Rent on Apple TV, Amazon, and Microsoft
Purchase from The Criterion Collection
TRIGGER WARNING:
Shootings and acts of mass violence are mentioned in this review.
One of my favorite pastimes is enjoying YouTube videos from my favorite content creators. One such creator is an energetic and entertaining gentleman who calls himself Count Jackula from the planet Dracula: a horror cinema enthusiast who reviews and discusses classic horror films and how they reflect often ignored aspects of humanity. It was on Count Jackula's show that I first learned of what may be one of the most underrated classics in horror cinema history, Targets: released in 1968, produced by the king of schlock Roger Corman, with a script secretly rewritten by legendary screenwriter Samuel Fuller, directed by Peter Bogdanovich (who would later go on to direct Paper Moon and Mask), and featuring what is considered by many as the proper farewell performance of the legendary actor, Boris Karloff.
Like many classic works of cinema, Targets is especially relevant even today. The film tackles something that is, sadly, far too familiar in American society, spree shootings. The film asks the uncomfortable question, which horror is more terrifying: the monsters of old or the inhumane actions of real people? While the film does not shy away from the brutal results of mass shootings, it does so in a clever way that is more tasteful (for want of a better word) and coherent than one might expect. Targets deposits the real reason for most mass shootings; the concerns stemming from one's mortality and the genuine power of creativity all rolled into a compelling and shocking story of one troubled man's actions coming head to head with another man's mortal revelations. A true horror story, if ever there was one!
Many of the points I will make and discuss in this blog entry will be somewhat parroting the points made by Count Jackula in his video review. Typically, I would encourage you to watch the video after reading my blog entry. However, the video concludes with a "joke" that I cannot, in good conscience, feature or repeat on this blog, despite how entertaining and spot-on the rest of the video is regarding today's movie. Please know that I do not intend to plagiarize or rephrase Jackula's words into my own; I merely do not want to feature his video on my blog.
Anyway, back to the movie.
Targets tells the story of two contrasting visions of horror and how they eventually collide through forces of their nature. Our protagonist is a classic horror movie star, Byron Orlock, portrayed by Boris Karloff (yes, I know, just go with it), and our antagonist, or rather the vessel of the story's antagonistic force, is a troubled young former soldier named Bobby (Tim O'Kelly).
Orlock is in the early stages of his golden years, attempting to come to terms with his mortality. He plans to announce his official retirement from the movie business. However, his plans couldn't come at a worse time since a young up-and-coming filmmaker named Sammy Michaels (Peter Bogdanovich) has a script written with Orlock in mind, and the producers will only back the movie if Orlock is involved. So, Sammy has to convince Orlock to postpone his retirement for this last film, causing Sammy to spend the day with Orlock discussing their love for cinema and what constitutes absolute horror in the modern age.
Meanwhile, Bobby lives a quiet, decent life with his wife, parents, and siblings. Despite having a seemingly stable environment, Bobby has fits of alienation and isolation, possibly due to his experience in the military. His uncertain feelings initially cause him to cry for help, however subtly, only for his calls to be met with non-committal statements and apparent fits of apathy. His jarred-up feelings slowly build up to a massive secret gun collection, which Bobby eventually decides to put to use in the worst possible way.
Toward the end of the film, the two forces of horror find themselves coming head to head at a drive-in movie theater, and what follows is one of the most outstanding showcases of human storytelling and commentary that has ever been put to the silver screen.
What makes Targets such a unique film and a perfect choice for a Halloween viewing is how it tackles the horror concept, seamlessly combining fictional and real-world actions to blur the line between the two. Most relevant is how the film showcases the motivation behind horrific acts like mass shootings and what is needed to prevent them but is often overlooked or ignored by too many. Targets is a more human story than it has any right to be and is a must-watch for any cinema fan, especially during the Halloween season.
If you can, give this one a look.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am TheNorm; thank you all for reading.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
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