The Horror Show
We Are What We Are
by Jim Mickle
Remakes have been over killed to the point where it’s just sad and unnecessary. It’s one thing to remake an older film in an attempt to gain a younger audience, it’s another to remake a foreign film only a few years old for US audiences. Remaking Let the Right One In was a complete waste of time. There was nothing wrong with the original. The most common argument I hear is “I can’t stand reading while watching a movie.” In all reality it’s just an excuse. When reading subtitles, I often find myself so immersed in the movie I no longer feel like I’m reading. Although, how much a movie’s plot is required for it to still be considered a remake? In 2013 we were gifted with We are What We Are, a remake of the 2010 Mexican film with the same name. Aside from the title and a plot revolving around a family of cannibals, these are two entirely different movies.
Frank Parker and his children Rose, Iris, and Rory have lost their matriarch in an accident and local doctor, Barrow, must determine the cause of death. He initially believes it to be Parkinson’s disease. Little does he know it’s Kuru, a degenerative disease that is most often associated with cannibalism. The doctor’s daughter went missing sometime before the events from the movie and unbeknownst to him, the culprits may be closer than he thinks. Frank’s daughters struggle with balancing their need for normalcy with their long-standing traditions. Frank, meanwhile, is also showing symptoms of Kuru. He’s become severely unstable and dangerous. No one is safe from the grieving husband.
Even though I take a no remake stance, I enjoyed this movie. It took a more interesting approach to cannibals. We’ve all seen the red neck cannibals living in the back woods. We’ve also seen the high society cannibals that eat human flesh for hedonistic reasons. These cannibals aren’t unreasonable monsters out for blood. They are trying to live within normal human society but also aren’t willing to give up on their traditions. What’s more interesting is that it actually delves into the origins of their taboo tradition through flashback. One rough winter, a family during the 18th century resorted to cannibalism to survive. Then, as they say, it’s all history. I genuinely felt like this was a unique addition to a cannibal movie. I guess that was the over all message of the film. No matter how ridiculous your traditions may seem to outsiders, you should do your best to keep them alive.
I can’t really compare the 2013 remake to the 2010 version since I haven’t seen it. I actually had never heard of the Mexican version until I did research for this review. I’ve now read the Wikipedia summary. Based on that, the two films aren’t really similar at all. A tiny few plot elements are there but overall it sounds like a completely different movie. Admittedly, I’m now curious. That’s the one good thing about remakes; it can generate interest in the original source. If I never watched the English version of this movie then I never would have heard of the original. That’s not to say I’m condoning shot for shot remakes of movies. It’s a light touch, you have to take some of main components and just run with them in a new direction.
I guess really my only concern with this movie had to do with Frank’s motives. He kills off a few characters quite needlessly. I’m not entirely sure why either. I’m not talking about people who directly threatened his way of life (as far as he knew anyways). Nor were they potential meals. I guess maybe it was to show how much he’s mentally degenerated. I know I’ve said this before but I hate ambiguous character motives. Real people have real motives and characters with real motives are much more believable. That’s me just trying to find some sort of fault with this movie.
I genuinely liked this movie. Out of all the cannibal movies I’ve seen this is the most believable. The acting was phenomenal. Julia Garner and Ambyr Childers’ performances were the best. It was quite surprising since the actresses are in their twenties and were portraying teenagers. Usually that sucks me right out of a film but I didn’t even know until I looked up their Wikipedia entries. Jack Gore’s performance was annoying more than anything. Child actors tend to be subpar anyways. Sadly, people find children cute and still put them in movies despite my wishes.
I didn’t think I was familiar with any of Jim Mickle’s other works until I did some research. Apparently, he directed both Mulberry Street and Stake Land. I remember hating the former and never saw the latter. I haven’t seen Mulberry Street in quite a few years but I would be willing to give it second shot because of We Are What We Are. I’ve heard of Stake Land but now I think I’ll actually give it watch. Because of the conflicting experiences I’ve had with Jim Mickle, I’m not sure how I feel about him as a director yet. So I’ll say he’s on my wait-and-see list. In other news, a prequel and sequel to We Are What We Are have been announced. Once again I’m not sure how I feel about this. I thought it was a great stand alone film, so a sequel and prequel feel unnecessary. However, I won’t know until I see it. I can say that I liked this movie. It’s a definite recommendation. Seriously. Sign on to Netflix now.
Billy Wayne Martin, HMS
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