Post by trashcanman on Jan 7, 2013 13:19:53 GMT 2
Seems like I've been pretty negative with my sharings this past week or so, so sorry about that. I'll think of something awesome and fun to post soon. Before I link to the article I'm going to share one of the greatest and best-kept secrets in horror: Canadian national treasure Maurice Devreax. He made two awesome films, Slashers and End of the Line, that I've been a fan of for years and every low-budget horror fanatic must own. After my Christmas windfall, I finally got around to buying his earlier film, The Lady of the Lake, and was again awestruck by the man's unbelievable talent.
Earlier this year I attempted to contact him to inquire about some things (such as where the hell he's been in the 5 years since his last film) and failed. The guy has practically fallen off the face of the earth. Even his Facebook has almost no activity (and my refusal to sign up for that internet cancer keeps me from pursuing that method of contact). So after watching Lady of the Lake tonight and exhausting the usual sites for information like IMDB, I narrowed down a Google search to only the last year to see what the fuck happened to Mr. Devreaux and found a single interview. As I suspected, it looks like he has been fucked over so badly by the industry that he seems to have lost the will to continue one of the most promising careers in genre filmmaking, and that makes me sad. This guy could have been the next Romero, but the industry has become so hostile and exploitative towards independent filmmakers in the current climate that it is next to impossible to succeed without being a Hollywood insider. Read on for a dose of real talk from a man who could have been the best filmmaker to come along in decades.
theskyhasfallenmovie.blogspot.com/2012/12/interview-with-maurice-devereaux.html
The man has had three of his four films released on DVD and here are the trailers if you're interested in sharing some of my rage.
In an interview on the DVD, Devreaux claimed that the entire budget of LOTL was equivalent to ONE SECOND of Michael Bay's Armageddon. Think about that for a second. It's a creative, compelling, and beautifully shot film.
That's right, a reality game show where the cast gets brutally slaughtered by professional slashers if they aren't interesting enough. It's like The Running Man meets Dead Set. Awesome.
Every film Devreaux has made has been a massive step up both in overall quality of production and in social commentary. This one was one of the best films of that year, barring none.
So it looks like one of the most promising directors in horror has called it quits (for now) due to the greed and monopolistic cronyism that pervades modern filmmaking. The man spent his own money to make four films, three of which I can vouch for as outstanding contributions to the genre and at least two of which are widely appreciated and supported by horror fans. Even being capable of creating great films on a 5 figure budget there is nobody willing to give this man a break. Another one like End of the Line and this guy could easily have been the next big thing, raking in Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity-level returns for the tiniest possible investment, but still every door is shut in his face. I just don't get it.
Earlier this year I attempted to contact him to inquire about some things (such as where the hell he's been in the 5 years since his last film) and failed. The guy has practically fallen off the face of the earth. Even his Facebook has almost no activity (and my refusal to sign up for that internet cancer keeps me from pursuing that method of contact). So after watching Lady of the Lake tonight and exhausting the usual sites for information like IMDB, I narrowed down a Google search to only the last year to see what the fuck happened to Mr. Devreaux and found a single interview. As I suspected, it looks like he has been fucked over so badly by the industry that he seems to have lost the will to continue one of the most promising careers in genre filmmaking, and that makes me sad. This guy could have been the next Romero, but the industry has become so hostile and exploitative towards independent filmmakers in the current climate that it is next to impossible to succeed without being a Hollywood insider. Read on for a dose of real talk from a man who could have been the best filmmaker to come along in decades.
theskyhasfallenmovie.blogspot.com/2012/12/interview-with-maurice-devereaux.html
The man has had three of his four films released on DVD and here are the trailers if you're interested in sharing some of my rage.
In an interview on the DVD, Devreaux claimed that the entire budget of LOTL was equivalent to ONE SECOND of Michael Bay's Armageddon. Think about that for a second. It's a creative, compelling, and beautifully shot film.
That's right, a reality game show where the cast gets brutally slaughtered by professional slashers if they aren't interesting enough. It's like The Running Man meets Dead Set. Awesome.
Every film Devreaux has made has been a massive step up both in overall quality of production and in social commentary. This one was one of the best films of that year, barring none.
So it looks like one of the most promising directors in horror has called it quits (for now) due to the greed and monopolistic cronyism that pervades modern filmmaking. The man spent his own money to make four films, three of which I can vouch for as outstanding contributions to the genre and at least two of which are widely appreciated and supported by horror fans. Even being capable of creating great films on a 5 figure budget there is nobody willing to give this man a break. Another one like End of the Line and this guy could easily have been the next big thing, raking in Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity-level returns for the tiniest possible investment, but still every door is shut in his face. I just don't get it.
