There’s a point during the opening credit sequence of Mother Noose Presents: Once Upon a Nightmare where a sexy Red Riding Hood type character is riding her bike through the woods when she is suddenly attacked by a werewolf. The werewolf slashes her across the chest, conveniently ripping her shirt to expose her breast, which in turn leads to a close-up of the werewolf getting an erection and ejaculating.
It was also at about here where I started questioning every life decision that had lead me to this moment.
Mother Noose Presents: Once Upon a Nightmare is an interesting premise for an anthology, where a creepy version of Mother Goose (named Mother Noose) recounts twisted versions of fairy tales to a literal captive audience. Fairy tales can be prime fodder for horror reinterpretations, but all too often I find that the “Adult” retellings of them rely on shock value instead of an actual story, and that is once again the case with this film. Yes, sex and violence do count as “adult” content, but an overreliance on those things makes a film come off as juvenile, but hey, if you ever wanted to see Pinocchio getting pegged, I guess this is the movie for you.
This film also falls into one of the pitfalls that plague many anthologies, in that it’s horribly uneven. The first story, loosely inspired by Hansel and Gretel, is actually pretty effective and has a macabre twist that would fit in perfectly with an episode of Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow, and the second strongest tale after that is a dark twist on Cinderella, which succeeds mostly on how it’s able to drum up sympathy for the main character. Arguably the weakest story is the above mentioned Pinocchio one, which seems to exist only to be as revolting and mean spirited as possible, and it was about at this point that I found myself wishing this movie would end. Mother Noose though is intent on overstaying its welcome, and it seemed like every time I thought we had reached the end, the titular character would cackle “And I have another story!”, much to my chagrin.
Another big flaw with Mother Noose is just how amateurish it all feels. I try not to go after a film for looking low budget, but there are many points where I felt like I was watching a student film, complete with out of focus insert shots and poor sound design. Pacing is another area where this film falters, and as I stated above, Mother Noose feels like that guest that refuses to leave, and tighter editing and cutting a story or two would have been very beneficial for this film. All that said, there are several points where this film succeeds in creating a moody atmosphere and the art direction is pretty strong throughout.
Having a low budget is nothing to hold against a film, nor should it be a crutch for bad filmmaking (Terrifier is a great example of how good filmmaking can overcompensate for a minuscule budget), and with this, I felt like I was watching someone who was still figuring out the craft. I use the student film comparison because there’s definite promise and creativity somewhere in this film, but it’s hindered by lack of experience and self-indulgence. It brings me no joy to give a film like this a bad review because I could tell that there was a ton of heart and effort put into making it. Like most low-budget, indie fare, this felt like a labor of love from the filmmakers and all of the performers involved seemed very game. One can hope that the filmmakers learned from their experience on this film and apply those lessons towards their next one.
In closing, Mother Noose Presents: Once Upon a Nightmare feels like a student film in the sense that the craft isn’t quite there, but it shows potential. It’s an interesting idea that botches the execution and mistakes shock value for being “adult”. Neil Jordon’s The Company of Wolves or the recent Gretel and Hansel are great examples of how to update classic fairy tales to deal with adult themes while still being scary and effective stories. There’s nothing adult about watching Pinocchio masturbate with a wooden knob that’s supposed to be his penis, and the effort to be “twisted” just feels tired and immature. The opening scene with the ejaculating werewolf really sets the tone for the kind of film that follows, and I wish it was a film that put as much energy into the story or direction as it did with giving a werewolf a life-like recreation of a dog-penis.
James Reinhardt