5 Times Horror Films Depicted the Music Biz with Eerie Accuracy
Uncle Peckerhead is now out on Blu-Ray, VOD and all kinds of good places, and though you might call me a shill for saying it, I’ll say it anyway: it’s pretty darn good. Not all horror films click with me, and horror comedies, in particular, are mostly misses (the Cornetto Trilogy notwithstanding). But this little movie won me over, and it’s in large part due to how accurately it portrays life as a working musician. Having had a band myself, I think we’d have loved to have a flesh-eating roadie to look after us. In honor of Peck’s almighty defense of his band members, I want to talk about other horror flicks that portray a particular nuance of life as a musician in an eerily accurate way.
Related Article: Trailer: UNCLE PECKERHEAD Now Available to Own on Blu-ray!
Queen of the Damned (2002, dir. by Michael Rymer)
The long-anticipated sequel to Interview with a Vampire went down as well as a clove of garlic on a blood-sucking fiend’s front porch. But ever since then, it has garnered a cult following, and I think it totally deserves it. In fact, despite taking massive care to not collect physical media due to their planet-killing superpowers, one of the films I do own on DVD is Queen of the Damned. And though Aaliyah’s performance is one of the primary reasons for this preferential treatment, I must admit that I found Lestat as a musician to be equally as hypnotic.
The film came out when industrial rock was huge, and it shows in the music of Lestat’s band. But the thing that made me fall in love with it over the years is just how douchy Lestat is with his bandmates, and his bandmates with everyone and everything. You see, the reason I stopped my music career was precisely because of people who felt like Lestat’s primadonna attitude was something to aspire to. If you’ve ever been in a band, I’m sure you can think of at least 5 people you played with who felt like they were a misunderstood art messiah. And when it comes to portraying that particular breed of unsavory, Queen of the Damned is second to none.
The Lords of Salem (2012, dir. by Rob Zombie)
The titular “band” featured in Rob Zombie’s unappreciated, A24-like masterpiece might be tied to all kinds of witchy cults, but the reason I put this film here is because of the disk jockeys. Way before DJ meant “a guy pushing ‘Play’ on an iPod in front of 400.000 people on ecstasy”, disk jockeys ruled the radio airwaves. They could make or break an artist in an instant, and funnily enough, this continues to be the case in a lot of markets.
Sheri Moon Zombie has as many detractors as she’s got fans, but I’m in the latter group, and this film is one of the reasons why. The Suspiria-like delirium, coupled with real-life stresses that befall her character Heidi, make this one of my favorite-ever Sheri Moon performances. The other DJs at the station are equally relatable, as they try to keep a medium (and their jobs) relevant in an ever-changing world. Regardless of how you feel about Rob’s work, you cannot deny that The Lords of Salem nails the DJ lifestyle to a fault.
Green Room (2015, dir. by Jeremy Saulnier)
One of the things I loved about Uncle Peckerhead was the accurate portrayal of band life on the road. If you’ve never played in a band before, it might be difficult to relate to this bit. But for those of us who’ve performed in empty venues, the soul-crushing experience will be forever etched onto our brains. If there’s anything worse than no crowd, however, it’s a bad crowd. If you ask me, I’d rather play for the bartender, than for a stag do or a bachelorette party. They are not there to listen to you, they are there to get drunk, forget their miserable lives and, in turn, your life miserable.
When it comes to crowds from hell, the neo-nazi skinheads in Green Room come pretty darn close to topping the list. Not only are they terrible people on the daily, but they actively murder left, right and center around the band. As a musician, there’s having to survive, and then there’s having to survive. And fighting the Green Room neo-nazis to make it out alive is right up there in terms of making it past a shitty crowd.
Hwa-i-teu: Jeo-woo-eui mel-lo-di (2011, dir. by Gok Kim & Sun Kim)
Ok, this one is a little bit left field. Stay with me, however, because it’ll all make sense soon. This Korean film doesn’t focus on a rock band. It focuses instead in a K-pop / idol all-girl-group called “Pink Dolls”. I’ve always been fascinated by Asian culture, and K-pop (as well as J-pop) idols are a breed of artist which doesn’t really exist anywhere else in the world. These (often very young) people are elevated to a godlike-status at a very early age (as implied by the “idol” moniker), and the environment is extremely competitive. Sadly, there are real-life accounts of idols suffering from extreme mental health issues due to the pressures surrounding their career, and suicides aren’t all that uncommon.
Though perhaps a more “girly” point of view than usual (there’s no such thing as “girly”, by the way), Hwa-i-teu: Jeo-woo-eui mel-lo-di actually portrays a heartbreaking reality which continues to haunt idols to this day. The idea that the “Pink Dolls” would make a sinister arrangement to secure fame, regardless of cost, is a very clever metaphor for how much K-pop and J-pop idols have to sacrifice to achieve what they dream of becoming.
Suck (2009, dir. by Rob Stefaniuk)
Perhaps one of the best-regarded horror comedies about musicians (how long is the list, anyway?), Suck’s roster reads like a who’s who of rock legends: Alice Cooper, Moby, Iggy freakin’ Pop! Is the “will do anything for fame” thread wearing a bit thin? Sure. But with this movie, it’s not really just about the idea, but rather its execution. Rob Stefaniuk’s charming script brings an otherwise pedestrian plot to hitherto uncharted territory for rock band horror-coms.
And this, my friends, brings us full circle, as this is precisely why I loved Uncle Peckerhead so much. Despite the silly name and even sillier premise, the movie oozes charm, the acting is surprisingly strong and the relatability factor is through the roof.
Regardless of whether you decide to check out the ‘Peck or not, however, I hope this list serves as a point of reference for when you’re in the mood to live like a musician on the road.
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