Ripvanryan Digressions of a Listless Film School Drop Out
Indie Horror + Fine Dining = Awesome 11:37pm, October 26, 2009
My wife spotted the ad in the paper: ”Independent Scary Film Night, October 23, 7:00pm…this intimate evening will include appetizers, dinner, dessert, discussion, and film.” The venue? Diva’s Cupcakes and Coffee. Um…okay, I guess. Intriguing maybe, but my expectations weren’t particularly high. I imagined a grainy VHS screening of Carnival of Souls followed by a round of day-old butterscotch crunch cupcakes, like something you might experience for free at the local library. But at $30 a ticket, I was desperately hoping for so much more.
"Diva’s Cupcakes and Coffee, Exterior”
Diva’s Cupcakes turned out to be a quaint but spacious hang-out. Once we’d picked up our tickets from the girl working the cupcake register, the wife and I were herded outdoors to a lovingly decorated porch. There were several dining tables set with glass and silverware, with seating for about 60. A half-dozen plasma televisions were meticulously placed around the perimeter. A handful of heat lamps whooshed fire. Lit Jack-o-Lanterns filled every nook and cranny. Quite frankly, it was horror movie nirvana. And I started to get excited.
"The Porch"
After a couple of fistfuls of harvest bruschetta, I noticed one of my tablemates return with a couple of glasses of wine. Where the hell had that come from? Directed to the upper corner of the porch, where a girl clad in funereal black was somberly serving goblets of wine, I happily put in my order (one red, one white) and inquired as to the cost.
“No charge,” she said.
What is this strange and wonderful place?, I wondered to myself, briefly questioning my own earthly existence. The harvest bruschetta was followed by a hearty vegetable soup, and then poached salmon with asparagus and squash. Then apple crème brulee. And (it goes without saying) more wine.
"Harvest Bruschetta"
Before long the entire porch was bloated and happy, swimming in its own juices, and it was totally time to start the flicks. Yeah, there were a couple of negligible horror shorts from our local branch of the 48-Hour Film Project.
(Sorry, quick digression: If you manage to actually crank out a movie in two days as some sort of sadistic local filmmaking exercise, well, good for you. But do you really want to embarrass yourself by making that piece-of-shit rush job your calling card at future film festivals? What, you haven’t made anything better in the past year?)
There was also an amusing piece called A Refreshing Sensation—about a man’s attempts to relieve stress through self-mutilation—that seemed to share DNA with Douglas Buck’s Cutting Moments. The finale was from director Spanky Ward, a possession/mystery story called Whispers in the Dark. Quite frankly, I was blown away. It was an extremely accomplished piece of auteur filmmaking, smooth and scary, and I immediately assumed it was cruising the festival route. But surprisingly, Ward admitted during the Q&A: “You’re the first audience to see this movie.” He claims a budget of under $500. I’m dubious. The movie looked too damned good. Whatever the case, Spanky Ward is one to watch.
So thanks to Diva’s Cupcakes and Coffee for an indie horror night well done. As a horror fan, I couldn’t have asked for anything more. Well played, Diva’s. Well played.
Fancy, Rip, very fancy! Sounds like a really different experience than the traditional "I got something stuck to my my shoe and I hope it's gum" and the bathroom that hasn't been cleaned since Moby Dick was minnow that most places usually give horror fans. Curious, when you drank the wine did you have your pinky sticking out? Anyways, sounded like a fun time!
I'd really love to see Whispers in the Dark. I hope Spanky finds some way to show it at Sundance in the next few years. That's probably the only way anyone will get to see it....unless he wants to post it on Youtube.
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