‘Sing your heart out’
Stage Fright is a 2014 American horror/musical film written and directed by Jerome Sable -his film debut after several shorts, including The Legend of Beaver Dam.
Main cast:
Minnie Driver, Meat Loaf (The Rocky Horror Picture Show), Allie MacDonald, Douglas Smith, Kent Nolan, Brandon Uranowitz, Ephraim Ellis, Melanie Leishman, James McGowan, Steffi DiDomenicantonio, Ryan Bobkin, Leanne Miller, Adrianna Di Liello.
Plot:
When teenager Camilla Swanson, a starry-eyed kitchen hand, lands herself a role in the Broadway-bound showcase at the musical theater camp where she works, but just when rehearsals begin, blood starts to spill. The camp is being terrorized by “Metal Killer”, a masked slasher who screams death metal rock while hunting down every last pretentious cast member of the show…
Review:
Stage Fright has a few well staged and surprisingly gory murders along the way that help compensate for the terrible songs. The cast are, for the most part, decent, with MacDonald making an appealing leading lady and Meat Loaf playing things with more restraint and dignity than you might have expected, given the material.
While hardly essential viewing, Stage Fright ultimately turns out to be harmless enough entertainment, even with the presence of the dire musical turns.
David Flint, moviesandmania
Buy: DVD | Instant Video from Amazon.co.uk
Other reviews:
“For a weird genre mash-up that’s both legitimately funny and graced by a handful of great original songs (yes, it’s that kind of musical!), Stage Fright is not dainty when it comes to the kills. The movie is not very scary, which is fine, given what the filmmakers are clearly shooting for, but it is occasionally creepy and frequently quite gory.” Scott Weinberg, FEARnet
“In the hands of a lesser director (or lesser cast for that matter), this film would’ve been a flat “isn’t that funny… no need to watch that again” one off, but instead what you get is a melodic blend of gore, music, and whimsical fun. Would I drop $9.00 to see this thing in theaters? Yep. Great date movie with a dash of something for everyone – a rarity.” Muldoon, Ain’t It Cool News
“The highs (like that opening musical number) are just wonderful and sharp and super fun. The slasher elements are done with style and flair and are (in more than one instance) a damned bloody mess. But the balance, at times, feels off. Not to make a pun, but the rhythm of the film sometimes feels about a beat slow from where it should be so when we get to that big slasher-reveal and culmination, the up and down nature of everything taken all together leaves said reveal and the climax not as scary or gut-punching as it should be.” Flay Otters, Horror-Movies.ca
Buy Blu-ray from Amazon.com
- Audio Commentary
- The Making Of Stage Fright
- Outtakes
- Deleted Scenes
- Interviews: Writer/Director Jerome Sable
- Co-Composer Eli Batalion
- AXS TV: A Look at Stage Fright
- “The Legend of Beaver Dam”
- Original Trailer
