Scott Glosserman: Director
Review: Behind the Mask
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon
Director: Scott Glosserman
Release: 2007
In his first feature film, director Scott Glosserman sets the bar high for himself, and succeeds admirably with what could easily have become a one-trick pony.
The films tag line provides the perfect set-up: Jason, Freddy, Michael: We All Need Someone to Look Up To. For this is the story of one Leslie Vernon (Nathan Baesel), supernatural psycho-killer in training, cleverly told from the point-of-view of a film crew making a documentary about Vernons preparations for his debut.
The best of the films humorous moments arrive fairly early in the proceedings, as filmmaker Taylor Gentry (Angela Goethals) and her crew show Leslie going through his workout regimen, and having dinner with his friend and mentor, Eugene (Scott Wilson), a retired serial killer himself who refers to Jason Voorhees as Jay. Yet, even as the chuckles still echo, there is a growing sense that things are going to go from black humor to just plain black before long.
Despite the faux-documentary delivery method Glosserman employs, to call this a mockumentary (as some critics have already done) is to damn it with faint praise. This is Spinal Tap was a mockumentary, and worked as pointed comedy. Behind the Mask works as a comedy, as well, albeit one of the darker comedies one is likely to encounter, and one that becomes progressively less comedic and more unsettling as it proceeds.
While it has garnered some comparisons to the Scream series of films, this, too, is to undervalue Behind the Mask.
Scream skewered the tropes of the slasher film to great comedic effect while still demonstrating a degree of respect and affection for the subgenre. Glossermans film, while equally indebted to the source material, manages to negotiate a spider-web of levels of meaning with nary a misstep, and with more subtlety and intelligence than the Scream franchise could ever dream of.
Perhaps the most important subtext, and the one most overlooked by those who have so far written about the film, is the light that the film shines upon the viewer himself. One imagines that it will be a rare audience member who will not squirm when forced to contemplate the voyeuristic nature of this film, horror films in general, and even popular culture as a whole.
Even the films title calls to mind the VH1 Behind the Music series, and the rest of the celebrity dirt-dishing programming on which the industry thrives. This is most markedly noted when Leslie goes in for his first kill. As the camera crew hears the out-of-frame sounds of slaughter, one of the crew members shouts, Holy shit! This is really happening! From that point on, the film essentially eschews satire in favor of unease.
Another provocative moment comes shortly before this scene, when Leslie and Taylor are talking during the final moments leading up to show time. Baesel imbues Vernon with so much humanity in this scene that the viewer may well be moved by his joy and anticipation of finally fulfilling his lifes dream.
I am so happy, he intones, teary eyed, and Taylor is so effected that she is at a loss for words, and can only touch Vernons shoulder in empathy. The media has lost its objectivity, and the line between hero and villain blurs into invisibility, albeit briefly.
This is certainly an actor-driven film, more so than many genre efforts, and while the entire cast is fine, special mention must be made of Baesel, who seems at times to channel Anthony Perkins Norman Bates with a better sense of humor, and with Perkins skill at evoking pathos. Goethals also makes Taylor into a multi-faceted character, and her chemistry with Baesel adds potent fuel to the films emotional fire. Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street) is also featured here, in what is little more than a walk-on role, but to it he brings a restraint that is refreshing.
To borrow a phrase from gymnastics, Glosserman doesnt quite stick the landing here, although to reveal the rationale behind that statement would require divulging too much information for those who have yet to see the film. While it does not disappoint, the final portion of the film makes enough of a stylistic/thematic leap to run the risk of jarring the viewer from her/his state of immersion in the film.
If one is to assume that this film was made on a modest budget (very likely for a first-time director), it makes the final achievement that much more impressive. Glosserman proves that inventive camerawork, a smart and original storyline, and some fine performances by relative unknowns can carry a film, genre or otherwise, far beyond presumed limitations.
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon is slated for a March 2007 theatrical release, and may well be the coming-out party that Glosserman deserves.
Tim Emswiler
Special to Cinescare
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon, 2007
This is certainly an actor-driven film, more so than many genre efforts, and while the entire cast is fine, special mention must be made of Baesel, who seems at times to channel Anthony Perkins Norman Bates with a better sense of humor, and with Perkins skill at evoking pathos.
