We’re breaking into the movies, kids! Sort of. While in our genesis, we dabbled in lots of different kinds of reviews to find our footing and, if memory serves, there is at least one posted movie review in our archives somewhere. That said, it takes a special kind of event for us to branch out again into movies and as a “Masshole 4 Life”, it doesn’t get more special than the Salem Horror Fest with whom we’ve teamed up with to bring a few previews/reviews of flicks headed to their 2023 event which lasts over two weekends beginning with a special kick off event on Thursday, April 20th.
But I digress.
For our first foray into Horror Movie reviewin’ we figured we’d go with something we definitely know: Music! Confused? Well read on, dear reader! Are you ready for one of the most clever takes on the “Bachelor/Bachelorette Party Goes Awry” sub-genre that you didn’t know you needed to see yesterday? Well, director Spider One has just the flick for you! And yes, that Spider One as in the one we know as the voice and vision behind Powerman 5000 (See! Music!) who is trading the psychological creepiness of 2022’s Allegoria for the more visceral and in-your-face, dare we say, fun of Bury The Bride.
June (Scout Taylor-Compton) is getting married and her fiancee has graciously offered up an isolated home in the desert for her and her four friends to throw a Bachelorette Party. Problem is, none of June’s friends are really keen on groom-to-be David (Dylan Rourke). Hell, only June’s older sister Sadie (Krsy Fox) has actually met him and she’s definitely not sold on his backwoods ways and lack of social media presence that “conflicts with the natural order of humanity”. But together with party girl Carmen (Lyndsi LaRose), nerdy Liz (Rachel Brunner), and Yoga Mom Betty (Katie Ryan) they’re going to put aside their reservations, make the most of the less-than-ideal accommodations, and celebrate June.
But on Night 2, there’s a knock at the door. Seems David wanted to surprise June’s friends that he’d heard so much about so he and his three buddies (Adam Marcinowski, Cameron Cowperthwaite, and Chaz Bono) make themselves at home, have some drinks, reveal some not-so-subtly racist tendencies and basically lean into the hillbilly-ness of it all before planning to head out to “secure the perimeter” and hunt any dangerous animals that come out at night. Well, Carmen doesn’t want the party to stop and asks to tag-a-long with the hunting party. From there, the shit hits the fan and the Horror tropes really come out to play leading to a fantastic showdown and, what we thought, was a gorgeously shot and scripted final five minutes of Horror cinema.
Without spoiling anything that you couldn’t figure out from the trailer already, David and friends are not what they seem. But the biggest mystery here is that, when prompted to put on something to dance to from Carmen while on the hunt with the “boys”, it’s the Electro Goth sounds of Night Club (Again! Music!) that blast out the speakers of their beat up old pick up truck?!?! Which actually caused us to look at ourselves for assuming these Good Ole Boys would immediately go to Lynyrd Skynyrd or something and for that we apologize. Don’t judge a book and all that stuff, folks!
All in all, Bury The Bride is a unique mash-up of film genres taking the “Wild and Crazy Bachelorette Party” theme into new territory by infusing elements of both psychological Horror as well as classic Monster movie leanings for an end result that has airs of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hills Have Eyes, and even Pet Sematary. Cinematographer Andy Patch’s eye for impending menace accented by a chilling score from Krsy Fox, Paul Wiley, Michelle Carter, and Tyler Connolly alongside a recurring cast of standouts (Several BTB performers previously appeared in Allegoria) all under the watchful eye of Spider One makes for the perfect combination of reasons not to miss Bury The Bride at this year’s Salem Horror Fest.
Bury The Bride‘s East Coast premiere happens at the 2023 Salem Horror Fest on April 22nd before heading to the small screen courtesy of Tubi. For screening info and to register, head here, and for the rest of the SHF program and events, head here.
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