Exclusive: Director Darren Lynn Bousman Talks Abattoir
To those not deeply into the horror genre, Darren Lynn Bousman is “that guy who directed all those bloody, violent Saw movies” – but to those in the know, Darren’s done a whole lot more than that. He’s one of the rare few who generated a cult-classic midnight movie in Repo! The Genetic Opera, took movies on the road with his heaven vs. hell horror musicals The Devil’s Carnival 1 and 2, and gifted us with a home-invasion thriller starring Rebecca De Mornay called Mother’s Day. And we don’t even have the time to get into his work in music video, anthologies, and TV. Suffice to say, he’s a lot more than “that guy who directed all those bloody, violent Saw movies.”
Darren is topping himself again with his latest movie, Abattoir (review). Based on a series of graphic novels, the film takes a new avenue in introducing fresh characters and featuring genre faves ranging from Joe Anderson and Jessica Lowndes to Lin Shaye and Dayton Callie. Another thing that’s different for Darren in this is that it’s a haunted house story… sort of. More like haunted houses, but the way in which the premise is presented is quite novel.
Dread Central: We know Abattoir has been in your mind for a long time, in many manifestations. It was a graphic novel first, and now it’s a movie. Since the screenwriters did not work on the books, please tell us how they came onto the film and what they each brought to the story.
Darren Lynn Bousman: This story and concept has been with me for years and years. However, with all things in Hollywood, things end up taking much much longer than you expect. Since I do not come from the comic book world, I didn’t feel comfortable trying to tackle that type of storytelling alone. Radical, my partners in this venture, ran a successful comic book company so I deferred to their judgment as it related to how to approach creating a successful series of books.
Radical brought in two writers, Troy Peteri and Rob Levin. We beat out the story for a few weeksm and then they went in and worked their magic. However, when it came to the film. I had strong visions and really wanted to work with someone who I thought would get my strange sensibility, yet had a unique voice.
I had recently read a spec script called “Down Satan,” which was based on the Clive Barker short story, written by Chris Monfette. I fell in love with the style and his voice. I called him up, pitched the idea, and we went off and wrote a draft.
This process, however, was very long. Years. And in this time, we tried new and different things. At times Chris wasn’t available so we brought in another friend, David Schow, who did some work on the material. But in the end we went back to Monfette. He has such a unique style in the way he writes, we found ourselves imitating his words and patterns of speech, so it made more sense for him to just finish the script.
DC: The cast in the movie is made up mostly of actors you have been working with recently on other projects, so… were some of the initial characters and roles rewritten to accommodate them? …Wasn’t the hero of the comics a man?
DLB: I like working with people I like to work with. Life’s too short to work, so I try to have as much fun on set as possible. We are lucky. We get paid to make believe. I like surrounding myself with people that make me feel comfortable and I have a connection with. I work with the same stable of people because we are all friends, and it’s fun to continue to get back on set together and do crazy things!
You are correct regarding the comic books. The original protagonist was a male. This story takes place after the comic books, as a continuation to the story.
DC: Dayton Callie is just flat-out amazing in everything. Most folks know him from “Sons of Anarchy”; was that the first time you noticed him, too?
DLB: I have been a fan of Dayton for a while. I fell in love with him while watching “Deadwood” on HBO. He commands the screen every second he on it. I wrote the role of Crone for Dayton Callie. He is my muse. No, seriously. From day 1 he was CRONE. As a director I get hung up on things; to me, this movie couldn’t be made without him. It started and stopped with him.
DC: The look of Abattoir is quite distinct – what are some of your own favorite horror visuals in the movie? And… what was it like to bring on a different DP, since so much of what you’ve done with Joseph White has helped craft a style that’s connected to your work as an artist.
DLB: To be honest, this was very hard for me working with a new DP. Joe White and I have such a shorthand that at this point we actually know what the other is thinking. However, with this picture, it was important to the producers and myself that it looked nothing like my other films; we wanted this to stand alone and not be like anything else I had done.
Working the Michael (the DP) was something I needed to happen. It challenged me. It forced me out my comfort zone. I couldn’t rely on the shorthand so I was forced to articulate ideas that I realized didn’t make any sense. Michael wanted to talk and understand every shot and my idea for every shot. So it placed me in place of having to vocalize “why” a lot. This caused me to realize, “Okay, this actually doesn’t make a lot of sense.”
I feel as a filmmaker is caused me to grow. Michael had a much different way of working than I was used to. After a few days of working with him, I realized this guy has a lot to teach me!
DC: The haunted architecture sub-genre is cool because it’s not about the ghosts; it’s about the dwelling. What are some of your favorite movies on that theme, and what do you think makes it work so well?
DLB: Wow, this is hard… Any time anyone asks me to name a movie I like, or was inspired by, I shut down. I have to say my biggest inspiration for a film like this is the Polanski Trilogy – The Tenant, Repulsion, and Rosemary’s Baby. The horrors for these films are as much about the dwelling as what is inside the dwelling.
For me, I know that I can not compete with the bigger haunted house flicks opening. Between Insidious and The Conjuring… (Wait, I think I know that director…!), people have seen that movie, and the last thing I want to do is regurgitate different versions of those movies. Abattoir is NOT a movie about a haunted house. Abattoir is about the construction of the house, and WHY it came to be built.
I love haunted house movies, but I wanted to try a different spin on something that seemed familiar.
DC: We know you’re getting ready to celebrate your big red carpet premiere at the LAFF. What are some of your favorite, and least favorite, things about all the fanfare of a public debut?
DLB: Favorite part: Hmmm, the mere fact that this was made. Seeing it on Tuesday night is this emotional release. It’s done. We did it.
Least Favorite Part: I am reclusive person. I can do the dance and go on a road show, but 90% of my day is spend in isolation. I think as an artist I’m scared of being hurt. I could pretend to be a badass and say I don’t give a fuck about what anyone says, but that’s bullshit. I absolutely cares what everybody says. I make movies for me, but the hope is everyone else will like them.
With a film like Abattoir, it’s almost 7 years of my life. 7 long, long years of fighting and tragedies and deaths to get this film made. It’s a part of me. It’s years of my life. Now, I have to sit back and let people judge it… But it’s not really it they are judging, is it? It’s kind of “me.” Judge me. Am I good enough? Is my movie engaging enough? So premieres terrify me. Why? Because I care. I care a whole lot.
That said, fuck it. I like it, I am proud of it, and in the end that’s all I can control!
DC: You always have something exciting in the works – and it’s usually a complete departure from the last thing – so tell us what’s next from you?
DLB: Taking a much needed break and hanging out with my son!
Abattoir stars Jessica Lowndes, Dayton Callie, J. LaRose, Joe Anderson, and Lin Shaye. Bousman directed from a script by David Schow, Teddy Tenenbaum, and Christopher Monfette.
Synopsis:
A real estate reporter named Julia Talben unearths an urban legend about a house being built from rooms where horrific tragedies have occurred. The investigation ultimately leads Talben and a detective to the enigmatic Jebediah Crone and the answer to the question: How do you construct a haunted house?
Categorized:News
