November 17, 2015

Part of the reason I love specialty labels such as Scream Factory is that they always introduce me to long-thought-to-be-lost oddities. Crazy films with radical genre conventions that I probably wouldn’t have sought out otherwise. Out today, November 17th on Blu-Ray and DVD is one of those films, Donald Cammel’s WHITE OF THE EYE.

I had first heard a bit about the film via my Killer POV co-host Elric Kane, a huge fan of director Donald Cammel. His real life story (and death) are the stuff of Hollywood legend. A quick online search uncovered that Cammel’s father had penned a biography about Aleister Crowley. In 1970, alongside Nicolas Roeg (DON’T LOOK NOW) he co-wrote and co-directed the cult flick PERFORMANCE with The Rolling Stones Mick Jagger in the lead. He also made the 1977 cult film DEMON SEED, later directed music videos for U2, and at different periods in his career had projects set up with Marlon Brando and Sean Connery. He committed suicide in 1996 by a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, which didn’t initially kill him. Rumor has it, he watched himself expire with a mirror held up to his face. (Something that actually happens in the movie WHITE OF THE EYE, but more on that in a minute.)

According to this quote from his wife China Kong on his IMDB page, after shooting himself “he lived for forty-five minutes, in a state of clarity and ecstasy that was, for me, unimaginable. He spoke nearly continuously, recounting people, places, and plans. Finally, the room seemed to fill with light, and he died.” Again, the full details of why he committed suicide when he was 2 days away from beginning a new film titled ‘33’ (with Bill Pullman in the lead) is a mystery.

But knowing all this about the filmmaker makes it impossible not to step into the wild world of WHITE OF THE EYE without a strange, morbid sense of curiosity regarding the man who made it. While not a straight forward “horror” film per se, it does involve the pursuit of a serial killer. The opening “murder” sequence is one of the most wildly vivid and artistically orchestrated on-screen murders, worthy of Alfred Hitchcock or Brian De Palma. A young woman is followed home from the supermarket and the identity of her assailant is hidden behind carefully framed kitchen cabinets. When he strikes, it suddenly switches to slow motion, the goldfish that’s been randomly dropped on her rib roast on the counter is struggling to breathe, a bottle of wine shatters and scatters crimson all over the white floor and then it’s all over.

We then focus on Paul White (David Keith), a home sound technician, and his family as he becomes a suspect in the crime(s). White and his beautiful wife Joan (Cathy Moriarty) have a great love for each other, but as we start to delve a bit into their past via flashbacks and meet her former boyfriend whom Paul stole her away from, things start to seem less tranquil than they initially appeared. Paul’s also constantly tempted by another lonely married woman into infidelity. The majority of the film plays as a very artsy drama, but then there’re those murder sequences.

Another one later on has the killer dropping a girl upside down on her head to knock her out. When she awakens, she’s wrapped up tightly in a carpet and dumped into a bath tub full of water to slowly drown. The killer holds up a mirror to her face so that she can watch herself die. Pretty messed up stuff!

The thing that sets this film apart from most other “horror” fare of this sort is that it’s beautifully shot. The narrative may have some plot holes throughout, but the staging and execution of some of these takes makes it a worthwhile trip to take. There’s a terrific candid interview with Larry McConkey who was technically one of two cinematographers on the film, and his stories about how crazy Cammel was only confirm that this was a filmmaker auteur like no other. He goes into detail about how passionate and focused he was, yet at the same time extremely confrontational and antagonistic, which was perhaps how he got the best out of his crew. He explains how certain scenes and shots came to be, so I strongly recommend watching this immediately after the movie itself.

Also of note, the killer “reveal” does make for an intriguing and suspenseful final act, but the less you know, the better. David Keith is the traditional every man. Totally likable and affable. He reminds me quite a bit of Shaun Ashmore (FROZEN, Fox’s THE FOLLOWING) who happens to be one of my favorite actors working currently. There’s also something striking about Cathy Moriarty, who became a big star from her back to back performances in RAGING BULL and NEIGHBORS, but then had to take a break from acting after an automobile accident. This was her return to acting a good 6 years after her turn in NEIGHBORS, and she’s terrific in the role. She reminds me quite a bit of Faye Dunaway.

The film wasn’t exactly a hit upon release, but I think it never caught on with horror fans of that era because in 87, we were engrossed in the fantastical exploits of Freddy, and Jason, and Michael Myers. Whereas WHITE OF THE EYE showcased a real killer. Now, however, is the ideal time to rediscover it.

WHITE OF THE EYE is now available from Scream Factory as a Blu-Ray / DVD combo.