McMillan
I thought the movie was interesting. I liked the mockery of the art culture and had a certain delight in seeing it. I see the way these “artists” have very little regard for Christopher. He’s a regular guy and I would imagine they either disrespect or hate that. I see that as a metaphor for how “artistic types” tend to look at everyone that aren’t like them.
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Agreed! I also saw it as a commentary on how some artists believe that nothing is more important than their ideas and projects — not even the life of another human being. Much like how people will disregard their own safety to take videos of accidents or danger, so too did artists think that their art was more valuable than life itself.
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Absolutely. Do you remember that horror anthology series during the 90’s with an episode featuring David Bowie as that extreme artist that uses human corpses. It’s this crazy psychological short movie… but anyways, this movie made me think of it and I want to try to find it.
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I don’t think I know that one — if you find the title, will you let me know? That sounds really fun!
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Ok so I found it. It was a tv special back in 1997 – 2000 call The Hunger. The episode is called Sanctuary and it features Giovanni Ribisi and David Bowie.
It’s about a criminal with a shoulder wound entering a special prison in search of an imprisoned artist that uses human bodies for exhibits.
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Nice! Thank you — I will definitely check it out!
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