SOCIETY (1989)
As a Brian Yuzna fan, I feel like a bit of an idiot. I always thought that Bride Of Re-Animator was his directorial debut. But when a friend told me about Society, I looked it up and discovered that this bad boy was in fact his debut. The film looked quite sick and strange, and I was hesitant to watch it. Strange coming from me because I can sit through anything, I guess I had built up this thought in my head about it. As I watched it, I felt silly for my thought process. Yes the film is gross, but it isn’t that bad and in fact it was down right hilarious.
The film serves as a social satire on the rich and the poor, with the rich being the villains of the story. High society isn’t what it seems in this film, with our main character Bill (Billy Warklock, a Baywatch original) coming from a rich family but he doesn’t fit in. Suspecting perhaps he was adopted and something sinister is at play he tries to investigate but it stopped at every turn, looking like he is suffering from deep paranoia. But one day as he arrives home, he is in for the biggest shock, and finds out what this high society really is.
The rich feed on the poor, quite literally in this film, with the meaning behind it being metaphorical. It is an interesting dip into that idea, with those rich people coming off very poorly. The message presented here feels more important today as it did back then, considering the state of things. The whole secret society aspect worked too, and this whole final act is something you just need to see and experience.
The paranoia and mystery element worked well, but it was stretched out for far too long, and at times it kind of dragged. Knowing that there was a bug pay off waiting got the anticipation levels high, and it all pays off. The performances were all rather solid, some performances more over the top than others. The film has a lot of comedy to it, and when it gets down right insane visually the actors really reflect that in their performances.
There is a lot to be said about the film, it works on many levels. The visual effects were fantastic, and a story like this with the visual could have easily been something from David Croneberg. Yuzna showed a lot of talent here, and this is easily one of the best things he has directed.
You can read my in-depth review over at MoreHorror.
Rating:
The Super Network 