When Walter Tennis passes away, he leaves a single screen theatre named the Victoria to both his daughter Deborah (Natasha Lyonne) and estranged evil mother Tammy (Julie Caitlin Brown). Deborah and the elderly projectionist Mr. Twigs (Jack Donner) want to carry on their father's tradition of showing horror films, while mother Tammy wants to sell the property for a quick profit.
When both family members collide in conversation to discuss the future of the Victoria in the theatre lobby, Tammy loses control and kills her mother with the very pen the mother offered to sign over ownership.
What Tammy doesn't know is that the security cameras caught the murder on tape and thanks to her inexperience in operating the projection equipment, she inadvertently projects the homicide on the screen much to the delight of the paying audience that believes they are viewing a horror short film.
Most admiring of her work is horror film fan Steven (Thomas Dekker), a regular at the Victoria and dotting fan of elder Deborah. Steven will continue to visit the Victoria as Deborah builds on her fame established with grisly shorts. And as fans begin to line up and sell out the theatre, Deborah begins her murdering rampage while creating such great film titles as A Tale of Two Severed Titties, Gore and Peace and Slasher in the Rye.
All About Evil is the directorial debut of Joshua Grannell who works the camera and moves his actors and story along like a seasoned veteran. From the opening credits (which we just loved!) through the bloody meta ending.
Contributing in supporting roles are Cassandra Peterson (don't make me tell you) as Steven's mom and Noah Segan who seems to be in just about every other obscure film I have watched in the past month. Noah's character Adrian will work as part of Deborah's filming rampage crew alongside homicidal and pale twins Veda and Vera (Jade and Nikita Ramsey).
With films like The Maiming of the Shrew and The Scarlet Leper titillating packed houses, we as a viewing audience get treated to the making of films inside the film with all the fun and camp exploited without excuses.
The film may go down occasional paths of expectedness – in particular when it comes to the investigating detective who is looking for missing schoolgirl Claire last seen at the Victoria, but there is little stereotypical in All About Evil.
It is at times horror, at times spoof, at times meta and it is very much a throwback to some of the campy horror films that paved the way to today's standards. As the body count increased, I could only imagine a packed house of theatre patrons engulfed in the horror premise – cheering and laughing with each new development.
All About Evil is headed to Canada in August 2010 as part of the Toronto After Dark Film Festival. I will be attending the Festival and I look forward to revisiting the experience with a couple of hundred strangers. For not only is All About Evil a fun and ultimately rewarding film, but it is also a definite must to enjoy in the company of others.
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