This past summer "X-Men: First Class" took us back to the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, but the technology and sets looked more like what we have today. Joe Dante's 1993 comedy "Matinee" creates a perfectly vivid picture of this period in history. The director was at the Aero Theatre on August 25, 2011 to talk about this movie and what it was liked to live through 1962.
"Matinee" was originally intended to be a haunted house movie, but Dante saw an opportunity to make one that deals with the horror of movies and the horror of real life. Back in 1962, Dante said everyone was terrified that the world was coming to an end, and that terror got magnified whenever planes flew overhead. When that happened, people instantly expected to hear the whistle of a bomb descending down to obliterate the earth. Kids in school did drills where they got under the heads and covered their heads, but Dante said they weren't stupid and were aware they would be lucky if they died instantly. But people still went along with everyday life even as the undercurrent of fear remained very strong.
In the movie, John Goodman plays Lawrence Woolsey who is a small time movie producer of cheesy monster flicks. We first see him in a movie trailer selling the public on his new picture and claiming it is based on "scientific fact." While his shadows and silhouettes imply that "Matinee" is parodying Alfred Hitchcock, Dante said Goodman's character is meant to resemble William Castle. Castle was an independent filmmaker who made the original versions of "House on Haunted Hill" and "13 Ghosts," and he was also known for including many gimmicks like buzzers inserted into movie theater chairs.
Dante said "Matinee" was shot in Florida and that the kids cast were locals. He remembered them coming in batches and described them as "Disney Channel reject kids" which made them perfect for the film. It also turns out that Simon Fenton who played Gene Loomis is actually British. The casting director found him in England after a search in America yielded no good prospects. The realization of this amazed all those in the audience as they wouldn't have realized this if Dante hadn't told them.
The movie within "Matinee" is entitled "Mant" and was also shot in Florida, and the filmmakers worked to make it as real as the 50s sci-fi and horror flicks which inspired it. One audience member asked if there was any way we could watch "Mant" in its entirety. Dante said it was included as an extra on the laserdisc release, but for some reason was featured not on the DVD. However he did say that we can find it on YouTube.
Like many of its ardent fans, Joe Dante does hope for a special edition release of "Matinee" someday. But he still hasn't forgotten what someone at Universal Pictures told him:
"You're lucky there's any edition of it at all!"
Hearing the director talk about "Matinee" made us realize how personal it was for him. Not only is it a hilariously entertaining homage to the movies he, but it's also an honest portrait of a time where the world seemed on the verge of exploding. Watching it from that perspective makes it all the more meaningful and enjoyable.
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