I'm kind of weird.

I'm a pacifist. I'm a pastor. I actually spend a good amount of my time working on violence prevention activities in the community.

Oh, and yeah, I Heart Monster Movies.

There's something about horror movies that speak to a part of me that needs spoken to on some level. The love of horror movies is different for everyone, but for me it started out as a way to channel bad memories and flashbacks and things I couldn't really speak about but desperately need to process.

Horror movies gave me an outlet.

I've gotten healthier, but my love for horror movies has remained.

Directed by Tyler Benjamin, I Heart Monster Movies is a low-budget indie doc that should most definitely appeal to anyone with a deep passion for the world of the movie monster, both those within and outside of ourselves. This 75-minute film includes interviews with some of the industry's true heavyweights including Tom Savini (From Dusk til Dawn), Sid Haig (The Devil's Rejects), Bill Moseley (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2), Doug Bradley (Pinhead in Hellraiser), Dee Wallace (E.T.), Linnea Quigley (Return of the Living Dead), Ivan DePrume (White Zombie) and David J (Bauhaus) among others. The film is an honest and entertaining behind-the-scenes view into exactly what draws horror fans to their films and what keeps them going back and back and back.

The film also takes a glimpse into the world of horror, a world that has spawned lifestyles and conventions and occupations and much more. It's a production of Portland, Oregon based production company Trionic Entertainment, the same company that gave us the tremendous doc Create a Creature, which I highly recommend for anyone considering dipping into the making of horror films.

I Heart Monster Movies works most successfully as an enthusiastic and even heartfelt journey into the actual lifestyles of horror scene enthusiasts, a passion that actually goes far beyond the movies. Benjamin's film is significantly filmed in Portland, not surprising considering it is a low-budget effort and his production company is based in the area, but the film is more successful and likely to reach a wider audience when he focuses on those celebrities who are so familiar to any horror enthusiast. The scenes in area venues, like the Lovecraft Bar, are interesting but I'd imagine most who want to check out this film will do so because of their love for those who are featured in it.

Minor quibbles aside, I Heart Monster Movies is a fun documentary with the spirit of the indie and horror scene radiating all throughout it. The film is being distributed through the Cheezy Flicks website, incredibly appropriate, and you can currently pick it up for the incredibly modest price of $14.99.

Do so now.


© Written by Richard Propes
The Independent Critic