It’s spring, a time of renewal, a time when the weather
starts to pick up. Fortunately, on Saturday, April 14, 2018, the weather was
complete and utter bullshit trash. Like some of the worst I’ve ever seen, and
I’ve lived in Washington my whole life, so I know of which I speak. This fact
just made it easier to spend all day inside watching scary movies with
likeminded weirdoes at the 8th annual BoneBat Comedy of Horrors Film Festival.
And once again, it was a total gas.
And there’s beer! As if I needed another reason to sit
inside and work on my vitamin D deficiency.
The 2018 installment was, yet again, one of oddest, most
unique and endearing film events on the Seattle calendar. Combining comedy and
horror presents a challenging proposition, but one of BoneBat’s greatest
attributes is that, among the dozens and dozens of shorts—and two features—most
of them are at least solid.
This year’s lineup featured zombies, cannibals, malevolent
spirits, and more. And they ran the gamut from cheap and schlocky to slick and polished.
Some have clever concepts that play with genre norms and nod to horror history,
while others gleefully wallow in their over-the-top gore and go-for-broke nonsense.
This year featured entries from all over the globe. They screened
movies from Iran, Russia, and Uruguay, among others. Some have already made the
festival rounds, though others staged their world premieres. Steve and Gord
always do a fantastic job of selecting titles that span what horror has to
offer, mixing scares and gore with absurdity and laughs.
She’s All Wet envisions what would happen
if you order a stripper, but a creepy ghost girl from a J-horror movie shows up
at the door instead. Deep Sleeper explores the hidden perils
of being, well, a deep sleeper during a zombie apocalypse. The
Party offers another reason why you never fuck with teens having a
loud party next door.
MAMON presents a chaotic, sci-fi take on
the current border situation, complete with a giant Trump robot.
Ducko crafts a hilarious Psycho riff,
with a rubber ducky filling the Norman Bates role. Eggs, Zombies, and
Bacon gives you an idea of just how bad—and how right—a drunken
one-night stand can go. Hint, it involves the undead, but also offers an unexpected
emotional punch.
Interspersed with the multiple blocks of short films, Bone
Bat always showcases two features.
First up was the Seattle premiere of Another
WolfCop, which, if you’re familiar with the franchise, or just like
the name WolfCop, you know what you’re getting in for. So,
if you’re into strip club massacres, werewolf dong, a talking penis mini-me,
and an absurdly long werewolf sex scene, this is for you. In addition to being
a crazy chaotic blast, the filmmakers were in town and took a few minutes for a
fun Q&A session.
Ellensburg’s Devilwood provided 2018’s musical interlude.
There’s always at least one on the card. Not my particular cup of tea, but
people seemed to enjoy themselves. So make of that what you will.
I had to duck out a bit early, so I missed the extensive
raffle. Not to worry, I wouldn’t have won anything anyway. In all the years I’ve
attended, I’ve never won a damn thing. Which is actually impressive. They have
dozens and dozens of prizes from a variety of sponsors, to the point where it
often feels like everyone in the crowd wins something. Still, nothing. Nada. I’ve
come to terms and accepted my lot in life.
I also missed the final block of short and the last feature,
Double Date, but it looked like fun.
All in all, once again the BoneBat Comedy of Horrors Film Festival delivered the goods. It’s been a damn fine time every year I’ve gone. So
if you want to witness a bunch of horror madness you simply won’t find anywhere
else, check out some up-and-coming young filmmakers, and maybe drink a few
beers, hit it up when it rolls around in 2019.
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