The Call of Cthulhu (2005)

Filed Under BBT, New England, Soylent Screen, Jef Taylor, Cthulhu Mythos, horror, Silent movies

Movie reviews with BBT critic Jef Taylor

Filmmakers have had a hard time adapting the supernatural horror of H.P. Lovecraft to the screen.  On the page the stories are wordy, evoking dread through accumulated verbiage, with Cyclopean vistas and eldritch tomes and all manner of unspeakable dread.  Trying to convey these feelings in a visual medium falls short, and having characters speak these words is an exercise in pretentious silliness.  But suppose a director decided to use the silent, black and white model, which forces the audience to use more of its imagination, and moreover, requires the couch potatoes to actually read the dialogue and narration.  Now that might be a version of "The Call of Cthulhu" worth watching.

The filmmakers in this case are an outfit calling themselves "The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society."  Their website advertises an upcoming radio play of "The Dunwich Horror" as well as Cthulhu-related ringtones for your phone, as well as a replica of the Cthulhu idol seen in the film.  Like many people into Lovecraft, these people are clearly batty, and show a combination of geekery and respect for the source material, that I consider good signs for film adaptations. 

The picture (that’s what they called movies before they were talkies) very closely follows the short story.  In a template now familiar to fans, we begin in a nuthouse, where a babbling former genius gets the whole tortured tale off his chest.  This results in the highest number of nested flashbacks and dream sequences I’ve ever seen in a movie.  Using crew members’ small backyards, actual locations in Providence, and even a porn warehouse, they recreate the globetrotting professor’s search into the mysterious Cthulhu cult.   The use of models is extensive, ranging from expensive period ships acquired on ebay, to creations of cardboard and caulk.  One crewmember admits that a particular set looked absurd, like something from the Muppets, until it was shot sans color. 


Suspension of disbelief is a prerequisite for the audience, but once each viewer settles into the pancake make-up and authentic-looking dialogue cards, they can consider themselves transported.  For my part, I did not notice that the cardboard island (which looks a lot like Peter Jackson’s vision of Skull Island) was surrounded by waters made of rippling sheets dusted with glitter.  However, at the climactic scene, the moment where terror should have chilled me to the bone, I snapped out of it.  Recently I praised directors who choose puppets over CGI.  Perhaps this was just the wrong puppet.  It had a thin neck, no mass, and absolutely no illusion of great scale.  Harryhausen’s Kong would have knocked it aside in disgust.

Is it a minor quibble to dislike the scene upon which the entire film rests?  The rest of it is so darn good!  I can only hope that the HPLHS reshoots the scene, with a more awe-inspiring puppet.   Or even better, that they have more effective puppets in their upcoming adaption of "The Whisperer in Darkness."

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Comments

One Response to “The Call of Cthulhu (2005)”

  1. Natalie L. Sin on March 5th, 2008 1:12 pm

    A Lovecraft musical is the next logical step.