Directed by John McNaughton
Distributed by Anchor Bay Entertainment
With Showtime’s second season of Masters of Horror in full swing, it’s a bit strange to be revisiting Season One concurrently with new installments being aired for the first time, but with the release of the series’ final two DVD’s this month and next (“Fair Haired Child” finally makes its home video bow December 12th), we reviewers don’t have much choice. But that’s okay with this woman as I missed “Haeckel’s Tale,” the last episode of the first season, during its initial run and have been curious to see if I’d concur with the numerous positive reviews I’ve seen for it. The short answer is “nope,” but the long answer is a lot more complex.
“Haeckel’s Tale,” based on a Clive Barker short story, was scripted by MOH‘s creator and executive producer Mick Garris and directed by John McNaughton, who was tapped for the job after George Romero bowed out (Romero does still receive an “In Association With…” credit at the beginning of the episode). Although he is, of course, best known for directing and co-writing Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, my fondest memories of McNaughton revolve around the episodes of the acclaimed TV series “Homicide: Life on the Street” that he directed, which coincidentally often co-starred Jon Polito. Adding to the incestuous nature of “Haeckel’s Tale” is the fact that Derek Cecil worked with both McNaughton and Polito on the short-lived series “Push, Nevada.” These previous collaborations are discussed in some depth in the various featurettes found on the disc, and the men’s mutual admiration of and affection for each other is apparent — and well warranted as all three are quite gifted.
But let’s begin at the beginning. “Haeckel’s” is a tale within a tale. Set in the mid 1800’s, it begins with widower John Ralston (Bacic) visiting his local necromancer, Miz Carnation, with a plea that she revive the deceased wife whose funeral he has just attended. Miz Carnation hems and haws and claims to be unable to help him, using the excuse that she’s “all used up” in that regard, but he persists. Finally, in an effort to silence the young man, she begins recounting the saga of Ernst Haeckel. If, at the end of the telling, Ralston is still desirous of her services, then she promises to oblige. It should be noted that this intro (and its corresponding outro) are add-ons written solely by Garris, not a part of Barker’s original story.
And here is where “Haeckel’s Tale” loses its steam. Yes, there’s enough gore, nudity, and necrophilia to satisfy even the most hardened fan among us, but it all felt rather flat to me. By the time Haeckel’s tale was resolved and we returned to Miz Carnation and Mr. Ralston, I was restless and checking my watch — not a good sign for an hour-long program. But damn if I could figure out exactly why. All the elements for a truly great episode are there:
So that’s it for the feature itself, leaving us with the extras to consider. “Haeckel’s” falls in the category of DVD where I found the featurettes and commentary a good deal more interesting and entertaining than what I’m supposed to be paying my money to see. I certainly wouldn’t want the majority of my collection to be comprised of DVD’s like that, but once in a while it’s fine. I gained a lot of appreciation for McNaughton after viewing his “Breaking Taboos” interview. Both there and in his commentary he comes across as very likable and conversational. You can tell from his personality — and his bio — that he’s one of the good guys who sticks to his guns and only works on horror projects that avoid the clichés and veer toward the dark and subversive. My sole gripe is that his commentary ends so abruptly — no sign-off or thanks, just dead air. But he obviously has a lot of respect for the genre and us fans so by virtue of that alone I’m happy to see him included with all the other Masters.
Next up are three brief interviews with Leela Savasta, Derek Cecil, and Jon Polito. Like McNaughton, all seem to sincerely appreciate the opportunity to work on MOH. It was Cecil’s first outing in the genre, but now that he’s been bitten by the bug, I suspect it won’t be his last. As many of us did, Polito grew up on the classics and honed his love of horror (and beautiful women with large breasts) via the Hammer films. His interview is notable for his reminiscences of working with Tobe Hooper and John Landis. The “Working With a Master” segment is about two thirds Michael Rooker and Tom Towles discussing Henry. Good stuff! Definitely worth a rental at least if you’re not sure about buying the DVD.
Along with trailers and still and storyboard galleries that are de rigueur for all Masters of Horror releases, we’re given the obligatory narrative-free making-of, but this one manages to be more engaging than usual. Rounding out the disc is “Script to Screen,” an extra I’ve not seen before. Three different scenes (two from the intro/outro and one from Haeckel’s tale itself) are shown in stages: First up are pages from the script with voiceovers reading the lines; next is the filming process itself; and lastly is the finished scene. Watching this progression is fairly engrossing the first time out but grows much less so by the third. Still, it’s a neat little insider’s look at the filmmaking process that we don’t often get to see.
Not long ago on our forums a few readers complained that our rating system for DVD’s is misleading and should incorporate two separate sets of knives: one for the film/feature and another for the extras. The rebuttal is that most people accept that DVD reviews incorporate the full “package” and the rating represents an average. In the case of “Haeckel’s Tale” my review definitely is weighted in favor of the supplemental materials. The story itself contains almost all the parts needed to make it terrific, but such a weak script cannot be overlooked. Conversely, the appealing nature of the individuals involved with all the extras merits a great deal of looking at, thus raising what otherwise would have been a 2 to 2-1/2 rating up to a solid 3-1/2. But it’s really about a lot more than just a number — or just a film. The thing that makes the Masters of Horror series so worthwhile is its wide-ranging attention to detail and desire to provide horror fans with a plethora of information and enjoyment. No other set that I’ve seen goes that extra mile, and for that they will receive my ringing endorsement just about every time. I only wish they hadn’t changed the box art mid-stream. The new look without the director’s picture honestly couldn’t be more hideous!
Special Features:
Commentary by director John McNaughton
“Working With a Master: John McNaughton”
“Breaking Taboos: An Interview with John McNaughton”
“Behind the Scenes: The Making of Haeckel’s Tale”
“On Set: An Interview with Leela Savasta”
“On Set: An Interview with Derek Cecil”
“On Set: An Interview with Joe Polito”
“Script to Screen: Haeckel’s Tale”
John McNaughton bio
Still gallery
Storyboard gallery
DVD-ROM: Original screenplay and screen saver
Trailers
3 ½ out of 5
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