News

5 Hysterical On (and Off) the Set Moments from The Hills Have Eyes (’77)

Published

10 years ago

May 23, 2014

Behind The Scenes: The Hills Have Eyes

When you think about Wes Craven‘s cult classic, The Hills Have Eyes, there are words that automatically come to mind — unrelenting, gritty, dark, savage… but what about humorous?

Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. How on Earth could a film that was as deviant as The Hills Have Eyes be humorous? Let me explain.

The Hills Have Eyes (1977)

I found myself watching a featurette called “Looking Back at The Hills Have Eyes“. It’s basically a recollection of how the idea for Hills came about, what filming Hills was like, and many other things concerning the film itself.

Wow, did these guys have some funny stories to tell!

When looking for the set location to be used for Hills, Wes Craven and producer Peter Locke both headed out to an area in the desert, which was decided on by merely pointing to a random area located on a topographical map, so that they could find the perfect spot that would later send chills down our spines many months later when the film hit theaters. The two later found themselves in a place called Apple Valley. It was excruciatingly hot that day, with temperatures nearing 114 degrees. Keeping cool with 6-packs of Pepsi, it was finally decided that this was the site they would use. Wasting no time to get the hell out of the heat, Peter and Wes headed back to their car which was blessed with the gift of air conditioning. As they began to head back to civilization… uh-oh. The car wouldn’t start. They tried again. Still wouldn’t start. Could it be that the two would fall victim to their own plot? Was this some sort of sick karma? As they tried one more time… bingo! The car finally started. I guess the third time really is the charm!
One of the most memorable scenes (if not the most memorable) from The Hills Have Eyes is, without a doubt, the trailer raiding scene, where the young Brenda Carter (played by Suze Lanier-Bramlett) is defiled by the feral savage Pluto (played by Michael Berryman). It’s a hard scene to watch, no matter how many times you’ve seen it. The rape scene was actually the first scene filmed for Hills, and of course, that meant things would feel very tense between cast and crew. Suze and Michael thought it would be a good idea to try and break the ice, which is exactly what they did. As action was called and the curtain was flung back, everyone was stunned to see the two performing a passionate make-out scene, instead of the planned rape scene. This brought out wild laughter from both the cast and crew, and just as Suze and Michael had planned, broke the ice for the real deal.
You would think that working on such an indecent film as The Hills Have Eyes would bring out the darker side of people. Throughout the film, it is obvious that Papa Jupiter and his clan (aside from Ruby, of course) would like nothing more than to kill and devour (“We’ve got us a young Thanksgiving turkey!”) little baby Katy. Believe it or not, there was not a single member of the cast or crew that wanted that precious little baby (played by Brenda Marinoff) to be killed. In fact, many made it quite clear that if the baby was killed, they would want nothing more to do with the film and would leave the set entirely. Hey, I don’t blame ’em. That baby was pretty cute.
I think that most people are under the impression that the rattlesnakes that were used during the end of the film were harmless. That’s what I thought, anyway. Before the snakes were released onto the set, they were placed inside a cooler to set for a few hours. Doing this helped slow the snakes down, thus preventing them from becoming a serious threat to the cast and crew. As the last of the cast members began to prepare for their final scene, they noticed that the others were jumping up out of their seats and running away from the set. It turned out that the snakes that were supposed to still be in the cooler were let out a bit too early… and the heat of the desert helped get them going again. Keep in mind that these snakes still had venom in them. Yikes! Thankfully, the snakes were retrieved safely, and nobody was hurt.
The Hills Have Eyes finally hit theaters on July 22, 1977. During a screening of the film, a woman with her 14-year-old son stood up during the film and declared, “This film is sick and depraved!” A voice suddenly spoke from behind her. “You’re damn right, lady. This film is sick, and it’s depraved.” She then turned around to find herself face to face with none other than Pluto himself, Michael Berryman! Oh, what I would give to have seen that happen.

I think my favorite thing about documentaries is being able to hear all about the funny stories the cast and crew have to tell from their experiences on and offset. I highly recommend checking out “Looking Back at The Hills Have Eyes“. It’s definitely worth the watch, especially if you’re a die-hard Hills fan such as myself! So tell me, what’s your favorite moment from The Hills Have Eyes? Leave a comment below!

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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

14 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

^Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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Movies

Part Concert, Part Horror Movie M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Trap’ Trailer Released

Published

16 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Timothy Rawles

In true Shyamalan form, he sets his film Trap inside a social situation where we aren’t sure what is going on. Hopefully, there is a twist at the end. Furthermore, we hope it’s better than the one in his divisive 2021 movie Old.

The trailer seemingly gives away a lot, but, as in the past, you can’t rely on his trailers because they are often red herrings and you are being gaslit to think a certain way. For instance, his movie Knock at the Cabin was completely different than what the trailer implied and if you hadn’t read the book on which the film is based it was still like going in blind.

The plot for Trap is being dubbed an “experience” and we aren’t quite sure what that means. If we were to guess based on the trailer, it’s a concert movie wrapped around a horror mystery. There are original songs performed by Saleka, who plays Lady Raven, a kind of Taylor Swift/Lady Gaga hybrid. They have even set up a Lady Raven website to further the illusion.

Here is the fresh trailer:

According to the synopsis, a father takes his daughter to one of Lady Raven’s jam-packed concerts, “where they realize they’re at the center of a dark and sinister event.”

Written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, Trap stars Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills and Allison Pill. The film is produced by Ashwin Rajan, Marc Bienstock and M. Night Shyamalan. The executive producer is Steven Schneider.

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News

Woman Brings Corpse Into Bank To Sign Loan Papers

Published

18 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Timothy Rawles

Warning: This is a disturbing story.

You have to be pretty desperate for money to do what this Brazilian woman did at the bank to get a loan. She wheeled in a fresh corpse to endorse the contract and she seemingly thought the bank employees wouldn’t notice. They did.

This weird and disturbing story comes via ScreenGeek an entertainment digital publication. They write that a woman identified as Erika de Souza Vieira Nunes pushed a man she identified as her uncle into the bank pleading with him to sign loan papers for $3,400.

If you’re squeamish or easily triggered, be aware that the video captured of the situation is disturbing.

A woman in Brazil took a deceased man to the bank in an attempt to secure a loan 😳 pic.twitter.com/abiO2evgwg
— More Crazy Clips (@MoreCrazyClips) April 17, 2024

Latin America’s largest commercial network, TV Globo, reported on the crime, and according to ScreenGeek this is what Nunes says in Portuguese during the attempted transaction.

“Uncle, are you paying attention? You must sign [the loan contract]. If you don’t sign, there’s no way, as I cannot sign on your behalf!”

She then adds: “Sign so you can spare me further headaches; I can’t bear it any longer.”

At first we thought this might be a hoax, but according to Brazilian police, the uncle, 68-year-old Paulo Roberto Braga had passed away earlier that day.

“She attempted to feign his signature for the loan. He entered the bank already deceased,” Police Chief Fábio Luiz said in an interview with TV Globo. “Our priority is to continue investigating to identify other family members and gather more information regarding this loan.”

If convicted Nunes could be facing jail time on charges of fraud, embezzlement, and desecration of a corpse.

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