The Inner Critic: Forbidden Zone (1982)

Monday, April 25, 2011

Forbidden Zone (1982)

As a member of the Seattle Horror Movies Meetup, I receive notes about upcoming movies and events related to the genre. For three reasons, I was intrigued when Forbidden Zone with Q&A by Richard Elfman (Danny's brother) was announced:

1. It was free.

2. As a fan of Oingo Boingo, the Elfman name enticed.

3. It played at Cinebarre in Mountlake Terrace where you are able to eat and drink(cocktails and beer).

Admittedly, I didn’t expect much more than to see if Richard resembled his brother, Danny. As my posse and I arrived, we were surprised at the crowd nearly filling the theater. A reception with the director had been in full swing. Pre-movie, Elfman entered the theater, banging a drum and marching with his impromptu Cinebarre-collective band.

King Fausto (Hervé Villechaize) and Queen Doris (Susan Tyrrell) rule over the Sixth Dimension. In another dimension, Frenchy Hercules (Marie-Pascale Elfman) finds a door in her basement that deposits her (via an intestine) into the Sixth Dimension. When King Fausto lays eyes on her, he goes mad and makes her his concubine. The Queen finds out and goes ballistic and places her in the clink. The Hercules family set out to find Frenchy and bring her back home.

There are memorable characters, such as The Princess (Bridget Fonda lookalike Gisele Lindley), who for the whole of the movie is topless and outfitted only with high-waisted women’s white panties. There’s the Servant Frog (Jan Stuart Schwartz) and Danny Elfman as Satan. You get lots of random humping. LOTS. With animation and hijinks against a trippy soundtrack, the movie is perplexing yet engaging. If you stay with it, you are certain being chemically altered might cause everything to make sense.

Post-movie, Elfman fielded questions from the crowd. My favorite was, “What the shit?” Several said Forbidden Zone ‘changed their lives.’ (I wanted to Q&A with them and get deeper on what they meant. Perhaps I’m the one missing the point?) With no shortage of questions, he spoke for a long while until none remained. Then, it was out to the lobby where the party continued. When I finally got over the shyness and wanted a picture with Elfman, the line was longer than I wanted to wait.