The Horror Show
Color Out of Space
by Richard Stanley
Howard Phillips Lovecraft is regarded as the father of modern horror. His writings have been adapted into many works and inspired countless others. I'm not going to sit here and say that his personal life wasn't full of xenophobia, racism, and antisemitism, he's also pretty dead, so at least we can enjoy what his stories have inspired. He was a genius — a racist piece of shit — but a genius none the less. I do not condone any of his rhetoric by any means, but I recognize his impact on the genre I love so much. Now that I've gotten that out of the way, we can talk about Color Out of Space.
The Gardner family is like any normal family living on the outskirts of Arkham. Nathan (Nicolas Cage), Theresa (Joely Richardson), Lavinia (Madeline Authur), Benny (Brendan Meyer), and Jack (Julian Hillard) are relaxing on the farm one night after dinner when a strange rock falls from space with a flash of colored light; a color unlike any other. After the impact, strange things start happening to the family and the “hippie squatter” on their land named Ezra (Tommy Chong). The “color” starts to change everyone's personalities and amplifying the bad in them. Even the farm is changing. Crops look amazing, but taste bad, the water has turned, the animals are mutating. Everything is this strange color. The color they used in the film is magenta and there is an actual scientific reason for this. Magenta is a color that does not exist from a single wavelength of light as part of the color spectrum of visible light. It's just so fitting.
This is peak cosmic horror. Richard Stanley has taken Lovecraft's story and brought it into the modern age so perfectly. It's gripping and terrifying. Just a mundane family faced with a terror unlike anything that they have seen — unlike anything anyone has seen. The writing is superb and the practical make-up and effects are just so mint. This is how you bring Lovecraftian horror to life.
Nicolas Cage is magnificent. This man has been on a roll. He said in an interview that Richard Stanley's favorite movie of his was Vampire's Kiss. He channeled the character he played in it, Peter Loew, to represent how Nathan's abusive father was. It's a work of art. I love Nic Cage so much, especially when it's wacky, over the top Cage. He gives an erratic performance that lives up to that energy. His speech about the alpacas is just the best.
I really didn't think I would enjoy this movie as much as I did. I've never been a fan of H.P. Lovecraft's writing. The stories he told were fascinating, but his writing always felt too clinical. The films based on his works have always been something I've enjoyed, but not as much as the stuff simply inspired by his writings. Color Out of Space is one of my favorite movies, hands down. It's available now on Amazon Prime for rent. Don't miss out on this beautiful movie.
Robin Thompson, HMS
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