On a chilly Fall day in Chicago, over a thousand horror enthusiasts made their annual trek to the
Music Box Theatre for 24-hours of blood-soaked entertainment on the big screen October 25-26. For the fourth year in a row, the Music Box is playing host to the "
MASSACRE" - a lineup of new and classic films with special guests, memorabilia vendors, charity auctions, and a general celebration of the genre we hold so dear.
I've attended all but the first event, staged by Chicago's
Movieside Film Festival and curated by my good friend Rusty Nails. Movieside itself is an interesting beast that has grown from a handful of small events held at unconventional venues such as the legendary Fireside Bowl, to massive screenings at golden-era movie palaces like the Music Box, Congress, and Portage Theatres. The 'Massacre itself has spawned spin-offs as well, with a winter installment last February co-sponsored by
FANGORIA and held to coincide with the Chicago stop on the
WEEKEND OF HORRORS tour - and a summer edition dubbed TERROR IN THE AISLES, held in August at the Portage.
The Fall event is always the highlight of the year, and this year is the prime example. While past 'Massacre's have sold-out, none have done so as quickly as the 2008 show. By mid-afternoon, the Music Box had already reached it's maximum capacity. Further tickets were made available, but only after midnight as seats began to open. While it would be easy to assume that the event was filled with Chicago-area viewers, that assumption would be wrong. Die-hards from New York (in-attendance four years in a row) made the drive complete with custom t-shirts announcing that they'd "survived" the 'Massacre since 2005. I spoke with people from Milwaukee, Kansas City, Los Angeles, and Canada as well. It was evident that what was once a localized affair had quietly become something of a North American destination.
While the movies and guests might be the star attraction at a Movieside event, the true sense of "community" is certainly taking hold. An added bonus has been building friendships with others, and seeing many of them make the leap from viewers to creators themselves. I chatted with Richard Diaz, (known to many as "Gory" from the
FANGORIA forums) who's been working on
DISTORTION, his debut feature as a writer/director (see news item
here). Just a few months back, he filled me in at TERROR IN THE AISLES on his personal struggle to get the film rolling. Two months later, and the project is on the way.
Then there's Aaron "Dr. AC" Christensen, a fixture at Chicago horror events that has grown from editor of the acclaimed book HORROR 101 to founding member and host of
Wildclaw Theatre, who's debut performance DEATHSCRIBE (see news item
here) recently premiered. And the list goes on.
So which films were shown this year? Here's the line-up:
Noon - THE HAUNTED HOUSE 12:30 p.m. -DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE 1:45 p.m. - THE OLD DARK HOUSE 3:15 p.m. - EYES WITHOUT A FACE
5 p.m. - MAY 7:30 p.m. - MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN (with Clive Barker in person) Preceded by RUE MORGUE founder Rodrigo Gudino's short film THE FACTS IN THE CASE OF MR. HOLLOW 10:15 p.m. - FRIDAY THE 13TH: THE FINAL CHAPTER (with director Joseph Zito) 12:30 p.m. - DEAD ALIVE 2:15 a.m. - THE PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE 4 a.m. - BLACK SABBATH 6 a.m. - PIECES 7:45 a.m. - JACK BROOKS: MONSTER SLAYER 9:30 a.m. - THE EXORCIST
The highlight of the event for many was undoubtedly the appearance of Clive Barker, who was in-town not only for the 'Massacre but also a showing of his original artwork at Chicago's Packer Shopf Gallery (See Photos Below). In addition to introducing the screening of MIDNIGHT MEAT TRAIN, Barker held a rousing Q & A prior to spending a good couple of hours chatting with attendees and signing. Each year, a charity auction is held - this year benefiting Vital Bridges, a Chicago organization that provides support for low-income families living with HIV/AIDS. Mr. Barker generously contributed a brand-new piece of artwork to the auction - an original drawing of the iconic "Pinhead" from HELLRAISER, created in his hotel room earlier in the day. After a brief bidding war ensued, the drawing was purchased by a lucky attendee, then signed by Barker himself.
While this year's 'Massacre was undoubtedly a memorable event, the looming question that was buzzed-about all day was "Is this the year that the 'Massacre has outgrown the Music Box?" Time will tell, and we might have to wait until October 2009 to find out...
More Photos from MUSIC BOX MASSACRE 2008:
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