The Foo Fighters take up residence in a haunted mansion to record
their tenth album, where Dave Grohl gets possessed by demons. COMEDY/HORROR
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Studio 666 (2022)Directed by BJ McDonnell
Written by Jeff Buhler and Rebecca Hughes Starring Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Rami Jaffee, Pat Smear, Chris Shiflett, Whitney Cummings, Will Forte, Jeff Garlin, Jenna Ortega, Kerry King |
You had me at Foo Fighters. The pandemic lockdown gave us all a rare opportunity to slow down and reflect. In Dave Grohl's case, it led to this insane film's conception. I heard someone describe this thing as Spinal Tap meets Evil Dead, and that's a totally apt description. Studio 666 is the craziest horror film of the year thus far, and a damn funny comedy as well. Though they aren't the best actors, the Foo Fighters all have great chemistry with each other through decades of rocking out together, and they all have moments to shine in a film that doesn't take itself too seriously and just goes completely nuts with gore.
The Foo Fighters are approaching their tenth album, and they want it to be special. So, they rent out an abandoned mansion to record in, but it turns out the mansion is haunted by a demonic presence. Dave Grohl finds this out firsthand when he gets possessed and starts killing his bandmates one by one in uniquely gruesome ways from a chainsaw during coitus to a barbecue grill in the face. Meanwhile, Whitney Cummings plays their uberfan neighbor and Will Forte plays a fanboy delivery guy. Sure, the story doesn't make a lot of sense, but nobody is here for the story. Studio 666 is a fun movie with kill scenes that would make Leatherface blush. Plus, I'm a huge Foo Fighters fan, so I was onboard as soon as I saw the trailer. I'm more surprised at how over-the-top it ended up being. Definitely a crazy watch. |
Well, here we are with a movie I never would have expected to happen. Had someone ever told me we would get a horror comedy starring popular rock band, Foo Fighters, and helmed by Hatchet III director, BJ McDonnell, I would have thought you were crazy. Yet, in 2022, here we are. Filmed in secret during the recording of their recent studio album, Dave Grohl came up with the story. Using the connections he has; it wouldn’t be long before his idea would turn into a feature film and unleashed onto American audiences. Admittedly, I was a bit hesitant when I first heard about this. My mind would start to change once the trailer came out. Now, having seen it, this has got to be one of the most fun times I’ve had with a horror in recent years. Who knew mixing the Foo Fighters with demonic possession would equal a fun as hell movie?
It’s good to know the Foo Fighters aren’t bad actors. While having the actual band members play themselves could have led to disastrous results, not the case here. Their chemistry is very much there and they feel like how they exactly should: a good group of friends who just enjoy being able to play together and happen to be in a super successful band. Dave Grohl, especially, is great here as he seems to be having a ball both playing up his persona and being the demon possessed baddie later. Without spoiling anything here, I also highly enjoyed the various cameos they were able to pull off for this movie. Outside of the stars, a lot of credit needs to be given to BJ McDonnell and the practical effects. McDonnell does a superb job of delivering a film which knows how to expertly balance the humor and horror present throughout. And as for the practical effects, this film makes an excellent case for why practical is always better. This has some of the most insane gore effects I’ve seen in a theatrically released horror film in a while. If there is one negative I have, the runtime could have used some trimming. It does take a while for things to get going and then for things to subsequently end. Tighter runtime aside, this is an incredibly fun film. The Foo Fighters have zero issues making fun of themselves, their chemistry is excellent, the humor and horror nicely balanced, and the gore out of this world. Studio 666 offers a seriously fun time with one of the biggest rock bands. |