Deathgasm writer/director Jason Lei Howden is convinced that he’s created “…the most heavy metal horror movie ever made.” However, that’s not arrogance talking. Rather, that’s a challenge to filmmakers to see what they can bring to the table. After all, in how own words, “…it’s a horror genre that deserves a revival.”
Below we’ve got an exclusive interview with Howden about the movie and how it’s been sweeping the world, utilizing a fantastic blend of horror, comedy, and REAL heavy metal.
Both Brad and Patrick loved the movie, the latter calling it, “…the Party Movie of 2015!” Having seen it myself, I can assure you that’s 100% true! Gather your friends, grab a pack of cold ones, and get ready for a movie that had me laughing and cheering along!
Deathgasm hits U.S. cinemas on October 2, 2015 from Dark Sky Films.
This may very well be the ultimate heavy metal horror film! Was that your intention from the start or was there something else in mind when you began writing ‘Deathgasm’?
I’ve always been a little disappointed by the lack of decent Heavy Metal horror movies. I love Trick Or Treat and a few others, but the falloff in quality from there is pretty steep. And many of the 80’s films contain soundtracks that are classified as more ‘Rock N’ Roll’ than pure ‘Heavy Metal’.
So I set out to create a movie which was fun, gory as hell and featured REAL Metal: Brutal Death Metal, Thrash Metal, Black Metal, Doom Metal. But the Metal had to not only be in the soundtrack, but part of the story. It’s the catalyst for the films conflict and the tool which the protagonists use to save the day.
I do believe that it’s the most METAL Heavy Metal Horror movie ever made and I look forward to seeing someone try and top it, because it’s a horror genre that deserves a revival.
Metal and horror have long been bedfellows, with each taking inspiration from the other. What do you think about these two genres make them so compatible?
The imagery, tone and themes are all very similar. You could take any Morbid Angel or Slayer track and make a kickass horror movie out of it.
I think Metal has always been influenced by Horror movies. Even the very first Metal band Black Sabbath named themselves after a Mario Bava movie. The darker horror imagery and lyrics separated them from bands like say, Led Zeppelin.
It goes the other way to a certain extent. From Dario Argento’s Phenomena playing Iron Maiden during the murder scenes, to 90s teen slashers featuring Nu-Metal OST’s.
Maybe what Heavy Metal and Horror fans share is a taste for something extreme, to experience something challenging, violent and disturbing and be changed by it. Both are cathartic art forms which let you confront and purge yourself of fears and anger in a safe, healthy, and in Deathgasm’s case, hilarious way.
The movie is, in my opinion, an absolute blast! It’s the kind of movie that makes me love watching movies! At what point, if ever, did you think to yourself that you had something really special on your hands?
At the SXSW premiere earlier this year, because before that only four or five people had ever watched it. I just didn’t know how anyone was going to react. And then after the screening the Bloody Disgusting review came in, which was one of the first. We got 4/5 stars!
It blew my mind, because I’m on the site every day and I know the reviews can be pretty blunt and to the point. But it snowballed from there, and the feedback in horror circles has been really amazing.
The biggest thing though was getting positive feedback from the Metal community, because Metal characters have been done terribly for so long. I didn’t want people to think I was taking the piss out of the music fans, our characters are Metal heroes being badass and saving the world. So when Metalheads come up to me and say I nailed the characters, and the soundtrack is awesome, that makes me really proud.
The movie ends with the possibility of a sequel. Is that something you’re entertaining or do you think ‘Deathgasm’ should be its own beast?
I just received a small grant from the Writers Guild to write Deathgasm 2, so there will be a script at least. I can’t reveal too much at this point but there are some really fun directions I’m planning to take it. I have a trilogy in mind, and a comic book series which I’m currently working on also.
But we need people to go out there and support Deathgasm to make it happen. So trve fans of Horror and Metal need to go out there and watch it in cinemas, VOD, buy some merch or DVDs, just to show the suits there is demand for more awesomeness. Otherwise you are dooming us all to a world of Oscar bait and more Fantastic Four sequels.
Clearly only a metalhead could write something like this. What are some of your favorite metal bands?
I love bands from all Metal genres, I’m not a purist in that respect. But just checking my ‘recently played’ in the last week I’ve cranked The Black Dahlia Murder, Slayer, Ghost, Merciful Fate, Iron Maiden, Bulletbelt, Danzig, Kadavar, Rammstein, Cattle Decapitation, Taylor Swift, Sinister, and Gorgoroth.
What do you feel are some of the most “horror” metal tracks out there?
Cannibal Corpse’s Hammer Smashed face is amazingly gory and horrific.
Lyrics like: “The sledge my tool to torture, As it pounds down on your forehead. Eyes bulging from their sockets, With every swing of my mallet” sound like they were written by Leatherface.Sabbath Bloody Sabbath has that classic old-school-satanic-horror vibe, I can just see the black cloaks and ceremonial daggers when I listen to it.
Slayer’s ode to Ed Gein “Dead Skin Mask” still creeps me the hell out whenever I hear it. And King Diamond’s ‘Welcome Home’ is a standout on the already unsettling concept album ‘Them’.
