Repo: The Genetic Opera!
A while back, I wrote about the trailer for "Repo: The Genetic Opera", assuming that it would come out in theaters and I would go and see it on a sunny morning at a cheap showing. Then the movie wasn't released in the way I expected it would be, and when it moseyed over to San Diego, I didn't think I could stay up until midnight to see something potentially disturbing. But thanks to Netflix, the DVD is in my possession (albeit temporarily.)
And, honestly? I might have to watch this again.
I mean, I was surprised by how much I liked it. On the first viewing, it reminded me of a report that I did in eighth grade world history about the Globe Theater during Shakespeare's time and how the performers used ox blood during the blood-letting scenes because it looked more dramatic than any other type of animal blood (according to my source at the time.) There's a lot of blood in this, but it seems ox-blood-fake, set dressing for the sake of the overall tint of the film, and not actually belonging to any human being. And the music is crazy, running the gamut from Broadway-style crowd scenes (a chorus of singing prostitutes, a la Les Miz and Miss Saigon!) to punk to Puccini. But somehow it works, and I cannot say what the best thing about it is, the music or the singing or the acting, or the general over-the-top staging and melodramatic story. I suppose the best way to summarize it would be "Bertold Brecht meets Iggy Pop meets Elvira meets Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde meets West Side Story and they all do drugs together and then get in a knife fight and sing and it's a strange kind of AWESOME!"
Plot synopsis: a dystopian future. Organ failure has killed many. GeneCo, a seemingly benevolent company, headed by the twisted Largo Rotti, offers substitute organs at discount prices... except that if you default on your payments, they send a Repo Man to come and collect the organs. Our anti-hero is GeneCo's best Repo Man, a doctor named Nathan with a sick daughter named Shilo; Nathan has been conned into doing the collection job through a series of plot machinations set up by the evil Rotti. Apparently, 17 years of collecting people's rented organs and killing them has unhinged him (not unreasonably). Anthony Stewart Head rocks this part, although I may never ever think of him as kind, well-meaning Giles again after seeing this. Before the movie came out, I remember reading an interview with him where he said that it was difficult to pull off a musical number where he sang, tap-danced, vivisected a man, and then used the corpse as a ventriloquist's dummy, and thinking, yeah, right, he's just saying that for dramatic effect. Well... turns out he wasn't just saying that. I think with a lesser actor, this part would come off as very fake and rather vile, but Head manages to suffuse both sides of his character with strong presence and humanity. Head's best number is the riveting "I Remember," where Rotti and his repulsive sons goad Nathan into becoming the Repo Man and slaughtering a victim before their eyes by playing on Nathan's sense of guilt and obligation to the past. In this song, Head shows his character's struggle between two sides of himself and finds that no matter what he does, he's on the losing side.
The other performers in this film bear mentioning as well. Sarah Brightman shows off her incredible vocal range and sports what I think was the best costume of the whole affair during her brief, actual operatic performance. And say what you will about Paris Hilton, but she's a good sport who holds her own, musically, and even performs as her face falls off (yes, I mean that literally). There is also a fantastic musical score, and 99% of the movie is sung. (I want to go off on a tangent here about how everything is better when it's sung, but that's another entry for another time.) Add to this a spectacular set of a dystopian future where the city is actually built on bodies and there are chandeliers everywhere--it's like 19th century Paris and the city of Blade Runner were crossed over each other and the resulting overlay is filled with little odd and important details. (My favorite set piece is the GoodYear Blimp style screen that hovers over the city and reads "OPERA COUNTDOWN: 10".)
The only failing this film has is its fascination with its villains, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the ending, which tells us what happened to the loathsome children of the villain, but says nothing about the heroine and what she chose to do with her life after everything that had happened. I would almost like to hear her sequel, maybe about 10 years after the story took place. What the hell do you with your life after something like that happens?
To those who were concerned about the squick/horror level: If you've seen any 80's slasher movie, I think you've seen the gore you're going to see here. If you don't like torture, you should probably stay away, although I thought those scenes moved by very quickly and didn't bother me like I had expected.
I may never think of Anthony Stewart Head in the same way again, though, that's for damn sure. I should also add that I was in a very specific mood when I watched this; I wanted something completely different and strange, and I wanted music, and I really, really enjoyed it. I think it I had been in a more fragile or introspective mood, I would not have enjoyed it and this entry would be very different.
Of course, the real question that I have is, will this be the new Rocky Horror Picture Show? Rocky is kitschy, campy fun. I don't know if I would call this movie "fun", although a lot of the music is very stirring. I don't think I can picture people singing along with Sarah Brightman's aria... and I'm not sure what props you would bring with you to Repo (maybe little glass vials?). On the other hand, this already has a kind of cult following, and if the midnight showing at the Ken is any indication, it could certainly happen. And if it comes around again, and there are people in costume... I might just have to go this time.
And, honestly? I might have to watch this again.
I mean, I was surprised by how much I liked it. On the first viewing, it reminded me of a report that I did in eighth grade world history about the Globe Theater during Shakespeare's time and how the performers used ox blood during the blood-letting scenes because it looked more dramatic than any other type of animal blood (according to my source at the time.) There's a lot of blood in this, but it seems ox-blood-fake, set dressing for the sake of the overall tint of the film, and not actually belonging to any human being. And the music is crazy, running the gamut from Broadway-style crowd scenes (a chorus of singing prostitutes, a la Les Miz and Miss Saigon!) to punk to Puccini. But somehow it works, and I cannot say what the best thing about it is, the music or the singing or the acting, or the general over-the-top staging and melodramatic story. I suppose the best way to summarize it would be "Bertold Brecht meets Iggy Pop meets Elvira meets Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde meets West Side Story and they all do drugs together and then get in a knife fight and sing and it's a strange kind of AWESOME!"
Plot synopsis: a dystopian future. Organ failure has killed many. GeneCo, a seemingly benevolent company, headed by the twisted Largo Rotti, offers substitute organs at discount prices... except that if you default on your payments, they send a Repo Man to come and collect the organs. Our anti-hero is GeneCo's best Repo Man, a doctor named Nathan with a sick daughter named Shilo; Nathan has been conned into doing the collection job through a series of plot machinations set up by the evil Rotti. Apparently, 17 years of collecting people's rented organs and killing them has unhinged him (not unreasonably). Anthony Stewart Head rocks this part, although I may never ever think of him as kind, well-meaning Giles again after seeing this. Before the movie came out, I remember reading an interview with him where he said that it was difficult to pull off a musical number where he sang, tap-danced, vivisected a man, and then used the corpse as a ventriloquist's dummy, and thinking, yeah, right, he's just saying that for dramatic effect. Well... turns out he wasn't just saying that. I think with a lesser actor, this part would come off as very fake and rather vile, but Head manages to suffuse both sides of his character with strong presence and humanity. Head's best number is the riveting "I Remember," where Rotti and his repulsive sons goad Nathan into becoming the Repo Man and slaughtering a victim before their eyes by playing on Nathan's sense of guilt and obligation to the past. In this song, Head shows his character's struggle between two sides of himself and finds that no matter what he does, he's on the losing side.
The other performers in this film bear mentioning as well. Sarah Brightman shows off her incredible vocal range and sports what I think was the best costume of the whole affair during her brief, actual operatic performance. And say what you will about Paris Hilton, but she's a good sport who holds her own, musically, and even performs as her face falls off (yes, I mean that literally). There is also a fantastic musical score, and 99% of the movie is sung. (I want to go off on a tangent here about how everything is better when it's sung, but that's another entry for another time.) Add to this a spectacular set of a dystopian future where the city is actually built on bodies and there are chandeliers everywhere--it's like 19th century Paris and the city of Blade Runner were crossed over each other and the resulting overlay is filled with little odd and important details. (My favorite set piece is the GoodYear Blimp style screen that hovers over the city and reads "OPERA COUNTDOWN: 10".)
The only failing this film has is its fascination with its villains, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the ending, which tells us what happened to the loathsome children of the villain, but says nothing about the heroine and what she chose to do with her life after everything that had happened. I would almost like to hear her sequel, maybe about 10 years after the story took place. What the hell do you with your life after something like that happens?
To those who were concerned about the squick/horror level: If you've seen any 80's slasher movie, I think you've seen the gore you're going to see here. If you don't like torture, you should probably stay away, although I thought those scenes moved by very quickly and didn't bother me like I had expected.
I may never think of Anthony Stewart Head in the same way again, though, that's for damn sure. I should also add that I was in a very specific mood when I watched this; I wanted something completely different and strange, and I wanted music, and I really, really enjoyed it. I think it I had been in a more fragile or introspective mood, I would not have enjoyed it and this entry would be very different.
Of course, the real question that I have is, will this be the new Rocky Horror Picture Show? Rocky is kitschy, campy fun. I don't know if I would call this movie "fun", although a lot of the music is very stirring. I don't think I can picture people singing along with Sarah Brightman's aria... and I'm not sure what props you would bring with you to Repo (maybe little glass vials?). On the other hand, this already has a kind of cult following, and if the midnight showing at the Ken is any indication, it could certainly happen. And if it comes around again, and there are people in costume... I might just have to go this time.