Dollface is a modern-day slasher with all of what we love about the oldies, carving its own bloody niche for the genre's new generation.
Our homage to 80s horror begins again at the beginning, showing us what the original did not–Mary Stewart, at the lake house of legend, finding her son returning from outside, alone, his absence unbeknownst to her earlier. As the story goes, Dorchester's mother dies of a heart attack in front of him. He is forced to spend the summer alone, eventually eating his mother to survive. Yes, I did say that! "Eating his mother." A rich backstory, strengthened by a review for newbies, makes the movie easy to follow, even without having seen the original. For those of you who avoid the sequel to a prequel you haven't seen, worry no more.
A welcome addition is horror icon and A-list scream queen Debbie Rochon. She owns her role as Betsy, the real-estate company's caretaker of lake property that won't sell. Wearing an oversized T-shirt with the words "Saigon, Vietnam," and an American flag bandanna around her head, Rochon rivals the best of sailors. Hamming up her role to perfection, with a backwoods accent and off-the-charts innuendo, no man is safe from Betsy. "I got somethin' else that you can vandalize, and it ain't property," she says
and she means it! The rest of that quote maxes out the raunch meter at SJR, but in the movie it's a hoot (as are numerous others)! Rochon's unexpected language, more than once, is an ironic addition to the movie that actually elevates it; she's a shot of adrenalin delivered at just the right moment, when things could lose steam. Rochon makes Betsy believable, authentic, and real–a character with depth and dimension
and a heart for those who deserve it. No actor could have played the part of Betsy better! SJR is sure of that! A knockout performance from Rochon, gives Dollface just the punch it needs, with all contenders down for the count!
Jason Vail is Paul Donner, one of two survivors from Crinoline Head's attack in the first movie. I have seen Vail previously in Elias Gangster's Gut and Tommy Faircloth's horror short The Cabin. Vail's even, natural force delivers, as always, convincing viewers that all is real, regardless of how ordinary, bizarre, or surreal things may be. His performance in Dollface is no exception. Vail's character teases us, hiding a sinister secret we see in the expressions on his face and his suspect body language. Sly glances suggest something amiss, and in a movie like this, anything is possible. What's better, and more impressive, is that Vail leaves a larger footprint on the film than his limited screen time should allow. Exceeding the limits is what great actors do, and Vail does it again! Could Paul be Dorchester himself—perhaps an obsessed victim turned copycat killer?
The first difficult task a movie in a cliché-ridden genre has is to overcome exactly that—the clichés. Anytime a movie achieves that, in any way, its success is exponential. Dollface is a movie that not only achieves success, but also uses the genres clichés to get there. Instead of being predictable, it isn't. Almost anyone could be the killer, and anyone could be a victim.
What's different? How's the fresh blood spilled here? First of all, Dollface is a horror comedy that is truly funny. (Yes, belly laughs abound here!) In every scene where humor is intended, it works. Witty one liners, (particularly from Elizabeth Mears, as Janet) are spot on, with just the right sarcasm to hit the punch line every time. Is there still more? Lots! A doll-loving psycho who wears a dress on his head and, yes, eats his own mother is more than a "tongue in cheek" mouthful. The undercurrent of humor as a contrast to Dorchester's deadliness is ironic and most effective!
Second (and not in true order of effect), are the inventive ways that death is dealt to the victims. With every psycho murder already committed in movies before, this one manages to kill again with originality. Yes! An 80s-style slasher gives us something different in 2014, following the formula! The popping and squatting Janet, along with human piñata strangulation by intestines, are just a couple of things that "pop" in Dollface.
Speaking of murders, the gore is mostly subdued or totally off screen, but all the more effective in being so. More than once, kill scenes fade to black with a scream and the sound of a weapon piercing flesh or hacking limbs. A well placed squish or a juicy slosh paints the picture as well as images on screen. As mentioned earlier, director Tommy Faircloth is a master of subtlety. The success of an off-screen murder by ax in Faircloth's short film The Cabin is repeated in Dollface with equal success
and flying feathers! Few directors can make such ellipted effects feel complete, but Faircloth does again.
Pearls of cinematography jumping out are subtle but powerful, and far from ordinary. I couldn't help notice and love the real fly buzzing across the screen more than once. (Yes, that really happens, but it's rarely seen in movies.) A blurred faucet in the foreground, with an amped up drip, further catches viewer attention with great effect. I like the smaller things that often go unnoticed, as a director's calling card discreetly placed. Even if the fly is coincidence, taking advantage of the moment is the charm.
Dollface is a horror comedy drawing fresh blood from the genre; it's a needed IV for a horror niche anemic and cluttered with cliché. As an homage to the 80s, it delivers the goods and the gore, no less off screen in the mind. Splashed with style and humor, a taste of nostalgia tops it off. Faircloth hacks and slashes his way to the screen with a body count. Michael Myers, Freddy, and Jason lookout! Crinoline Head is here
again!
