By Matt Rogerson
A dejected bartender and an aging drag queen try to survive the eccentric and hostile nightlife of a corrupt city, as a masked maniac slaughters young gay men and drains them of blood.
Directors
In recent years, there have been some fantastic entries into the Queer Horror canon – legitimate queer films such as Brad Michael Elmore’s BIT and Yann Gonzalez’ KNIFE + HEART. Well I’m happy to endorse DEATH DROP GORGEOUS to become part of that canon.
The film written, directed by Michael J Aherne, Christopher Dalpe and Brandon Perras-Sanchez (the latter of which also helms the camera and edits) has already won the Audience Award at the Boston LGBT Film Festival, and less notably a place in my heart.
A dejected bartender (Wayne Gonsalves) and an aging drag queen (Payton St James) try to survive the eccentric and hostile nightlife of a corrupt city, as a masked maniac slaughters young gay men and drains them of blood.
Death Drop Gorgeous is, in effect, and LGBTQ+ Slasher film, set in Providence, Rhode Island (which looks so much like England I thought I was being trolled for a good half hour). It focuses solely on the gay quarter in Providence, and this is refreshing. So often ‘queer-friendly’ horrors do the bare minimum, as the desire to attract a mainstream cishet audience overtakes the core mission.
Not here.
This is a modern horror made by and for queer folk, and this queer is here for it.
Death Drop Gorgeous is unashamedly, unabashedly LGBTQ+, with no conflicting intentions. There is everything you would expect from top drawer queer entertainment: stunning drag shows, incredibly self-aware, tongue in cheek humour, a dollop of kitsch and BLOODY HELL THERE IS SOME GORE! Enough to satisfy anyone’s bloodlust, with some incredibly inventive set pieces and awesome makeup and practical effects (by Victoria Elizabeth Black and Scott C Miller). We start with a slasher staple: a screwdriver stabbing, but trust me it gets even better. If I say gloryholes and meatgrinders, you’ll get the idea!
Having the killer use gay hook-ups to lure victims is prescient and a little poignant. Those of us in the community know that gay hook-up culture is relegated to the margin to appease the cishets, and therefore is genuinely fraught with danger. This gives the film real stakes right from the off.
If I go into the plot too much I’ll spoil too many surprises, but let me say that it escalates at a whopping pace, with plenty of room for glam, drama, spite and some really nice touches. Our queers are just as at home moshing to hardcore punk as they are at a glam drag show, and everything is presented in a wonderfully up front manner – the film says ‘this is us – deal with it’.
The mystery/thriller elements build nicely, and again without revealing too much there are some fantastic rug-pulls and very satisfying reveals. The final fight is like something out of WWE Smackdown (and you better believe that is a compliment), but not before the film stops to show us the greatest horror of all: when a Hen Party (Batchelorette Party in the US?) invades a gay bar. Chilling stuff.
The cast has an absolute blast with the material, and I also have to shout out the OST by Devon Hunt, Kyle Paradis and Limmazene. It just feels like everybody, no matter their role, had so much fun on this film, as they should have.
Any let downs? Well, it is of course made on a low budget, but honestly some of the sets and locations look like they’ve had millions spent on them. It is shot on what looks like ultra hi def, correct me if I’m wrong, and that does mean it looks a little too much like real life and not like movie real life for me…but the direction and camerawork is sublime so that soon helps me get over that.
Overall, if you love queer horror you will adore this. If you’re just into entertaining, tongue in cheek slashers with a ton of lovingly produced gore, this film is definitely one for you.
One to check out, for sure.
*** DEATH DROP GORGEOUS - in theaters and On Demand September 10**
Be sure to check out the trailer and the website below!
OFFICIAL WEBSITE For Death Drop Gorgeous!
The son of a VHS pirate, Matt Rogerson became a horror fan at a tender young age. A student of the genre, he is currently writing his first book (about Italian horror and the Vatican) and he believes horror cinema is in the middle of a new golden age.
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