The next time you walk into a Blockbuster (or… tee hee… Hollywood Video) and think to yourself, “Man, you know what I’m really in the mood for? Something completely original with a cult following as big as Rocky Horror Picture Show that has extremely catchy rock music that stars a great cast and is totally awesome?” (albiet not a very common thought), pick up REPO! The Genetic Opera.
The rock opera, created by Darren Smith and Terrance Zdunich, started as a small production back in the 90′s. It grew from there, and after Darren Lynn Bousman was the stage director in 2002 for a version of it, he signed on to direct and produce the film.
The story is about a young girl named Shilo who, after inheriting her dead mother’s blood disease, is forever confined to her bedroom by her overprotective father. Shilo lives in the year 2056 in a future that is plagued by organ failures. After a wisespread series of deaths, a company called Geneco rose out of the rubble to satisfy the demand for organ failures. Geneco has carved out a new niche– surgery as a fashion statement. However, if a person fails to make a payment on their recently purchased organ(s), Geneco sends out the Repo Man, and just like the totally awesome and hooking trailer states: When he finds you, your time is up.
A song that particularly stands out in the movie is entitled “Zydrate Anatomy,” in which one of the main characters called the Graverobber explains the use and effects of the recently created drug Zydrate, an extremely addictive painkiller use to numb the pain of surgery. It’s got a great beat, some EXTREMELY hooking lyrics (you’ll soon find yourself singing along), and some awesome insight to the story. If any song from the movie gets you hooked, this will be it (I had to see this movie the moment after I listened to it).
The movie, in my opinion, is a brilliant piece of music and cinematography, and should definitely not be passed up. Be warned, however. It’s rated R for some pretty graphic organ repossesion scenes, strong language, sexuality, and a breif bit of nudity. As the album’s website states, this is definitely not your parent’s opera.
Here’s a link to the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzgpU25C6fg
In my opinion, cult classics are the greatest movies in the world. You can eventually recite all of the lines, name all of the characters, and share something with a small fanbase that can only be described as “yours.” It’s these movies– Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Pulp Fiction, Harold and Maude, The Princess Bride, Rocky Horror, Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, Kung Pow: Enter the Fist and many many more– that define what I believe every film maker looks forward to. So many films today are trying to give an audience a really big and long laugh (and fail, like every other Not-Another-Movie of today), and just come off as stupid. These movies just suck, and they’re trying too hard.
If you’re looking for a great movie that you can cherish for years to come, pick up a good cult classic. And don’t worry if you think you hate it– my belief is that cult films are good by default. It’s your job to figure out why you love them so much.
Except “Silent Running.” That movie sucked and should never ever be watched by anyone ever.
–fall92