#Hooptober9

💀 NUMBER TWENTY SIX 💀
💀 TWO US REGIONAL HORROR FILMS FROM THE 1970s 💀

"Scalpel" (1977)
* dir: John Grissmer
* Drama / Thriller / It's Sweaty, It's Sleazy, It's Southern Gothic
[ ★★★★ / ★★★★★ ]

Have you ever wondered what would happen if Tennesse Williams had penned a deeply odd, emotionally charged, twisty-turny psychosexual suspense melodrama in 1977? That ended up being shockingly well-directed by the man behind the equally bizarre and even more overcranked "Blood Rage"? With a fascinating editing rhythm that pushes the already wildly hysterical into the realm of the casually surreal and disarmingly lush cinematography from frequent Todd Haynes collaborator Edward Lachman?

I mean...that's a weirdly specific thing to wonder about. But BOY, are you in luck!

Honestly: this one is bordering on a four-and-a-half star for me, and I feel like another viewing in the future would probably move that needle pretty easily. "Scalpel" unfolds like some sort of highly quotable Greek tragical farce, almost operatic in the way our central two actors play each moment to the goddamn rafters and how every single emotion is heightened to the absolute breaking point. It's like "Eyes Without A Face" by way of "Rebecca", but covered in a fine layer of exploitation grime and shot through with a constant hum of deliciously witty pitch-black comedy. "Vertigo" for people who say "I do declare" and take ill-advised skinny dipping excursions into the woods.

So pour yourself a fresh mint julep, sit on the porch a spell, and give yourself over to some nice old-fashioned warped southern hospitality. Ya hear?