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Midnight movie

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This article is about the film genre. For the screwball comedy starringClaudette Colbert,seeMidnight (1939 film).For the Los Angeles–based band, seeMidnight Movies.For the 2008 horror film, seeMidnight Movie (film).
Tod Browning'sFreaks(1932) can be considered an example of the sort of (then) obscure horror film shown on late-night TV beginning in the 1950s; in the 1970s and early 1980s it was a staple of midnight screenings at theaters around the U.S.[1]

The termmidnight movieis rooted in the practice that emerged in the 1950s of local television stations around the United States airing low-budget genre films as late-night programming, often with a host delivering ironic asides. As a cinematic phenomenon, the midnight screening of offbeat movies began in the early 1970s in a few urban centers, particularly inNew York Citywith screenings ofEl Topoat theElgin Theater,eventually spreading across the country. The screening of non-mainstream pictures at midnight was aimed at building acult filmaudience, encouraging repeat viewing and social interaction in what was originally acounterculturalsetting.

The national success ofThe Rocky Horror Picture Showand the changing economics of the film exhibition industry altered the nature of the midnight movie phenomenon; as its association with broader trends of cultural and political opposition dwindled in the 1980s, the midnight movie became a more purelycampexperience—in effect, bringing it closer to the television form that shares its name. The termmidnight movieis now often used in two different, though related, ways: as a synonym forB movie,reflecting the relative cheapness characteristic of late-night movies both theatrically and on TV, and as a synonym forcult film.[2]

History

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On television

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In 1953, theScreen Actors Guildagreed to aresidualspayment plan that greatly facilitated the distribution of B movies to television.[3]A number of local television stations around the United States soon began showing inexpensive genre films in late-night slots; these late-night slots were after thesafe-harbor time,meaning they were largely exempt fromFederal Communications Commissionregulations on indecent content. In the spring of 1954, Los Angeles TV stationKABCexpanded on the concept by having an appropriately offbeat host introduce the films: for a year on Saturday nights,The Vampira Show,withMaila Nurmiin her newly adopted persona of a sexy bloodsucker ( "Your pin-down girl" ), presented low-budget movies with black humor and a low-cut black dress. The show—which ran at midnight for four weeks before shifting to 11 p.m. and, later, 10:30 p.m.—aired horror pictures likeDevil Bat's DaughterandStrangler of the Swampand suspense films such asMurder by Invitation,The Charge Is Murder,andApology for Murder.[4]The format was echoed by stations across the country, who began showing their late-night B movies within-character hostssuch asZacherleyandMorgus the Magnificentoffering ironic interjections.

As Elvira, Mistress of the Dark,Cassandra Petersonpresented late-night movies on theMovie Macabreseries.

A quarter-century later,Cassandra Petersonestablished a persona that was essentially a ditzier, more buxom version of Vampira. As Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, Peterson became the most popular host in the arena of the TV midnight movie. Starting at L.A.'sKHJ-TVin 1981, Elvira'sMovie Macabrewas soon being syndicated nationally; Peterson presented mostly cut-rate horror films, interrupted on a regular basis for tongue-in-cheek commentary.[5]Some local stations aired theMovie Macabrepackage in late-night slots. Others showed it duringprime timeon weekend nights; after a break for the local news, another genre film—a literal midnight movie—might follow, resulting in such virtual double bills asDr. Heckyl & Mr. HypeandThe Night Evelyn Came Out of the Grave.[6]USA Networklaunched a midnight movie package in 1989—Up All Night,which showed mainly horror and soft-coresexploitationfilms, ran until 1998. In 1993, Buffalo'sWKBW-TVbegan airing a late-night hosted mix of low-budget genre movies, foreign art films and eventually well-known classic films;Off Beat Cinemalater became nationally syndicated (currently throughRetro Television Network) and, as of 2013, originates fromWBBZ-TV.In the 2000s, horror-oriented late-night movie programming has disappeared from many broadcast stations, though B pictures, mostly of a melodramatic nature, are still widely used in post–prime time slots. The smallAmerica Onebroadcast network distributes theMacabre Theatremovie package hosted byButch Patrick,known for his portrayal ofEddie Munsteron the 1960s showThe Munsters.In 2006,Turner Classic Moviesbegan airing cult films as part of its new late-night series,TCM Underground.[7]

In the United Kingdom, theBBClaunched a regular late night movie slot on Saturday nights onBBC Two.From Saturday August 20, 1966, BBC Two started to air a "Midnight Movie" every Saturday night on the channel. The first "Midnight Movie" was "Blind Date" starring Hardy Krüger. The Midnight Movie would air every Saturday night on BBC Two, and would continue through the 1970s. The Midnight Movie was an attempt by the BBC to provide a late night alternative, when the two other channels BBC One and ITV would normally end their Saturday programming at around 12-midnight. This was partly due to the restrictions imposed on the broadcasting hours of both BBC and ITV by the British government, normally no more than 8 hours in a given day. As BBC Two did not broadcast a large amount of daytime programming, they had plenty of hours to spare to remain on the air late into the night, especially on a Saturday, thus the creation of the "Midnight Movie" strand was started. Most of the films aired were at least a decade old, but from 1967 nearly all of the films broadcast were made in color, as BBC Two became the first UK channel in 1967 to transmit color television. It is also noted however, that the "Midnight Movie" never actually started at Midnight. The movie was designed to air "through" the midnight hour, and could start as early as 11.15pm. By 1983 the "Midnight Movie" strand was abandoned by BBC Two, with BBC One airing a late night movie on a Friday night instead, usually a horror film. The "Midnight Movie" slot on BBC Two would be replaced with late night sporting coverage or different genre of films on occasions, which would not use the "Midnight Movie" strand.

In the cinema

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Midnight screening from 1958 for the double-feature,Giant from the UnknownandShe Demons.

Since at least as far back as the 1930s,exploitation filmshad sometimes been presented at midnight screenings, usually as part of independent roadshow operations.[8]In 1957,Hammer Films'The Curse of Frankensteinset off a spate of midnight presentations.[9]What film qualifies as the first true midnight movie in the sense of the term that emerged in the 1970s remains an open question. Critic Jennifer M. Wood points to the Palace Theater in San Francisco'sNorth Beachdistrict where, in late February 1969,San Francisco Art InstitutegraduatesSteven Arnoldand Michael Wiese, after a sellout screening of theirDalí-esque thesis filmMessages, Messages,were invited to program offbeat films at midnight.[10]AuthorGary Lachmanclaims thatKenneth Anger's shortInvocation of My Demon Brother(1969), a mélange of occult symbology intercut with and superimposed on images from aRolling Stonesconcert, "inaugurat[ed] the midnight movie cult at theElgin Theatre."[11]The Elgin, in New York City'sChelseaneighborhood, would soon become famous as a midnight venue when it gave the U.S. premiere of a very unusual Mexican movie directed and written by a rather Dalí-esque Chilean.

The movie generally recognized as igniting the theatrical midnight film movement isAlejandro Jodorowsky's surrealistEl Topo,which opened in December 1970 at the Elgin. Playing with the conventions of thespaghetti Western,the film was described by one newspaper critic as "full of tests and riddles" and "more phony gore than maybe 20 years ofThe Wild Bunch."[12]El Toporegularly sold out every night for months, with many fans returning on a weekly basis. It ran at the theater through June 1971, until at the prompting ofJohn Lennon—who was reported to have seen the film at least three times—Beatles managerAllen Kleinpurchased the film through hisABKCOfilm company and gave it a relatively orthodox rerelease.[13]The Elgin soon came up with another midnight hit inPeter Bogdanovich's spree-killer thrillerTargets(1968), featuring one of the last performances by horror movie mainstayBoris Karloffand a tale that resonated with the assassinations and other political violence of that era.[14]By November 1971, four Manhattan theaters beside the Elgin were featuring regularly scheduled midnight movies: the St. Marks (Viva la muerte,a blast of surrealism in the Franco-Spanish tradition ofLuis Buñueland another Lennon favorite), the Waverly (Equinox,which had just replacedNight of the Living Dead), the Bijou (bothFreaksandNight of the Living Dead), and the Olympia (Macunaíma,a Brazilian politicalblack comedy).[15]Equinox(1970) andNight of the Living Dead(1968), both low-budget horror pictures, demonstrate the ties between the old, TV brand of midnight movie and the newer phenomenon.George A. Romero's zombie masterpiece, in particular, highlighted one of the differences: produced completely outside ofNew Yorkand/orLos Angelesas Romero was makingindustrial filmsinPittsburghat the time.[16]

TrailerforPink Flamingos(1972), showing testimonials from the film after a midnight screening.

Shot over the winter of 1971–72,John Waters's "filth epic"Pink Flamingos,featuring incest andcoprophagia,became the best known of a group of campy midnight films focusing on sexual perversions andfetishism.[17]Filmed on weekends in Waters's hometown of Baltimore, with a mile-long extension cord as a power conduit, it was also crucial in inspiring the growth of theindependent filmmovement.[18]In 1973, the Elgin Theater started midnight screenings of bothPink Flamingosand a crime drama from Jamaica with a remarkable soundtrack. In its mainstream release,The Harder They Come(1972) had been a flop, panned by critics after its U.S. distributor,Roger Corman'sNew World Pictures,marketed it as ablaxploitationpicture. Rereleased as a midnight film, it screened around the country for six years, helping spur the popularity ofreggaein the United States. While the midnight-movie potential of certain films was recognized only some time after they opened, a number during this period were distributed to take advantage of the market from the beginning—in 1973, for instance,Broken Goddess,Dragula,The White Whore and the Bit Player,andElevator Girls in Bondage(as well asPink Flamingos) had their New York premieres at midnight screenings.[19]Other examples (albeit animated) during this time wereRalph Bakshi's 1972 debut featureFritz the Catbased on theRobert Crumbcomic of the same nameandSally Cruikshank's 1975 experimental shortQuasi at the Quackadero.[20][21][22][23]

Around this time, the black comedyHarold and Maude(1971) became the first major Hollywood studio movie of the era to develop a substantial cult audience of repeat viewers; though apparently it was not picked up by much of the midnight movie circuit during the 1970s, it subsequently became a late show staple as the phenomenon turned more to camp revivals.[24]The midnight screening phenomenon was spreading around the country. InMilwaukee,it began in May 1974, spurred by the sales manager of a local radio station who had already successfully sponsored such screenings inSt. Louis.By the following February, four Milwaukee theaters were regularly showing midnight films, and theMarcus chain,the owner of one, had brought the concept to its theaters in four other Midwestern cities. "Films that feature rock concerts draw big",Boxofficereported, "as do those dealing with outer space and fantasy". The trade paper noted one popular midnight film by name:Alice's Restaurant(1969), a comedy with political overtones starring folk singerArlo Guthrie.[25]

David Lynch's 1977 feature debutEraserheadfound an audience through midnight screenings.

On the midnight following April Fool's Day 1976,The Rocky Horror Picture Show,which had flopped on initial release the year before, opened at theWaverly Theater,a leading midnight movie venue in New York'sGreenwich Village.Midnight screenings of the film soon became a national sensation, amassing a cult following all over the United States. Every Friday and Saturday night, audience members would talk back to the screen, dress up as characters in the film, and act out scenes complete with props.[26]Where the social aspect had always been a part of the midnight movie's attraction, withRocky Horrorin an exaggerated way it becametheattraction. By summer 1979, the film was playing on weekend midnights in twenty-odd suburban theaters in the New York region alone;20th Century Foxhad approximately two hundred prints of the movie in circulation for midnight shows around the country.[19]Beginning in 1978, the Waverly developed another midnight success that was much smaller commercially, but more significant artistically:Eraserhead,originally distributed the previous year. A model of shoestring surrealism,David Lynch's feature debut (which played alongsideSusan Pitt's 1979 animated shortAsparagus)[27][28][29]reaffirmed the midnight movie's most central traditions.

Decline

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The commercial viability of the sort of big-city arthouse cinemas that launched outsider pictures for the midnight movie circuit began to decrease in the late 1970s, as broad social and economic shifts weakened their countercultural base. Leading midnight movie venues were beginning to fold as early as 1977—that year, New York's Bijou switched back permanently to the live entertainment for which it had been built, and the Elgin, after a brief run with gay porn, shut down completely.[30]In succeeding years, the popularization of theVCRand the expansion of movieviewing possibilities on cable television meant the closure of many additional independent theaters. WhileRocky Horrorsoldiered on, by then a phenomenon unto itself, and new films likeHouse(1977),[31]Up in Smoke(1978),[31]The Warriors(1979),[20]Altered States(1980),[20]Forbidden Zone(1980, released 1982),[32]The Evil Dead(1981),[20]Heavy Metal(1981),[20]Mommie Dearest(1981),[33]Liquid Sky(1982),Pink Floyd – The Wall(1982),[14]Repo Man(1984),[20]Hellbound: Hellraiser II(1988)[31]andAkira(1988)[20]—all from mainstream distributors—were picked up by the midnight movie circuit, the core of exhibitors that energized the movement was disappearing. By the time the fabledOrson Welles Cinemain Cambridge, Massachusetts, shut its doors after a fire in 1986,[34]the days of the theatrical midnight movie as a significant countercultural phenomenon were already past.

Legacy

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In 1983, film criticsJ. HobermanandJonathan Rosenbaumreleased a book about midnight movies simply titledMidnight Movies.[31]

In 1988, the midnight movie experience was institutionalized in a new manner with the introduction of theToronto International Film Festival's nightly Midnight Madness section.[35]In the years since, new or recent films still occasionally emerge as midnight movie "hits" on the circuit of theaters that continue to show them. The most successful of the 1990s generation were the Oscar-winning Australian drag queen road sagaThe Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert(1994) and the 1995Razzie-winningstripperdramaShowgirls.[20]One of the theaters to show it regularly at midnight was New York's Waverly (also now closed), whereRocky Horrorhad played for a house record ninety-five weeks. A celebrated episode of television'sThe Drew Carey Showfeatures a song-and-dance battle betweenRocky Horrorfans (led byDrew Carey) andPriscillafans (led byMimi Bobeck).

Since the turn of the millennium, the most notable successes among newly minted midnight movies have beenDonnie Darko(2001)[36]andThe Room(2003).[14]Older films are also popular on the circuit, appreciated largely in an imposedcampfashion—a midnight movie tradition that goes back to the 1972 revival of the hectoring anti-drug movieReefer Madness(1936).[37](Tod Browning's 1932 horror classicFreaks,the original midnight movie revival, is both too dark and too sociologically acute to readily consume as camp.) Where the irony with whichReefer Madnesswas adopted as a midnight favorite had its roots in a countercultural sensibility, in the latter's place there is now the paradoxical element ofnostalgia:the leading revivals on the circuit currently include the crème de la crème of theJohn Hughesoeuvre—The Breakfast Club(1985),Pretty in Pink(1986), andFerris Bueller's Day Off(1986)—and the preteen adventure filmThe Goonies(1985).[38]As of late 2006,Rocky Horroritself continues to play on a weekly basis at thirty-two venues around the country, and at least once a month at about two dozen others.[39]

Two popular midnight movies made during the phenomenon's heyday have been selected to theNational Film Registry:Eraserhead(inducted 2004) andThe Rocky Horror Picture Show(inducted 2005). Midnight movie staplesFreaks(1932) andNight of the Living Dead(1968) were inducted in 1994 and 1999 respectively.Harold and Maude,a cult film before it was adopted as a midnight movie, was also inducted in 1997. Also in the mix areQuasi at the Quackadero(inducted 2009) andPink Flamingos(inducted 2022).[40]

See also

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References

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  1. ^Patterson (2007).
  2. ^See, e.g., Conrich (2006).
  3. ^Heffernan (2004), p. 161.
  4. ^The Vampira ShowArchived2006-08-18 at theWayback Machine.Retrieved 11/14/06.
  5. ^See Gibron (2006) for a detailed analysis of the Elvira persona andMovie Macabre.
  6. ^See, e.g.,Elvira's Movie MacabreArchived2006-11-12 at theWayback Machine.Retrieved 11/14/06.
  7. ^SeeTCM Underground: Films—ArchiveArchived2007-04-10 at theWayback Machine.Retrieved 12/19/06.
  8. ^Schaefer (1999), pp. 124–125.
  9. ^Heffernan (2004), p. 61.
  10. ^Wood (2004).
  11. ^Lachman (2001), p. 305.
  12. ^Greenspun (1971).
  13. ^Hoberman and Rosenbaum (1983), pp. 80, 95. For a detailed synopsis of the film, seeEl TopoArchived2006-04-27 at theWayback Machine(note the film's Elgin premiere is misdated).
  14. ^abcThe 15 Best Midnight Movies of All Time - Taste of Cinema
  15. ^Hoberman and Rosenbaum (1983), p. 95.
  16. ^Klawans, Stuart (13 February 2018)."Night of the Living Dead: Mere Anarchy Is Loosed".The Criterion Collection.
  17. ^Waters (2006).
  18. ^Pink Flamingos Production Notes.Retrieved 11/15/06.
  19. ^abHoberman and Rosenbaum (1983), p. 13.
  20. ^abcdefghThe 50 Greatest Midnight Movies of All Time - Flavorwire
  21. ^Midnight Movies (trailer)on Vimeo
  22. ^Sally Cruikshank - Lambiek Comiclopedia
  23. ^Sally Cruikshank: A Career Retrospective, Part 1 — Art of the Title
  24. ^See Hoberman and Rosenbaum (1983), p. 298.
  25. ^"Midnight Shows a Big Success in Milwaukee."BoxofficeFeb. 3, 1975, p. NC-3
  26. ^SeeHistory of the Rocky Horror Picture ShowandRocky Horror Timeline.Retrieved 11/14/06.
  27. ^Fever Dreamer: Susan Pitt's Feminist Fantasies|The Current|The Criterion Collection
  28. ^Suzan Pitt Collection - Collection - Harvard Film Archive
  29. ^MUBI Collection: SUZAN PITT: HER FEMINIST DREAMHOUSE|MUBI
  30. ^Bijou Theatre;Elgin Theatre.Retrieved 11/15/06.
  31. ^abcdIn the Midnight Hour: A History of Late-Night Movies - Academy Museum
  32. ^Forbidden Zone|AV Club
  33. ^How ‘Mommie Dearest’ Went From Oscar Bait to Cult Classic|Collider
  34. ^Remembering the Orson Welles Cinema, 50 years later - The Boston Globe
  35. ^Corliss and Catto (2007).
  36. ^The New Cult Canon: Donnie Darko|AV Club
  37. ^See Hoberman and Rosenbaum (1983), pp. 261–262. For their consideration ofFreaksas part of the early midnight movie phenomenon, see pp. 3, 95, 99, 295–297.
  38. ^Beale (2005).
  39. ^Rocky Horror Showings List.Retrieved 06/27/08.
  40. ^Brief Descriptions and Expanded Essays of National Film Registry Titles|Film Registry|Library of Congress

Sources

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Published
  • Beale, Lewis (2005). "A New Time for Midnight Movies,"International Herald Tribune(June 22) (availableonline).
  • Bryant, Edward (2005). "Fantasy and Horror in the Media: 2004," inThe Year's Best Fantasy and Horror, Eighteenth Annual Collection,ed. Ellen Datlow, Gavin J. Grant, and Kelly Link (New York: St. Martin's Griffin), pp. lxxiii–xcii.ISBN0-312-34194-6
  • Cagle, Jess (1990). "Video News: News & Notes,"Entertainment Weekly(August 3) (availableonline).
  • Canby, Vincent (1972). "Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers:Holly Woodlawn Cast as Small-Town Girl, "New York Times(March 17) (availableonline).
  • Conrich, Ian (2006). "Musical Performance and the Cult Film Experience," inFilm's Musical Moments,ed. Ian Conrich and Estella Tincknell (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press), pp. 115–131.ISBN0-7486-2345-0
  • Corliss, Richard, and Susan Catto (2007). "The Freaks Come Out at Night,"Time(September 12) (availableonline).
  • Greenspun, Roger (1971). "El TopoEmerges: Jodorowsky's Feature Begins Regular Run, "New York Times(November 5) (availableonline).
  • Heffernan, Kevin (2004).Ghouls, Gimmicks, and Gold: Horror Films and the American Movie Business, 1953–1968(Durham, N.C., and London: Duke University Press).ISBN0-8223-3215-9
  • Hoberman, J., and Jonathan Rosenbaum (1983).Midnight Movies(New York: Da Capo Press).ISBN0-306-80433-6
  • Hutchings, Peter (2004).The Horror Film(Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press).ISBN0-582-43794-6
  • Kaufelt, David A. (1979).Midnight Movies(New York: Delacorte).ISBN0-385-28608-2
  • Lachman, Gary(2001).Turn Off Your Mind: The Mystic Sixties and the Dark Side of the Age of Aquarius(New York: Disinformation).ISBN0-88064-278-5
  • Levy, Emanuel (1999).Cinema of Outsiders: The Rise of American Independent Film(New York and London: New York University Press).ISBN0-8147-5123-7
  • Patterson, John (2007). "The Weirdo Element,"Guardian(March 2) (availableonline).
  • Schaefer, Eric (1999)."Bold! Daring! Shocking! True!": A History of Exploitation Films, 1919–1959(Durham and London: Duke University Press).ISBN0-8223-2374-5
  • Waters, John (2006). "The Kindness of a Stranger,"New York Times Book Review(November 19).
  • Wood, Jennifer M. (2004). "25 Great Reasons to Stay Up Late,"MovieMakerno. 55 (summer) (availableonline).
Online—Authored
Online—Archival
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