FADE TO BLACK (Vernon Zimmerman, 1980)

Dir. Vernon Zimmerman, 1980

USA, 102 min.

Special thanks to Vernon Zimmerman

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4 – 7:30 PM

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14 – 10 PM

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23 -10 PM

Eric Binford is a lonely, chain-smoking film addict eking out a meager living by delivering film canisters around LA for a small distributor. One day, he crosses paths with a Marilyn Monroe-lookalike whom he somehow gets to agree to a date. When it appears that she stands him up, his cinema-obsessed brain snaps. Transforming himself into a rotating cast of classic horror characters, Binford sets out on a killing spree to destroy his oppressors! Will a coked-out, harmonica-blasting cop be able to stop him in time?

A labor of love for writer/director Vernon Zimmerman (whose credits span everything from the Terrance Malick-scripted trucker pic DEADHEAD MILES to road flick BOBBIE JO AND THE OUTLAW to roller derby gem UNHOLY ROLLERS to camp classic TEEN WITCH), this oddball early 80s effort isn’t gory enough to be a straight slasher and too weird to be a straight drama, as Dennis Christopher (BREAKING AWAY) infuses BInford with a healthy amount of depth and empathy. It feels like TAXI DRIVER crossed with an abandoned John Waters script, all the while predating the self-referential, postmodern SCREAM horror sensibilities by over 15 years.

If anything, the film-obsessed lead has a few lines that, admittedly, hit pretty close to home for some Spectacle members! And be on the lookout for a young Mickey Rourke as a bully!