Nightmare Cinema (2019)

Directors: Mick Garris, Alejandro Brugués, Joe Dante, Ryûhei Kitamura, David Slade

Writers: Sandra Becerelli, Mick Garris, Alejandro Brugués, Lawrence C. Connolly, Richard Christian Matheson, David Slade

Cast: Mickey Rourke, Sarah Elizabeth Withers, Zarah Mahler, Mark Grossman, Elizabeth Reaser, Richard Chamberlain, Adam Godley, and many more.

Anthologies don’t get the respect they deserve. Understandably, most audiences want one story to follow when watching a feature-length film, but there is a lot more beauty to take in when an anthology is done correctly. There are surprises everywhere — the actors we see that we didn’t expect or the directors we find out made the one of the segments after a mad dash to IMDB when we recognize something distinctive in the segment’s style. We also get a treat when the segments are connected in especially clever ways that presents a cohesive, albeit shallow, story that keeps our attention during the downtime between them. That shallowness is necessary, however. We don’t want to be distracted from the stars of the show. These elements come together beautifully in Nightmare Cinema.

The Projectionist lures people into his movie theater for a presentation of their own fears, eerily starring themselves. Each short is led by a different director, each with a significant impact in horror: Alejandro Brugués, known for directing Pooka Lives! and writing ABCs of Death 2, directs The Thing in the Woods, a slasher turned alien invasion; Joe Dante, of Gremlins and The Howling fame, helms Mirari, an exploration into the dangers of vanity and plastic surgery; Ryûhei Kitamura, director of The Midnight Meat Train tells us Mashit, a story of a demon that wreaks havoc on a church full of children; David Slade, who gave us 30 Days of Night and Hard Candy brings us This Way to Egress, about a woman who experiences a disconnection from reality after trauma; and last but not least, Mick Garris, director of Sleepwalkers and The Stand miniseries not only gives us Dead, about a boy who’s traumatic experience comes with a chilling side effect, but he ties all of these shorts together with the dark activity the Projectionist is up to.

Nightmare Cinema is one well thought out movie. Many anthologies don’t have an arc or journey to them. Each short film stands alone and shines all by itself. This does indeed do that, but what’s different about this anthology is that there’s a crescendo of darkness. The Thing in the Woods starts us off light and campy, playing off every slasher cliché in the book in a brilliantly ridiculous ride with an unexpected twist into a completely different genre that, as far out as it is, somehow fits so well. The descent into darkness starts early on and we don’t stop falling down the bottomless pit, hitting many tropes and sub-genres on the way down.

Mirari and Mashit respectively take us down the pit a few miles. Mirari’s take on vanity removes just enough of the camp from the opening piece to be the step down the hole that the audience needs. What is truly great about it is the tone. Despite its Creepshow feel (which is dead on), it sets everything in motion for the rest of the movie. Dante was perfect for the job, given his horror-comedy experience with Gremlins, and the short film was as chilling as it was somewhat lighthearted, able to play on how frightening it would be to be caught in a situation with no escape and it being all your own fault. Mashit takes the tone of another popular anthology series, Tales from the Crypt. Coincidentally, this tale of demon possession shares a similar tone to Demon Knight, slightly venturing away from his familiar The Midnight Meat Train but hitting a level of terror that exceeds any tale the Crypt Keeper can tell.

The Projectionist then introduces us, and his next victim, to a film that does away with any amount of light we were able to still see and engulfs us in a fear that worries all of us: trauma as a result of loss. This Way to Egress is a poignant stand out in this anthology that follows a mother who slips into madness after she and her two sons are deserted by her husband. This installment, the only to be presented in monochrome, is fiercely dark and has no time to take things lightly. It’s a slow burn, the flame reeking of solitude, claustrophobia, and melancholy. A beautifully performed short, This Way to Egress serves a very personal story that all of us can relate to on some level, which makes it the most frightening part of this anthology.

But the fright doesn’t stop there. Dead may be somewhat of a palate cleanser, but only by tone alone (we go back to color, which may be what takes the edge off). It’s only slightly less edgy but the story is not any less relenting. After a teenage boy watches his parents get murdered in front him and is nearly killed himself, he gains the ability to see the spirits of the dead, an ability that complicates things for him when the killer returns to finish what he started. This was a solid final piece to the anthology. It deals with a different kind of loss than Egress but a powerful one, nonetheless. It did bring back a small amount of the camp in the way his mother interacted with him throughout the segment, providing the light at the end of the tunnel necessary for a tight wrap up. Mick Garris directed this short as well as the scenes between segments featuring the Projectionist (the casting of which was pleasantly surprising), which made for a smooth landing into the credits.

Five short films from five strong directors make an excellent and fun movie watching experience. The twists and turns come in forms that you can’t get from a feature film telling just one story. This horror sub-genre deserves so much more attention than it gets, and this movie is an example of why. Nightmare Cinema can and should be a template if not at least an example of what horror anthologies should be.

Nightmare Cinema is available to stream on Shudder.