Enough of this "Splat Pack" Stuff Already
Filed under: Classics, Horror, Fandom, Remakes and Sequels
If there's one thing the media really loves to do, it's lump a bunch of barely-connected people into an ill-fitting group -- and then give that group a clever name. Whether it's The Rat Pack, The Brat Pack or The Splat Pack, I just get irked whenever a new "pack" makes it into the cultural lexicon. Oh, you're not familiar with that last one? Yeah, it's a moniker that's been given to a bunch of "new" horror filmmakers, one that seems to imply that these guys get together every weekend to smoke weed and watch Halloween 2 together.According to a recent article in Time Magazine, one that seems to approach horror flicks the same way a prissy schoolmarm would approach some inappropriate comic books, the members of "The Splat Pack" are Eli Roth (Cabin Fever, Hostel), Neil Marshall (Dog Soldiers, The Descent), Alex Aja (High Tension, The Hills Have Eyes), Rob Zombie (House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil's Rejects), and James Wan, Leigh Whannell and Darren Lynn Bousman of the Saw trilogy. (Apparently Wolf Creek director Greg McLean was part of the original pack, although he goes unmentioned in the Time article, probably because he hasn't made much money yet.)
But what do these guys have in common, really, other than the fact that they all make horror flicks? I see Americans, Brits, Aussies and a Frenchman in the mix, and while some of the guys are fresh-faced and 20-something, guys like Roth have been toiling away in backstage anonymity for years. Plus, c'mon, Rob Zombie is 42 years old, so how exactly does he tie in with these kids? And why is it that Neil Marshall never seems to be quoted in these articles? Is he just included because his horror movies are ... GOOD? Apparently the Splat Pack label was created by Alan Jones of Total Film, and I'm sure the guy's an absolute expert on horror flicks -- but labels create limits, exclusions and oversights. And, ultimately, articles like this one, I suppose. (Either way, I bet Jones bangs out a book called The Splat Pack by the end of 2008.)
The UK's Christopher Smith (Creep, Severance) is young and horror-heavy, so why isn't he a member of The Pack? Shouldn't (Dawn of the Dead screenwriter, Slither director) James Gunn be one of the den mothers? Lucky McKee has made only two feature films (May and The Woods), but they're both downright excellent pieces of horror. Why's he not a member? Uwe Boll's done a bunch of horror flicks that could be accurately described as " laden with torture," so why not throw him an invitation? You want a guy who loves the word splat? Try Jake West, the guy who directed Evil Aliens. Plus I read another article a while back in which Jonathan Liebesman (Darkness Falls, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning) was considered a member of The SP! Now, if that guy can be considered some sort of "future of horror," I'll eat my hat.
The common themes among the Splat Packers are ... what? They all like horror movies, they don't shy away from intense chills, harsh themes or copious gore, and they're all carbon-based life forms, I guess. But really: Does anyone out there think the work of Eli Roth is even remotely similar to that of Neil Marshall? Does a Rob Zombie flick remind you of what was seen in, say, High Tension? I mean, if you're going to define a term, then define it. And as a big fan of just about all these movies, I just gotta scratch my head when I hear these guys lumped together in one basket.
And what happens when guys like Ryan Schifrin (Abominable), Adam Green (Hatchet), J.T. Petty (S&Man) Scott Glosserman (Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon), Jon Levine (All the Boys Love Mandy Lane) and Adam Mason (Broken) start to make their way up the ranks? Will we have the arrival of Splat Pack 2: The New Generation? Back in the late '70s/early '80s, did we need a goofy little heading to remember names like Carpenter, Hooper, Craven, Dante, Landis and Cunningham?
Ultimately, I have no real point. I'd just seen the phrase "Splat Pack" one too many times and felt the need to vent. Opposing viewpoints are welcome, as long as they agree with my own opinions.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-24-2006 @ 4:11PM
Ed said...
Why would anyone associate Rob Zombie with these directors. Dog Soldiers, Hostel, Saw, these movies creeped me out, and gave me nightmarers. The most a Rob Zombie movie has done is show me that the director thinks his audiance is so ignorant they'll believe the often confusing and lame script. And he really needs to learn that gallions of latex and blood isn't a legitamit source for terrifying anyone.
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10-24-2006 @ 5:41PM
Bruce Findleton said...
The main thing for me that's missing is an actual "pack". The Rat Pack'ers all hung together. They were a real pack. The Brat Pack'ers were in a bunch of the same movies together, not an actual pack maybe, but close. But the Splat Pack? What do they do together other than make independant horror flicks? Independantlly! There is no real "pack"ness there. They're more of a convenient editorial "package". Maybe we should call them the Splattage Package. (OK, maybe not)
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10-24-2006 @ 5:58PM
A. Horbal said...
Here, here! You can't just create a film movement out of thin air...
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10-24-2006 @ 9:23PM
Peter said...
I was reading an article the other day, Fangoria I believe, that mentioned this Splat Pack dubbing, so I Wiki'd it. I'd just be regurgitating your very complaints here, but yes, there's no reason these people should be grouped together and the sheer fact that they are is telling of the trendiness of mainstream horror these days.
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10-25-2006 @ 11:19AM
Thomas said...
But there is a definite movement, though I wouldn't say it was outright organized or even unified.
We're seeing a groundswell of gorier films -- many of them featuring torture as a source of terror -- being accepted into the movie-going mainstream. My guess is that we started with Saw and moved on from there. While there isn't a conscious collaboration between any of the directors involved, the creators of these films are filling a need. This need is brought on my the increasing harshness of reality itself.
Movies have to compete not only with each other, but with reality. Horror serves to show us that our own lives aren't nearly so terrifying. And right now, the world is a scary place.
You think that Hostel would've been nearly as successful if not for Abu Ghraib or Gitmo? Much like the splatter flicks of the early 80s succeeded during a Reaganite era of nuclear fear, the current crop of horror borne out of man's inhumanity to man serves as a distraction from 24-hour war coverage with no end in sight.
Just my two cents.
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10-25-2006 @ 8:32PM
Scott Weinberg said...
Hey Rebecca! Thanks for the comments, and also for being a good sport. After re-reading your article again, I must apologize for the schoolmarm reference. Although well-researched and obviously well-written, my first impression of your article was that you were new to this particular sub-genre -- and perhaps not all that thrilled with it. A third perusal of your piece indicates that I was probably just being too snarky, what with all my oh-so-geeky horror expertise. (Plus, I'm older than you, so if you're a schoolmarm, then I'm a grampa.)
Upon further reflection, I probably should have been thrilled that the horror flicks are making their way into Time Magazine -- but honestly, the "Splat Pack" thing is just all sorts of annoying. And so I vented.
As far as what's coming up next year, I can tell you I'm looking forward to all sorts of horror flicks: I've already seen "The Host" and "Severance," both of which are very entertaining. There's sequels to Hostel, 28 Days Later, The Hills Have Eyes, Wrong Turn, . A giant croc flick called "Rogue," the (uh oh) remake of "The Hitcher," Hilary Swank's long-delayed "The Reaping," Rob Zombie's take on "Halloween," and a few others.
But I'm sure most horror fans would agree that there's one flick we're pretty much drooling for, and that's Tarantino & Rodriguez's "Grindhouse." Woohoo!
Again, thanks for reading and for leaving a comment. Hope there's no hard feelings. :)
-scott
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10-25-2006 @ 10:10PM
Peter said...
Seeing horror in Time Magazine may a smile on my face put, but the Splat Pack labeling only further supports the notion of mainstream media that horror and horror filmmakers are merely a clique in filmmaking, isolated from the now-norms of other directors.
Articles and interviews that actually cite directors referencing the works of their contemporaries as influences on their films are rare. This new breed of horror filmmakers all praise the giants that came before them, rather than each other - if anything binds them into a pack, it's that they idolize the likes of Carpenter, Landis, Hooper, Dante and Craven.
As for next year, Severance and The Host are my most anticipated stateside releases. I'd also add on a Thai film called Colic, which I've been jonesing for since the poster. Domestically, I'm going to have to go with David Slade's adaptation of 30 Days of Night, Rob Zombie's take on Halloween and, of course, Grindhouse.
Oh, even though it's not my post or site, I too would like to extend a thanks for posting up a comment. It's always a treat when the writer of a referenced article cares enough to keep their voice going.
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10-27-2006 @ 3:03PM
Rebecca said...
No hard feelings at all. See you at Grindhouse!
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10-29-2006 @ 3:35AM
Chris Chase said...
It's only too bad that while Time Magazine attempts to put a trendy label on the latest creators of this literal 'craze' of "GORE-ture" movies, there's a quiet movement going on behind-the-scenes led by little-known, true independent filmmakers to take horror back to its roots. Mention names like Mike Flanagan, Jeremy Breslau and Lance Weiler, and all you're bound to get are those looks like you just said "Your mother eats socks" in Klingon. Yet all three of these young men have written, produced and directed short films that are enough to have you wetting your pants while hardly showing a drop of blood or a severed limb.
But I guess the "shrieking chainsaws" get all the grease, so in the meantime we'll be forced to settle for more remakes and more sequels like "SAW Part 10."
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11-03-2006 @ 7:56AM
Lars said...
Actually, the "pack" does get together. They have dinner partys with the old schools (Carpenter, Hooper, Romero, et cetera), so you could call them a pack in that sense.
Anyways, I prefer this gritty, no non-sense horror films these directors are coming out with instead of the tiring Japanese horror remake craze The Ring made famous... Saw sucks, though. Tihi.
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