Back in March, Joe & I went to a screening of Kevin Smith's newest film, Red State at Radio City Music Hall. The last time I was in Radio City it was to see the Rockettes so this was a very different experience, to say the least.
The NYC screening was the official start of the Red State USA Tour, so I was largely unspoiled about the whole thing. I avoided the Sundance spoilers and, despite being a hardcore Kevin Smith fangirl back in the day (here is the photographic evidence to prove it), I am currently a much more subdued fan. As in, I still see his movies in the theaters, but I've hung up my Dogma teeshirt for good. (Although I still want a Monroeville Zombies bumper sticker for my car.)
So when I heard that Kevin finally made his horror movie he'd been kicking around for years, and it was pretty good, AND he was touring the country with it months before it would be officially released, I could feel the fangirl in me rumble, stir and scream, "LET'S GO LET'S GO MUST SEE NOW NOW NOW."
As we plopped down in those historic red seats, the film we viewed was ... definitely entertaining! Despite being a completely new genre for Smith, I'd say it was successful blending of his established comedic technique and style into a horror film. And, as a director with mostly comedies under his belt, I really enjoy whenever he takes on action sequences (the graveyard scene in Cop Out comes to mind). The camera work was one of my faaaaavorite aspects of the movie and definitely helped build tension.
What felt the most "Kevin Smith-ian" about the film? To me the three young male characters introduced in the beginning felt like three mini Jays in terms of the vulgarity they spewed. The jokes sprinkled throughout the film (all successful, mind you) definitely felt separated from the events surrounding them, but helped give the audience little breaks within the tension and stress enfolding. And Stephen Root's character was definitely bumbling. A little too bumbling? Maybe. But I love watching Stephen Root bumble.
I personally felt there were two scenes where the main character talking was talking a bit too much, especially in one scene including John Goodman on the phone outside of the compound. BUT. OVERALL. I really enjoyed watching this film. I was raised Catholic, and horror movies based on religion are always of great interest to me, despite the fact that I do not consider myself religious (more like agnostic?). It was well acted, shot well, and had a GREAT ending. Seriously. The last 30 seconds of the film were the perfect combination of fear, repulsion and hilarity - which is a good way to describe the film itself.
After the film there was a Q&A not only with Smith, but the cast and crew of the film ... including John Goodman! EEEE. Having grown up on Roseanne reruns all my life it was surreal to even be in the same ROOM as Dan Connor. And yup, one of the first things he said to the crowd was, "Shut the fuck up, Donnie." Notably absent from the Q&A were Michael Parks & Kyle Gallner, who I am newly obsessed with thanks to Veronica Mars. They were indeed missed (Kyle ILU *dreamy sigh*), but a lot of the "questions" from the crowd were repetitive butt-kissing statements towards Smith which, while amusing, grew old as the hour went on. (In fact, a lot of those people were boo'd after awhile. I firmly believe that "omg YOU ARE MY FAVORITE ILU" comments should be expressed at an autograph signing when you are mere inches away from your object of obsession, not in front of a crowd of hundreds who also love the person/people you love because DUH WE ALL PAID CLOSE TO 70 BUCKS TO SEE THIS MOVIE EARLY NOW ASK A REAL QUESTION ALREADY.) However, decent questions were asked to Melissa Leo (who had JUST won her Oscar), Stephen Root, and Goodman. When you think about it, it was a pretty random collection of actors on stage, and I never imagined I would ever be in the presence of any of them.
Overall the Red State USA Tour was a good time. The crowd was fun to watch the movie with, and getting to hear the actors reflect on filming was the cherry on top to the whole experience. The fangirl in me was quite pleased. Whether you're a horror fan, Smith fanboy, or someone who's just curious, when Red State is released in October, you should definitely check it out.
