This is an excellent movie. I have to say that right out of the gate because I disagree with some of what Steven Goldmann, the director, said about his movie, even though this will be a very favorable review.
Based on the hit series from Imperium Comics Trailer Park of Terror is, essentially, two seperate stories. The first is that of Norma (Nichole Hiltz), a beautiful young girl who lives in a trailer park alone and who only wants to be loved for who she is on the inside, not how she looks on the outside. She is abused and terrorized by the men who live in and ‘run’ the park itself, and she desperately wants to get away…. and she only has one chance. A young man who lives in a neighbouring town has fallen in love with her, but when he is killed trying to take her away she makes a deal with the devil (literally) for vengeance against the men who killed her lover. Once she has killed everyone in the park she burns it down, herself included. After a montage of newspaper clippings during the credits, in which we learn that every few years people go missing from the general vicinity of the very park where Norma lived. Which brings us to our second story. A group of troubled youths are on a bus trip with their pastor in what appears to be a last ditch attempt at redemption. They are a motley group of kids, who like sex, drugs and getting into trouble in general. Their names are unimportant, they are just there to further the plot. As we follow the bus of kids into the park we discover that Norma is still alive and ringleading her own even more motley crew of the undead. Some of the more entertaining kills I’ve ever seen on screen ensue.
My major problem with this movie was not that of plot, production values, entertainment, or disbelief, it was that there is no one in this movie to like. In fact, you like Norma and her crew more than you like the kids only because the kids are so insipid that you can’t wait for them to die. Which was exactly the point. When I asked Mr. Goldmann during the Q&A why no one was sympathetic, he indicated that it was Norma who was sympathetic. He felt that this was a love note to the movies of his childhood and that this movie was intended to be one where the ‘bad guys’ are the ‘heroes’, making a simile to the Universal Monster movies, a statement with which I entirely disagree, and I must say that if this was what he intended, he really missed his mark. The UniversalMonsters are, for the most part, unwitting monsters. They became that way – largely – through no fault of their own and generally kill because they have to, not because they derive some sick pleasure from it. Wolfman was infected by a wolf bite and cannot control his actions. Frankenstein was created and kills out of self defense and anger at his situation. Even Dracula must kill in order to live, but Norma made her own choice to become what she is and takes great glee in the destruction and depravity of those people who came her way. There is no explanation of why she does it, only why she ended up there. She doesn’t even particularly ‘punish’ the demons/undead working with her. She ringleads, not controls. Despite his attempts otherwise, I stopped feeling sorry for Norma when she got her revenge.
Please note that disagreeing with his philosophy is not the same thing as disliking his movie. This is more fun than I’ve had in a theatre watching a genre movie in a long, long time. The production values are exquisite and the script is fantastic and, even though you don’t start out expecting it, there are more than just a few moments where you’re dying to just crawl out of your seat.
This was the last public showing of this movie, but fear not, the movie will be out on DVD on October 21 (since I’m posting this a little late I should note that that was yesterday) and I strongly recommend owning, not renting this movie. Mr. Goldmann is an excellent filmmaker and he will get a sequel to this movie if he moves an unknown number (even to him) of DVD units. Please go and buy it. This is the type of intelligent director you want doing your horror. See it, buy it. Do whatever it takes, because I can’t wait for the next one.
