Editorials
Do “So Bad It’s Good” Horror Movies Have Their Place?
From Sharknado to Lavalantula, some might claim that we’re living in a golden age of direct-to-video B-movie franchises. With cheesy digital effects and (usually) inconsequential plots, these films have become the proverbial bread and butter of channels like SyFy and production companies like The Asylum.
As these movies grow in popularity, so does a certain backlash against the “So Bad It’s Good” sub-genre. This is understandable, as it does feel rather questionable to try and profit off of purposefully awful features when there are so many great independent filmmakers who could create something wonderful with that kind of funding. However, This does bring up an important point. As these peculiar films sometimes overshadow productions that are genuinely trying to make good movies, should these modern B-grade pictures even be made at all?
Of course, the phenomena of extremely cheap genre films achieving financial success isn’t anything new. Legendary filmmakers like Roger Corman have built long-lasting careers out of schlocky B-Movies, and I’d even argue that some of these silly productions are necessary to keep the film world alive. The real issue here seems to be artistic intent, as most of the watchable bad movies out there were actually trying their best to offer an entertaining experience.
The effort behind some of these productions is admirable, and a ridiculously small budget is oftentimes the real culprit behind a film’s perceived lack of quality. Movies like Ed Wood’s Plan 9 From Outer Space are downright charming in their earnest attempt at emulating Hollywood’s biggest successes on a tight budget, with little-to-no technical know-how. Watching these clunky films is a rewarding experience in spite of their amateurish origins, not necessarily because of them.
How can you not like this movie?
The same can’t be said of more recent films like the aforementioned Sharknado series, that seem to relish their inferior production values and make no real attempt at compensating for their inherent crudeness. While I don’t judge people who are fans of numerous (and usually shark-related) franchises like Ghost Shark and Sharktopus, it’s apparent that these films are using our love of cheesy B-movies as an excuse to make a quick buck. I mean, regardless of what you thought of the film, you can’t really claim that Dinocroc was anyone’s passion project.
Nevertheless, that’s not to say that these films shouldn’t exist, as despite my criticism I’ve enjoyed my fair share of trashy monster movies. Even seemingly irredeemable train-wrecks like Birdemic can be enjoyable under the right circumstances. As the various incarnations of Mystery Science Theater have shown, sometimes you need a bad movie to have a good time, and that’s awesome!
Even so, we’ll probably never see this modern trend of intentionally awful movies be celebrated the way we celebrate famously bad movies from the past. The honesty behind a full-fledged attempt at making a great film results in a certain kind of charm that you can’t simply replicate on demand. In order to be fun, these movies shouldn’t be produced on an assembly line as if they’re coming from some strange shark-related factory.
To be clear, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with making movies intentionally cheesy, but there’s a right way of going about it. As with Rodriguez and Tarantino’s love letter to the best (and worst) that the horror genre has to offer, Grindhouse, a little bit of effort can go a long way. In fact, there’s a long list of great movies with downright ridiculous subject matter that manages to be entertaining despite their budgets.
Could this be the best of the good bad movies?
There’s also a huge difference between filmmakers trying to make bad movies on purpose and filmmakers attempting to emulate a different kind of cinema experience that some people consider “bad”. Loving homages to the corny monster movies of old can actually be pretty fun, even if they’re made with the same level of limited production value as most SyFy films. The sad thing is, many of these dedicated productions will be inevitably compared to those arguably lazier movies. Looking at it like this, there’s really no excuse for setting out to make a crappy horror movie, no matter how stupid the premise may sound.
Ultimately, What really bothers me is how the thought process behind these newer “So Bad It’s Good” movies is almost predatory in its intention of profiting off of moviegoers who just want to have a good time with no serious artistic pretenses. This cynical corporate instinct is also the source of several knock-off movies made by many of the same production companies, hoping that grandmas everywhere might somehow confuse Transformers with Transmorphers as a viable gift during the next holiday season.
This is why, in an ideal world, enjoyable “bad” movies should be a happy accident and not a sub-genre in and of themselves. However, overall, these movies aren’t actually causing the horror genre that much harm. No one can really force you to exclusively watch the countless Sharknado sequels instead of original horror movies that put more effort into their productions. And, while it’s unfortunate that some better monster movies will be compared to these trashy films, there’s still nothing wrong with zoning out and enjoying the show as the titular Ghost Shark devours innocent people on a Slip ‘N Slide.
As long as viewers make an effort to value decent horror movies as well as these silly ones, there’s no reason for them to stop existing entirely. After all, in time, most of the unenjoyable crappy movies will be forgotten, and we’ll be left with only the most entertaining and memorable gems that the trashy side of our favorite genre has to offer.
In this day and age, the word “troll” is often used to describe various online nuisances. Yet as abundant and irksome as the modern troll can be, they aren’t usually as fearsome as their mythological counterparts. I’m not talking about the small and gentler versions that have become more common to see in media. No, there are much bigger and scarier trolls out there—and André Øvredal’s movie Troll Hunter is one of the best places to find them.
It doesn’t take long for Troll Hunter (or Trolljegeren) to dump the Blair Witch Project-esque setup and aim for something a lot fresher. The trajectory of the story is augmented by Otto Jespersen’s character Hans, the titular Troll Hunter. The second he comes barreling out of the deep, dark woods and shouts “troll” at the camera, this movie takes a turn into what feels like uncharted territory. Not only subject-wise, but also conceptually.
For fantastical and made-up subject matter in cinema, found footage is a fast way to add a guise of believability. After all, what we accept to be the most crucial aspect of documentaries—the truth—rubs off on pseudo-documentaries, despite our understanding of the pretense involved. That is what Øvredal delivered with Troll Hunter: a movie so convincing that some viewers wondered if trolls really do exist. So, had this been straightforwardly made, it likely wouldn’t have been as effective. Conventional narratives would be more inclined to treat something like trolls as flat out unreal, and never try to convince the audience to think otherwise.
Hans petrifies the three-headed Tusseladd troll.
The viewers, like the characters trailing Hans, are quickly thrown into the deeper end of that extraordinary story. They have to process all this new information while staying on the go. So, although there is no significant amount of meandering, narratively or physically, there is still a good amount of atmosphere, not to mention tension building. It’s never anything frightful, but then again, Troll Hunter isn’t your standard offering of horror; it’s more on the low end of the dark fantasy spectrum. We aren’t ever spirited away to a faraway world—we stay in rather familiar surroundings, as well as dip into those less so. The outcome is a movie where you’re constantly more in awe than in terror.
As fantasy fiction might do, Troll Hunter prefers not to deal with incredulity. There is no time to waste on doubt, as interviewer Thomas (Glenn Erland Tosterud), soundperson Johanna (Johanna Mørck), and cameraman Kalle (Tomas Alf Larsen) all follow Hans around, recording whatever this character is willing to reveal about his bizarre job. Of course, the Troll Hunter himself is not an open book; in that respect, the diegetic documentary fails to fully capture and unpack the more interesting of its two subjects. Yes, all those giant, monstrous trolls are indeed incredible, but understandably, your mind wanders to their pursuer. What kind of person signs up for this gig and then chooses to stick with it for so long?
Reviews have called out Troll Hunter for its lack of character development. In regard to Thomas and his fellow documentarians, that criticism is valid, but bear in mind, they aren’t the focus of the story, either. Meanwhile, Hans is a well-crafted character. At least better than first realized. Before he was introduced, Hans had already grown tired of the troll grind. Fed up with that low compensation for his services, resentful of the bureaucracy, and wanting to expose his employer on a large scale, Hans’ discontent is glaring.
Then there are those finer details about the Troll Hunter, such as that indifference to both the natural splendor of his everyday surroundings and the affections of an obviously smitten colleague, that also suggest some level of despondency. So it is fair to say this movie doesn’t feature any sizable growth for its characters; however, the namesake isn’t underwritten. No doubt, putting a real-life character like Otto Jespersen in that role is partly why Hans is so fascinating—maybe even relatable.
Otto Jespersen as Hans the Troll Hunter.
There is always a small risk whenever using the term “mockumentary” to describe a found-footage movie, as the word could imply humor where there is none. In the case of Troll Hunter, the term’s usage is appropriate. Some folks have claimed the English-dubbed version has the more comedic tone, however, the Norwegian cut isn’t exactly humorless. Apart from the trolls’ absurd appearances, this is a movie where the characters nearly choke on the monsters’ farts, and Christians are like walking targets. Hans’ complete apathy towards everything is another cause of laughter. Overall, the comedy is intentionally dry and inconsistent. Unfunny, though? Absolutely not.
In a movie where endemic creatures are maltreated, as well as disavowed from living freely and peacefully, it’s hard not to notice the ecological message buried beneath the story. In addition to that is the unmistakable political satire. There is this whole business about intrusive and unsightly power lines—like trolls, they’re big blemishes on the land—that leads to what is perhaps the movie’s funniest moment. The scene in question is that one where certain electric lines, the ones secretly being used to keep the trolls at bay, go in a loop and don’t actually send power to any residents. Yet the monitors of said lines don’t find this at all weird. So it stands to reason that Øvredal was having a go at those who accept the government’s doings without question.
Looking past the fact that trolls aren’t actually real, this movie is an enlightening source of information. And not just for international audiences; Norwegians, too, get schooled about their homeland’s own mythology. It’s also evident from everything on screen that Øvredal and his crew were enthusiastic about the topic. The creature designs are the most indicative of that zeal; those imaginative yet myth-accurate manifestations are equally amusing and grotesque. One second you’re laughing at their phallic noses, the next you’re white-knuckling during a hairy sequence. Most surprisingly is how well the trolls’ visual effects hold up after fifteen years. It’s not all spotless, but on the whole, they remain impressive.
Vouching for a mockumentary about trolls isn’t easy, but those who do come around and give it a shot will more than likely be grateful for the recommendation. For Troll Hunter is a real find in that vast and varied genre we call “found footage“.
A bridge troll reaches up for food and finds Hans decked out in armor.
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