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Editorial: Writers and Director of ‘The Miranda Murders’ Prove Misogyny is Not Dead

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*** EDITOR'S NOTE: The production team of The Miranda Murders including G.R. Claveria and Matthew Rosvally have publicly announced that 100% of the profits of the film have been going to charities such as RAINN, March of Dimes, Three Square and The Heifer Foundation since the initial release prior to their screening at HorrorHound Film Festival and prior to the writing of this article, unbeknownst to the author.  They have also publicly announced that they will donate any future proceedings earned by them to charity.  This was a decision made by the production team before this article was written and before the screening of The Miranda Murders at HorrorHound Film Festival. 

Over the weekend, I was sent video of a filmmaker panel which took place at HorrorHound Weekend that was intended to be about filmmaking and distribution in the indie film community, and in all fairness, that was how it seemed to start out. Over the course of the next hour, however, I watched as producer/writer G.R. Claveria slowly changed the tone and direction of the panel into a spotlight on his own film The Miranda Murders: Lost Tapes of Leonard Lake and Charles Ng.

For those unaware, in the early 1980s Lake and Ng were responsible for the kidnapping, torture, rape, and murder of at least 20 women in a bid to create the perfect female slave object.

Claveria, along with co-writer and director Matthew Rosvally, decided to re-create some of the infamous pair’s video recordings of their crimes while filling in the gaps with their own take on just what might have happened in the California woods between 1983 and 1985 before the murderers were arrested on charges of shoplifting and were finally exposed.

This, in and of itself, is not a new concept in the genre. We’ve certainly seen our fair share of films about serial killers, both real and imaginary, who committed horrendous acts against women. The Silence of the Lambs, Copycat, and a whole host of films about the crimes of Jack the Ripper spring to mind immediately.

Still there was something that just did not feel right about watching and listening to these two men talk about their film. It all seemed to be a joke to them, and even more disturbing, there are times when Claveria, in particular, seems to relish the subject matter.

There is an almost wistful, gleeful tone in his voice when he says he “gets to rape a girl” on film. Later on, after winning an award for the film (a fact that after seeing it still astonishes me), that maliciously gleeful tone is back when he says their film “is about sexual abduction and instructions on how to rape women” followed by a smirking “whoops!” when his audience finally began to cheer in a way that said they weren’t quite sure what their reactions should be.

You can see video of their remarks below, followed by the panel in its entirety to give further proof that the edited remarks were not made in a way so as to change the tone of what Claveria and Rosvally did and said during the panel.

With all of this in mind, I decided I needed to set aside time to watch the film, which is available to rent on Amazon, to see exactly what these two men had made. What I found made their remarks even more sinister and their flippancy about the subject matter anything but funny.

The Miranda Tapes is, in many ways, just what they described it to be. The film focuses on the exploits of Lake and Ng as they try, fail, and try again, to create their perfectly submissive ideal of a woman. One who is pliant, subservient, and completely broken so that she can no longer protest her treatment and fears the strict punishments she has been conditioned to expect for misbehaving.

Their journey is peppered with bad acting, multiple implied rape and torture scenes (some of which take place on camera while others happen with audio to give clues as to what is going on behind closed doors), a scene where Ng puts one of the women’s children into a pot and prepares to stick him in the oven while announcing “dinner will be ready soon,” and more bad acting until I wondered how the film had even been considered for programming at a festival, much less nominated and awarded at said festival.

I am still confounded by that fact.

In the other films I mentioned before, there are clear steps taken to avoid glorification of the crimes committed. Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs may be over the top and his methods brutal but there is never a sense that he is not the villain. He is a terrible person committing horrendous crimes against women and as such he must be stopped.

In The Miranda Murders, there is simply no counterpoint to the pair’s actions. Lake is confident in his actions and his training plan, and Ng, the submissive half of the serial killer pairing, is all too willing to follow the former’s orders to reap the benefits of greater access to the women they have captured.

In the absence of an opposing view, outside the protestations of their victims, Lake and Ng’s actions become the only focal point and thus the only lens by which we can view their activities. It certainly makes the film an unflinching look at violence against women, and yet there is no commentary on the subject within the construct of the film.

In the day and age of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, when serious conversations about violence against women are at an all time high and social change seems to actually be happening on the subject, these two men have seemingly chosen, by their comments, their actions, and their film, to instead be a shining example of everything these movements are trying to end.

When we further consider that many of the victims of these crimes may still have living family who could be subjected to questions about the film and its portrayal of the killers and killings, the enormity of their tone-deaf attitude comes front and center.

Never mind the fact that they hijacked a panel to spend an hour promoting their own film and repeatedly talked over the two women on the panel who looked more and more uncomfortable as the hour waned. Never mind that they say they didn’t set out to make a film that glorifies the subject matter or becomes material for sexual deviants to sate their desires late at night when no one is looking.

The fact is that what they created is a torture porn, rape fantasy, faux snuff film that has no place in 2018. The further fact that they seem blissfully unaware of what they created is proof of just how dangerous and insidiously subversive unconscious misogyny still is in our current environment and that it is as alive and well in the indie film industry as it is in the shining studios of Hollywood.

If further proof is needed, at this point, of just how they feel about those who have spoken against their film and how ridiculous they feel those claims to be, take a look at their holiday greetings video below which their production company posted at the end of 2017.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jkyu4XwsuTk

If Rosvally and Claveria and those who have supported their attitudes do not wish to join the conversation or for whatever reason are unable to, then let their film and their remarks be the subject of said conversations, and a lesson for men of what not to do.

After all, it is far more productive to take the embodiment of what offends or disturbs or diminishes us and use it as a rung to climb toward our goals than to let those things become a quagmire from which we cannot hope to escape.

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New Poster Reveal For Nicolas Cage’s Survival Creature Feature ‘Arcadian’ [Trailer]

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Nicolas Cage Arcadian

In the latest cinematic venture featuring Nicolas Cage, Arcadian emerges as a compelling creature feature, teeming with suspense, horror, and emotional depth. RLJE Films has recently released a series of new images and a captivating poster, offering audiences a glimpse into the eerie and thrilling world of “Arcadian”. Scheduled to hit theaters on April 12, 2024, the film will later be available on Shudder and AMC+, ensuring a wide audience can experience its gripping narrative.

Arcadian Movie Trailer

The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has given this film an “R” rating for its “bloody images,” hinting at the visceral and intense experience awaiting viewers. The film draws inspiration from acclaimed horror benchmarks like “A Quiet Place,” weaving a post-apocalyptic tale of a father and his two sons navigating a desolate world. Following a catastrophic event that depopulates the planet, the family faces the dual challenge of surviving their dystopian environment and eluding mysterious nocturnal creatures.

Joining Nicolas Cage in this harrowing journey are Jaeden Martell, known for his role in “IT” (2017), Maxwell Jenkins from “Lost in Space,” and Sadie Soverall, featured in “Fate: The Winx Saga.” Directed by Ben Brewer (“The Trust”) and penned by Mike Nilon (“Braven”), “Arcadian” promises a unique blend of poignant storytelling and electrifying survival horror.

Maxwell Jenkins, Nicolas Cage, and Jaeden Martell 

Critics have already begun to praise “Arcadian” for its imaginative monster designs and exhilarating action sequences, with one review from Bloody Disgusting highlighting the film’s balance between emotional coming-of-age elements and heart-pounding horror. Despite sharing thematic elements with similar genre films, “Arcadian” sets itself apart through its creative approach and action-driven plot, promising a cinematic experience filled with mystery, suspense, and relentless thrills.

Arcadian Official Movie Poster

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‘Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3’ Is a Go with Enhanced Budget and New Characters

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Winnie the Pooh 3

Wow, they’re churning things out fast! The upcoming sequel “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3” is officially moving forward, promising an expanded narrative with a larger budget and the introduction of beloved characters from A.A. Milne’s original tales. As confirmed by Variety, the third installment in the horror franchise will welcome Rabbit, the heffalumps, and the woozles into its dark and twisted narrative.

This sequel is a part of an ambitious cinematic universe that reimagines children’s stories as horror tales. Alongside “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey” and its first sequel, the universe includes films such as “Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare”, “Bambi: The Reckoning,” and “Pinocchio Unstrung”. These movies are set to converge in the crossover event “Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble,” slated for a 2025 release.

Winnie the Pooh Poohniverse

The creation of these films was made possible when A.A. Milne’s 1926 children’s book “Winnie-the-Pooh” entered the public domain last year, allowing filmmakers to explore these cherished characters in unprecedented ways. Director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Jeffrey Chambers, of Jagged Edge Productions, have led the charge in this innovative endeavor.

The inclusion of Rabbit, heffalumps, and woozles in the upcoming sequel introduces a new layer to the franchise. In Milne’s original stories, heffalumps are imagined creatures resembling elephants, while woozles are known for their weasel-like characteristics and a penchant for stealing honey. Their roles in the narrative remain to be seen, but their addition promises to enrich the horror universe with deeper connections to the source material.

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How to Watch ‘Late Night with the Devil’ from Home: Dates and Platforms

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Late Night With The Devil

For fans eager to dive into one of this year’s most talked-about horror films from the comfort of their own home, “Late Night with the Devil” will be available for streaming exclusively on Shudder starting April 19, 2024. This announcement has been highly anticipated following the film’s successful theatrical release by IFC Films, which saw it earning rave reviews and a record-breaking opening weekend for the distributor.

“Late Night with the Devil” emerges as a standout horror film, captivating audiences and critics alike, with Stephen King himself offering high praise for the 1977-set film. Starring David Dastmalchian, the movie unfolds on Halloween night during a live late-night talk show broadcast that disastrously unleashes evil across the nation. This found footage-style film not only delivers scares but also authentically captures the aesthetic of the 1970s, drawing viewers into its nightmarish scenario.

David Dastmalchian in Late Night with the Devil

The film’s initial box office success, opening to $2.8 million in 1,034 theaters, underscores its wide appeal and marks the highest opening weekend for an IFC Films release. Critically acclaimed, “Late Night with the Devil” boasts a 96% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 135 reviews, with the consensus praising it for rejuvenating the possession horror genre and showcasing David Dastmalchian’s exceptional performance.

Rotten Tomatoes score as of 3/28/2024

Simon Rother of iHorror.com encapsulates the film’s allure, emphasizing its immersive quality that transports viewers back to the 1970s, making them feel as if they are part of the eerie “Night Owls” Halloween broadcast. Rother lauds the film for its meticulously crafted script and the emotional and shocking journey it takes viewers on, stating, “This whole experience will have viewers of the Cairnes brothers’ film glued to their screen… The script, from beginning to end, is neatly sewn together with an ending that’ll have jaws on the floor.” You can read the full review here.

Rother further encourages audiences to watch the film, highlighting its multifaceted appeal: “Whenever it is made available to you, you must attempt to view the Cairnes Brothers’ latest project as it will make you laugh, it will creep you out, it will amaze you, and it might even strike an emotional cord.”

Set to stream on Shudder on April 19, 2024, “Late Night with the Devil” offers a compelling blend of horror, history, and heart. This film is not just a must-watch for horror aficionados but for anyone looking to be thoroughly entertained and moved by a cinematic experience that redefines the boundaries of its genre.

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