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Fantasia 2019: Killer Coven Horror Comedy ‘Satanic Panic’ [REVIEW]
Hosting its International Premiere at Fantasia Fest 2019, Satanic Panic is a sure-fire crowd pleaser. Fresh off of her directorial contribution to Hulu’s Into the Dark — episode 8, titled All That We Destroy — Chelsea Stardust brings a cheeky charm to the retro-infused, killer coven flick, Satanic Panic.
The film follows a pizza delivery girl, Sam (Hayley Griffith), who ventures into the rich part of town on her route in the hopes that she’ll score some big tips. When she’s stiffed by her wealthy customers, she sneaks inside to confront their frugal asses and finds herself at the hands of a coven in Satanic ritual prep mode.
Produced by Fangoria with a script written by Grady Hendrix (My Best Friend’s Exorcism), the film embraces its classically inspired camp with open arms. The story is a collaborative effort between Hendrix and Ted Geoghegan (We Are Still Here).
Hendrix’s whip-crack dialogue slings lines like “booty calling Baphomet“ and “triple faced fuck-monster“, delivered with just the right amount of bite. Much like My Best Friend’s Exorcism, Satanic Panic paints the trials and tribulations of a wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time kind of girl who suddenly finds herself way out of her depth, and does so with a light flick of snappy writing to keep it all from getting too dark too fast.
The cast is peppered with recognizable names like Rebecca Romijn and Jerry O’Connell, who beautifully blend into the genre mold alongside familiar faces like AJ Bowen (You’re Next), Ruby Modine (Happy Death Day), and Arden Myrin (MADtv). The performances aren’t exactly convincing, but they’re appropriately theatrical for the tone of the film, which settles somewhere between modern raunchy comedy and 70s/80s synth-scored horror. Satanic Panic knows what it is, and leans into it.
Griffith plays her role with honesty and innocence while Modine tears into her quippy dialogue — monologues written with such a fierce flow that you’re hanging on every shit-slinging word. Myrin has an absolute blast with her role as the coven’s covetous right-hand man; her melodramatic outbursts work to turn up the energy of the film. Romijn’s performance as the coven leader is graceful and dramatic, but a lot tamer than you’d expect.
Satanic Panic pays homage to the heyday of practical effects with its own series of prosthetics and rigs. It’s really heartwarming to see the commitment to practical effects, and there’s something oddly nostalgic about some of them. They’re modest and – at times – goofy, but that actually works with the whole ambiance of the film.
That said, at times the film takes itself a little too seriously and doesn’t quite have the confidence to go fully bonkers. It wavers in the realm of light horror comedy, but an occasional dark turn will set a more somber tone. As the action progresses and the situation becomes more dire for our heroine, the easy breezy energy of the opening seems farther and farther away; while this is great for emotional development, it does make the pacing a bit inconsistent.
Despite its inconsistencies, Satanic Panic is really a fun film. It works within its own realm while pushing beyond its borders for moments of genuine comedic absurdity. If you’re in the mood for a modern horror comedy that honors the cult classics of the 70s and 80s, consider this a beast to be summoned.
Satanic Panic is playing as part of Fantasia Festival’s 2019 lineup. For more films, check out their website or keep an eye out for our reviews.
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‘Evil Dead’ Film Franchise Getting TWO New Installments
It was a risk for Fede Alvarez to reboot Sam Raimi’s horror classic The Evil Dead in 2013, but that risk paid off and so did its spiritual sequel Evil Dead Rise in 2023. Now Deadline is reporting that the series is getting, not one, but two fresh entries.
We already knew about the Sébastien Vaniček upcoming film that delves into the Deadite universe and should be a proper sequel to the latest film, but we are broadsided that Francis Galluppi and Ghost House Pictures are doing a one-off project set in Raimi’s universe based off of an idea that Galluppi pitched to Raimi himself. That concept is being kept under wraps.
“Francis Galluppi is a storyteller who knows when to keep us waiting in simmering tension and when to hit us with explosive violence,” Raimi told Deadline. “He is a director that shows uncommon control in his feature debut.”
That feature is titled The Last Stop In Yuma County which will release theatrically in the United States on May 4. It follows a traveling salesman, “stranded at a rural Arizona rest stop,” and “is thrust into a dire hostage situation by the arrival of two bank robbers with no qualms about using cruelty-or cold, hard steel-to protect their bloodstained fortune.”
Galluppi is an award-winning sci-fi/horror shorts director whose acclaimed works include High Desert Hell and The Gemini Project. You can view the full edit of High Desert Hell and the teaser for Gemini below:
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‘Invisible Man 2’ Is “Closer Than Its Ever Been” to Happening
Elisabeth Moss in a very well-thought-out statement said in an interview for Happy Sad Confused that even though there have been some logistical issues for doing Invisible Man 2 there is hope on the horizon.
Podcast host Josh Horowitz asked about the follow-up and if Moss and director Leigh Whannell were any closer to cracking a solution to getting it made. “We are closer than we have ever been to cracking it,” said Moss with a huge grin. You can see her reaction at the 35:52 mark in the below video.
Whannell is currently in New Zealand filming another monster movie for Universal, Wolf Man, which might be the spark that ignites Universal’s troubled Dark Universe concept which hasn’t gained any momentum since Tom Cruise’s failed attempt at resurrecting The Mummy.
Also, in the podcast video, Moss says she is not in the Wolf Man film so any speculation that it’s a crossover project is left in the air.
Meanwhile, Universal Studios is in the middle of constructing a year-round haunt house in Las Vegas which will showcase some of their classic cinematic monsters. Depending on attendance, this could be the boost the studio needs to get audiences interested in their creature IPs once more and to get more films made based on them.
The Las Vegas project is set to open in 2025, coinciding with their new proper theme park in Orlando called Epic Universe.
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Jake Gyllenhaal’s Thriller ‘Presumed Innocent’ Series Gets Early Release Date
Jake Gyllenhaal’s limited series Presumed Innocent is dropping on AppleTV+ on June 12 instead of June 14 as originally planned. The star, whose Road House reboot has brought mixed reviews on Amazon Prime, is embracing the small screen for the first time since his appearance on Homicide: Life on the Street in 1994.
Presumed Innocent is being produced by David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot, and Warner Bros. It is an adaptation of Scott Turow’s 1990 film in which Harrison Ford plays a lawyer doing double duty as an investigator looking for the murderer of his colleague.
These types of sexy thrillers were popular in the ’90s and usually contained twist endings. Here’s the trailer for the original:
According to Deadline, Presumed Innocent doesn’t stray far from the source material: “…the Presumed Innocent series will explore obsession, sex, politics and the power and limits of love as the accused fights to hold his family and marriage together.”
Up next for Gyllenhaal is the Guy Ritchie action movie titled In the Grey scheduled for release in January 2025.
Presumed Innocent is an eight-episode limited series set to stream on AppleTV+ starting June 12.
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