Exclusives
Munroe Talks ‘War Monkeys’, ‘Dead of Night’ and 3-D!
The other night BD brought you the news on Kevin Munroe’s new project EL ZOMBIE, the adaptation of the comic book featuring a zombie wrestler. During that interview we also had the chance to get some updates on two other Munroe-directed projects, DEAD OF NIGHT and WAR MONKEYS. We asked what Munroe’s thoughts are on the tidal wave of 3-D projects and whether he might consider using the process for one of these upcoming projects.
Here’s part two (read part one) of our Bloody-Disgusting’s exclusive interview with Kevin Munroe.
Bloody-Disguting: Where are you at on WAR MONKEYS?
Kevin Munroe: WAR MONKEYS is rocking along. I think we’re pretty much closing financing soon. We have locations down and we’re starting to talk cast and starting to talk to the FX houses. We just finished doing a bunch of rounds with Cleve [Nettles], the writer, on the script. It’s funny, man, and the action is really off the wall. It’s a fun story.
BD: Can you say who you are hoping to cast?
KM: No, you know, casting-wise I would say DEAD OF NIGHT’s further along than anything because that’s going to be the first one to go. On that, we went out to all the casting agents this week. We’ve got a few roles kind of lined up and we’ll probably be announcing stuff within a month or two I would think. WAR MONKEYS would be next, but we’ve got the list. There’s cameos-galore in WAR MONKEYS. Just guys that come in for a day or two just to do some fun lines.
BD: How much of the work on DEAD OF NIGHT and WAR MONKEYS will be prosthetic vs. CG?
KM: WAR MONKEYS is going to be a mix. I really want to go and pre-vis anything that has to do with monkeys. It will be a mix of tactical monkeys that will be trained and then there will be CGI monkeys for appropriate shots and then there will be puppet monkeys as well. It will be a mixture of whatever works for the shot to constantly sell the believability.
For DEAD OF NIGHT, everybody sort of assumes it’s all CGI werewolves and vampires. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. Everything is practical, make-up driven. It works best when it’s grounded in our world and the second you do too much CG you end up taking [the audience] out of that reality. I can’t imagine how it feels to act against nothing.
BD: The practical work of the `80s seems to be making a comeback recently with movies like HELLBOY, JACK BROOKS and SPLINTER.
KM: I loved JACK BROOKS MONSTER SLAYER. You look at HATCHET too, any time somebody really comes out and does something they believe in, it really shows through ten-fold on film. Anything can be made better on screen with more money, but you can’t buy heart.
DEAD OF NIGHT is much more sort of MEN IN BLACK in the way that it’s much more about how the creatures live among us rather than about the transformations. Everyone in the moviegoing audience knows what a vampire or werewolf transition looks like. At the end of the day, there are movies like WOLFMAN that are going to invest way more money into the transformation and that’s fine. To me, I would much rather have a really smart morph target. It’s not how they change; it’s what they change into.
BD: So you’re almost ready for the DEAD OF NIGHT shoot?
KM: Yeah, we were talking marketing last week and we should be finalizing plans for DEAD OF NIGHT soon, so when we do it would be cool to get you guys out to the set in New Orleans. There’s never been a movie like that shot there, and if anything it seems like the one place in America where that stuff would exist.
BD: There is a big wave of 3-D projects coming out in the next few years. What’s your take on the 3-D movement and would you consider using it for one of your upcoming projects?
KM: I love the idea. I go with my kids and they like it. I’m looking forward to MONSTERS VS. ALIENS. I’m really excited about AVATAR. I sound kind of closed-minded, but I still feel like it’s a schtick more than anything. I don’t feel immersed in it. When I’m wearing glasses, I’m constantly reminded that I’m watching a movie for some reason. To me it’s one of those things that I would love to do for fun and we’ve talked about doing it for some of these projects, but to me it just feels like, for what I get out of it, it’s just way too much work.
BLOODY VALENTINE was fun, but at the end of the day, I’d like to see it kind of regular. I remember watching FRIDAY THE 13TH 3-D and thinking, “I want to see what this looks like normally.” I would love for it to be another sort of genre of film, but I think for it to become a catchall showcase, that feels weird to me. It could function as its own kind of sub-genre, but I don’t think it should be an option for all movies. It’s just not for me.
You can read more about WAR MONKEYS in our previous interview with Munroe.
Exclusives
‘The Haunting of Pennhurst’ Exclusive Clip Trains Scare Actors For Historic Haunt in Tribeca Doc
The past and present collide in haunting, poignant ways in the genre documentary The Haunting of Pennhurst, which sees a Halloween haunt serve as a reclamation of true historic horrors.
Ahead of its world premiere at the 25th Tribeca Film Festival, we have an exclusive clip that sees scare actors in training for the Halloween season. The catch? This haunt is opening at the historic Pennhurst State School & Hospital site, a facility that caused immense harm to its disabled patients over decades of its operation.
In the documentary, “For over seventy years, Pennhurst State School & Hospital was called a place of care. What happened inside killed over half its population. It closed in 1987, leaving behind unmarked graves and an unresolved history. Today, on those same grounds, disabled performers – many living with the same conditions that once sent people to Pennhurst – put on their makeup, pull on their costumes, and prepare to scare people for a living.
“Through grit, compassion, and buckets of blood, the eclectic performers of the Pennhurst Asylum haunted attraction are wrestling with a space that is at once a lucrative business and a gravesite.”
The upcoming documentary hails from directing trio Nathan Stenberg, Mike Attie, and Katarina Poljak, who explore their socially-relevant subject through archival footage, first-hand accounts, and an immersive verité.
“Pennhurst has haunted us since we first passed through its dragon-tooth gates; the horrors of the institution echo through the site today. We are so grateful to bring this film to the Tribeca Festival, particularly the Escape from Tribeca section, which feels right for a story where past and present bleed together. We hope audiences leave unnerved and asking the same uncomfortable questions we did,” Attie, Stenberg, and Poljak said in a statement.
Watch the clip below that sees disabled and neurodivergent scare actors learning the ropes of a Halloween haunt, reclaiming the site’s grim history in the process.
Tribeca Screenings:
- Public 1 (Premiere) Screening – Friday, June 5 at 9:15PM at Village East by Angelika
- Public 2 Screening – Sunday, June 7 at 3:15PM at Village East by Angelika
- Public 3 Screening – Tuesday, June 9 at 6:15PM at Village East by Angelika