Nightbreed

Nightbreed
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Clive Barker
Produced by	Gabriella Martinelli Jon Turtle
Written by	Clive Barker
Based on	Cabal by Clive Barker
Starring	Craig Sheffer Anne Bobby David Cronenberg
Music by	Danny Elfman
Cinematography	Robin Vidgeon
Editing by	Mark Goldblatt Richard Marden
Studio	Morgan Creek
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	February 16, 1990 (1990-02-16)
Running time	Theatrical version: 108 minutes Uncut version: 159 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$11,000,000
Box office	$8,862,354[1]

Nightbreed is a 1990 American fantasy horror film written and directed by Clive Barker, based on his 1988 novella Cabal. The film features Craig Sheffer, Anne Bobby and David Cronenberg. The story centers in a community of mutant outcasts that hides from humanity, known as the "Nightbreed".

Nightbreed was a commercial and critical failure. In several interviews, Barker protested that the film company tried to sell it as a standard slasher film, and that the powers-that-be had no real working knowledge of Nightbreed's story.^{[citation needed]} Since its initial theatrical release, Nightbreed has achieved cult status.^{[citation needed]}

Barker has expressed disappointment with the final cut and longs for the recovery of the reels so it might be re-edited.^[2] Behind the scenes footage of some of the lost scenes has been uncovered and can be seen at Barker's Revelations website.^[3]

Plot

A young man named Aaron Boone is plagued by dreams of a city called Midian, a place where monsters can go to be forgiven and accepted. As a means of coping with these recurring nightmares, and at the request of his girlfriend Lori, Boone is seeing psychotherapist Dr. Phillip K. Decker, who convinces Boone that he has committed a series of gruesome murders. In reality, Decker is a serial killer who dons a grotesque mask and has been murdering several families, all whom he sees as disgusting "breeders". Decker attempts to pin the blame for his killing spree on Boone. He gives Boone a bottle of lithium (actually LSD) and twenty four hours to turn himself in. Boone wanders the streets in a hallucinogenic haze. He is hit by a truck and taken to a hospital. In the hospital, Boone overhears the drug addled cries of Narcisse, who is waiting for the monsters to take him to Midian. Boone makes Narcisse believe that he comes from Midian with the purpose of finding the location of it. Narcisse tells Boone the way to Midian and suddenly starts to tear the skin from his face, in order to show his "true face". Boone escapes the hospital and makes his way to Midian, an entire city standing under a massive graveyard. Boone encounters two supernatural creatures, Kinski and Peloquin, who inhabit the city. Kinski says they should take him below but Peloquin states that whereas they are "Nightbreed", Boone is a "natural" and thinks he should die. Boone pleas that he is a murderer and hence belongs with the monsters, but Peloquin says he can smell innocence and confirms that Boone is innocent. Peloquin bites Boone on the shoulder intending to devour him, but Boone manages to escape and leaves the graveyard, only to run into an entire squad of police who gun him down. At the morgue, Boone comes back to life due to Peloquin's bite, becoming a Nightbreed. He makes his way back to Midian (Narcisse has also returned). Boone is schooled in the laws of Midian and is inducted into Midian's society by Lylesburg, the leader of the Nightbreed, and is then made to touch the blood of Baphomet, the deity of Midian.

Lori, seeking to understand why Boone left her, resolves to investigate Midian for herself. She befriends a woman named Sheryl Anne and drives out to the cemetery. She wanders into the cemetery, leaving Sheryl Anne waiting at the car. She finds a dying creature out in the sunlight and at the pleading request of a woman named Rachel, picks it up and takes it into the shadows, where it transforms into a little girl; Rachel's daughter Babette. Lori asks after Boone, only to be rebuffed by Lylesburg, who assures her that Boone is now Nightbreed, and hence no longer part of her world. Lori tries to make her way into Midian but is scared off by Peloquin. As she leaves the cemetery, she is greeted by the sight of Sheryl Anne's body and her killer, who reveals himself as Decker. He tries to kill Lori in order to bring Boone out of hiding. Decker chases Lori back into the cemetery where he knocks Lori unconscious and attempts to kill but Boone shows up. Decker stabs him only to learn that Boone cannot be killed. Decker manages to escape and Boone takes Lori into Midian, where she regains consciousness deep inside the city. Lori is told of the history of Midian by Rachel: the monsters of lore were peaceful beings, hunted to near extinction by frightened and superstitious humans. Boone and Lori are then banished from Midian by Lylesburg. Meanwhile Decker interrogates a local mechanic, who once wanted to join the Nightbreed, and learns how they can die. He then murders the residents of the hotel where Boone and Lori are staying. Boone finds the murder scene, and unable to control his thirst for blood, begins to drink. The police find him and take him into custody. At Decker's urging, the local police and militia, led by Captain Eigerman, form up a small army to attack Midian. They release a drunken priest named Ashberry, to serve them as God's servant in the battle. Lori, Rachel, and Narcisse race to the jail to release Boone. Lori shows Boone that she loves him even as a "monster". The four head back to Midian where Boone convinces the scared Nightbreed to fight back.

During the battle, Ashberry is horrified to learn that there are women and children among the Nightbreed and tries to stop the attack but is roughly beaten down by Eigerman. Ashberry then finds the statue of Baphomet. He drops his cross and Bible and moves forward to swear allegiance, but is splashed, severely burned by the blood of Baphomet and transformed. The Nightbreed manages to fight back, but Boone learns from Lylesburg that Baphomet is going to destroy all of Midian. He tells Lylesburg to release the Berserkers, a monstrous, feral breed that were imprisoned due to their sheer insanity. Lylesburg attempts to open the cages but is killed, leaving Boone to release them. The Beserkers attack the humans furiously, turning the tide of the battle as the humans flee in fear. Boone and Decker then face each other in the burning wreckage of Midian. The two fight and Boone kills him. Boone then goes to Baphomet, who says that he has caused the end of Midian, but also that this was foretold. Baphomet charges Boone with finding a new home for the Nightbreed, and renames him Cabal. Boone makes his way out of Midian with Lori. The remaining Nightbreed meet in an old barn, and Boone says his goodbyes to Narcisse, promising that he will not forget the Nightbreed, and that he will find a place where they will all be safe. Meanwhile, in Midian, Ashberry stands infront of Decker's corpse and states that he wants to exact vengeance on Baphomet and the Breed. He takes some of the blood of Baphomet and pushes it into Decker's wound. Decker suddenly springs back to life with a scream, as Ashberry chants "Hallelujah" over and over again.

Cast

• Craig Sheffer as Aaron Boone/Cabal
• Anne Bobby as Lori Desinger
• David Cronenberg as Dr. Philip K. Decker
• Charles Haid as Captain Eigerman
• Hugh Quarshie as Detective Joyce
• Hugh Ross as Narcisse
• Doug Bradley as Dirk Lylesberg
• Catherine Chevalier as Rachel
• Bob Sessions as Pettine
• Malcolm Smith as Ashberry
• Debora Weston as Sheryl Ann
• Oliver Parker as Peloquin
• Nicholas Vince as Kinski

Production

Development

Barker always loved monsters and felt that "there's a corner of all of us that envies their powers and would love to live forever, or to fly, or to change shape at will. So, when I came to make a movie about monsters, I wanted to create a world we'd feel strangely at home in".^[4] He was interested in creating a "horror mythology from the ground up" and developing characters that would live on in sequels.^[5] As he finished writing the novella Cabal, he realized that it would make a good film that he would direct himself.^[6] He originally envisioned a trilogy of films.^[7]

Nightbreed was the first of a planned three-picture deal Barker had with Morgan Creek, Joe Roth's production company, that included an adaptation of Son of Celluloid and a sequel to Nightbreed. The first compromise Barker made was to change the title of the film from Cabal to Nightbreed because Morgan Creek insisted on a more commercial title and thought that the original one did not mean anything.^[8] He was given a budget of $11 million which was a considerable increase from the $2 million he had to work with on Hellraiser. His goal was to make the Star Wars of horror films. The monsters in the book are represented impressionistically over two or three paragraphs and the challenge Barker faced was to visualize them in much greater detail for the film.^[9]

Filming

For the film, Barker used three soundstages at Pinewood Studios and shot on location in Calgary, Canada.^[5] Bob Keen and his crew had two months to play around with ideas before doing any modeling work. They used computer-controlled animatronics but only where necessary.^[10] Towards the end of principal photography, Barker brought Star Wars concept artist Ralph McQuarrie in to paint mattes for the Necropolis sequences and design the history of the Breed in a symbolic way on an enormous mural across a 60-foot space on the set at Pinewood to be used in the opening credits.^[11]

Barker was contractually obligated to deliver an R-rated film and could not make it as gory as his previous picture Hellraiser.^[5] Barker previewed the first cut of Nightbreed with a temporary soundtrack that did not go well as people were confused by the characters' motives. He made some changes and the second test screening was much more successful. However, the ending with Decker's death was not well-received and Barker changed it.^[12] In late July 1989, the studio announced that the release date for Nightbreed was being pushed back from its original autumn 1989 date to early February 1990 instead. The press release cited "the complex demands of the film's ground-breaking post-production optical effects", but this also included McQuarrie's mural and matte paintings, and a week of additional shooting in late August that would see key parts of the narrative re-shot.^[11] Barker shot extra scenes over three days in Los Angeles in late 1989 which included additional scenes with David Cronenberg which expanded and clarified his character. Barker's original version ran two-and-a-half hours and Fox asked for almost an hour to be cut prompting editor Richard Marden to leave the project in protest. Nightbreed was cut to two hours and then again to 102 minutes.^[12]

Soundtrack

Nightbreed (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Film score by Danny Elfman
Released	March 20, 1990
Recorded	1990
Genre	Soundtrack
Length	46:46
Label	MCA
Producer	Danny Elfman and Steve Bartek
Danny Elfman chronology
Batman (1989) Nightbreed (1990) Dick Tracy (1990)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[13]
SoundtrackNet	[14]
Filmtracks	[15]
Musicfromthemovies	(favorable)[16]

The score was composed by Danny Elfman and conducted by Shirley Walker, who wrote additional cues for the films climax and received an onscreen credit.

Danny Elfman said of his score, "Once again it was time for me to stretch out... Combining dark/fun/sweet/tribal all into one. The great joy in the score for me, other than working for Clive Barker, was being able to use the children's voices and a whole slew of ethnic drums and instruments together with an orchestra, in an attempt to bring a unique musical tone to the film." ^[17]

Track listing

1. "Main Titles" – (2:40)
2. "Dream" – (1:03)
3. "Carnival Underground" – (3:23)
4. "Into Midian" – (2:31)
5. "Meat For The Beast" – (2:10)
6. "Resurrection Suite" – (3:37)
7. "Boone Transforms" – (0:56)
8. "The Initiation" – (2:50)
9. "Scalping Time" – (1:54)
10. "Rachel's Oratory" – (1:04)
11. "Party In The Past" – (:51)
12. "Poor Babette" – (1:41)
13. "Uh-Oh Decker" – (1:39)
14. "Then Don't Say It!" – (1:28)
15. "Boone Gets A Taste" – (2:44)
16. "Breed Love" – (1:52)
17. "Mayhem In Midian" – (1:43)
18. "Baphomet's Chamber" – (2:01)
19. "Farewell" – (0:59)
20. "2nd Chance" – (1:34)
21. "End Credits" – (4:33)
22. "Country Skin" (Performed by Michael Stanton) – (4:15)

Release

Marketing

According to Barker, the studio did not promote it well with posters that misinterpreted the content. When he saw the way they were selling Nightbreed, he "freaked out and said, 'What you doing? This isn't the movie, and was given all kinds of excuses ... 'Well, there isn't time to change it, we have to release it now'".^[18] The head of marketing at Morgan Creek never watched all the way through because it "disgusted and distressed" him, according to Barker.^[18] The studio did not understand it, it had no movie stars, it was violent,^[18] and it had elements of fantasy and horror which they saw as a weakness while Barker saw it as a strength. They ended up marketing Nightbreed as a slasher film with television teasers that were confusing and did not represent it.^[19] The trailer was sent to the MPAA and it was rejected 12 times. They forbid any monster footage and it was cut down to someone being terrorized with a razor which constituted only five minutes of Barker's film.^[12] Looking back, Barker realized that Fox was better at promoting films like White Men Can't Jump but "not so good at selling the quirky stuff".^[20]

The studio argued that there was no point showing Nightbreed to critics because the people who see horror films do not read reviews. Therefore, the film had to be sold to the lowest common denominator.^[21] They refused to preview the film for critics which angered them.^[19]

Reception

Critical response

Nightbreed was not well-received by critics. In her review for The New York Times, Caryn James wrote, “But surrounded by Mr. Barker's visual clutter and lack of narrative energy, Mr. Cronenberg's presence only highlights the difference between a gruesome but first-rate psychological horror story like Dead Ringers and a mediocrity like Nightbreed”.^[22] Henry Mietkiewicz wrote in his review for the Toronto Star, “Nightbreed might have been a monster movie milestone, if Clive Barker's directorial abilities had kept pace with his skill as a master of British horror fiction. Unfortunately, Nightbreed probably will be remembered as much for its haphazard plotting and underdeveloped characters as its delightfully daring concept”.^[23] Derek Malcolm wrote in his review for The Guardian that “it is neither direct nor subtle enough as a piece of film-making. It is difficult to suggest that evil is human and monsters have souls within the context of a mountain of special effects. The result is patchy in the extreme and not always capable of transcending a genre that has become less and less intriguing as less and less is left to the imagination”.^[24] In his review for the Washington Post, Richard Harrington wrote, "Sure, the visual effects (by Image Animation) are quite wonderful, but in the end, Barker seems to have expended all his energies on masks that cannot hide the terminal deficiencies of his script".^[25]

Entertainment Weekly magazine’s Owen Gleiberman gave the film a “C+” rating and wrote, “Barker spins grisly fantasy out of sexual obsession, yet his style here couldn't be less obsessive. It's cluttered and rather incoherent, as though the trailers to four different horror movies had been spliced together”.^[26] However Ty Burr, also of Entertainment Weekly, gave the film a "B" rating, writing "From the film's gothic sets, fantastic makeup, and nightmarish plot line, it's clear that Barker owes as much to Poe and Lovecraft as to classic Hollywood screamers like Island of Lost Souls. But Barker's most perverse touch is that he makes these creatures the good guys (no wonder the PR flacks were bamboozled). Despite their grotesque appearance, they're a more colorful and engaging bunch than the emissaries of the normal world. Barker piles on more subversive subtext than his story can bear — it's a monster movie, after all — but his daft, Grand Guignol vision has real power. The quality that freaked out the studio, Barker's ambition, is precisely what makes Nightbreed so impressive." ^[27]

Filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky liked the film, calling it "the first truly gay horror fantasy epic." ^[28][29]

Box office

Nightbreed was released on February 16, 1990 in 1,488 theaters, grossing $3.7 million on its opening weekend. It went on to make $8.8 million in North America, below its $11 million budget.^[30]

Accolades

Award	Category	Recipients and nominees	Outcome
Saturn Awards[31]	Best Horror Film	Nightbreed	Nominated
	Best Director	Clive Barker	Nominated
	Best Make-Up	Bob Keen, Geoffrey Portass	Nominated
Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival [31]	Silver Scream Award	Clive Barker	Won
Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival [31]	Special Jury Award	Clive Barker	Won
Fantasporto [31]	Critics' Award	Clive Barker	Won
	International Fantasy Film Award [31]	Best Film - Clive Barker	Nominated

Merchandise

Comic books

In 1990, to tie in with the film's box office release, Epic Comics produced a four-issue adaptation of the film, which included significant differences from the finished movie, more closely related to Clive Barker's original script. The comic book continued to run past the end of the movie, ultimately stretching to twenty five issues before it was cancelled.^[32][33] A two part Hellraiser vs Nightbreed: Jihad graphic novel was also produced, featuring the Cenobites as agents of order against their chaotic nemeses, the Nightbreed.^[34][35] Nightbreed returned in 1992, as a short story in the second issue of the four issue Epic anthology series.^[36]

Video games

Two videogames based on the film were released on the Commodore Amiga shortly after the movie's release. Loosely following the same plot, it intersperses various action sequences. A traditional action game was also released for the Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and DOS.^[37] The games were intended to be released as a trilogy. The first game released was called "Nightbreed, The Action Game". This was literally an action type game based on the film. The second was called "Nightbreed, The Interactive Movie". This was based on the film as well, but there was less gameplay involved and it was more of an interactive movie type game. Due to the poor success ratings of both games, the third game was never made.^{[citation needed]}

Extended cut

Mark Miller, a friend of Barker, asked if he could track down the missing 25 minutes of footage that was cut out of the director's cut of Nightbreed.^[38] Miller discovered, after talking to a production executive at the studio, that the footage was never actually lost but readily accessible. When asked, a studio executive said that there was not a big enough audience to warrant the studio spending money on a new, extended cut of the film.^[39] A VHS copy of Barker's 145 minute version of the film's mid-1989 workprint was recently discovered. It does not feature any of the re-shoots of Decker's murders.^[40] An extended 159-minute cut version, from another VHS found in July 2009, was premiered on March 27, 2010 as part of the HorrorHound Weekend in Indianapolis.^[41] This new version adds almost a whole hour that was cut from the theatrical release, including a musical and more animation.

References

1. ^ "This Month in Horror: February 1990". http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/news/19157. 
2. ^ The Official Clive Barker Resource: Revelations - Uncompleted Film Projects D
3. ^ "The Official Clive Barker Resource : Revelations - Anatomy of a Scene: Nightbreed Deleted". Clivebarker.info. http://www.clivebarker.info/nbscene3a.html. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
4. ^ Barker, Clive (December 1988). "Chains of Love". Fear. 
5. ^ ^{a b c} Nutman, Philip (1991). "Introduction to Nightbreed". Nightbreed U.S. Video. 
6. ^ "Nightbreed Presskit". Morgan Creek. 1990. 
7. ^ Salisbury, Mark (December 1988). "Chains of Love". Fear. 
8. ^ Jones, Alan (November 1989). "Clive Barker's Nightbreed". Cinefantastique. 
9. ^ Nutman, Philip (October 1989). "Bring on the Monsters!". Fangoria. 
10. ^ Robb, Brian J (May/June 1989). "Games without Frontiers". Fear. 
11. ^ ^{a b} Gilbert, John (October 1989). "The Breed: The Source of the Soul". Fear. 
12. ^ ^{a b c} Jones, Alan (September 1990). "Nightbreed: The Trials and Tribulations of Clive Barker". Starburst. 
13. ^ Review
14. ^ SoundtrackNet Review
15. ^ Filmtracks Review
16. ^ Musicfromthemovies Review
17. ^ "Nightbreed". Danny Elfman's Music for A Darkened People. http://elfman.filmmusic.com/filmography/nightbreed.html. Retrieved 2011-08-07. 
18. ^ ^{a b c} Salisbury, Mark (October 1990). "Flesh and Fury". Fear. 
19. ^ ^{a b} Timpone, Anthony (1990). "Barker Bites Back". Fangoria Horror Spectacular. 
20. ^ Ferrante, Anthony C (September 1993). "Barker Looks Back". Bloody Best of Fangoria. 
21. ^ Jones, Alan (July 1990). "How Fox Bungled Nightbreed". Cinefantastique. 
22. ^ James, Caryn (February 17, 1990). "Taking Refuge in a Little Town of Horrors". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1990/02/17/movies/review-film-taking-refuge-in-a-little-town-of-horrors.html?scp=1&sq=%22Nightbreed%22&st=nyt. Retrieved 2009-06-04. 
23. ^ Mietkiewicz, Henry (February 20, 1990). "Nightbreeds storytelling sacrificed". The Toronto Star. 
24. ^ Malcolm, Derek (September 27, 1990). "The angel who fell to earth". The Guardian. 
25. ^ Harrington, Richard (February 21, 1990). "Nightbreed". Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/movies/videos/nightbreednrharrington_a0aad5.htm. Retrieved 2009-06-04. 
26. ^ Gleiberman, Owen (March 2, 1990). "Nightbreed". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,316846,00.html. Retrieved 2009-06-04. 
27. ^ Reviewed by Ty Burr (1990-09-14). "Nightbreed Review | Reviews and News". EW.com. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,318149,00.html. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
28. ^ http://www.everythingisundercontrol.org/nagtloper/write/dyinglight.php Dying Light: An obituary for the great British horror movie
29. ^ http://shadowtheatre13.com/thethreemothers12.html
30. ^ "Nightbreed". Box Office Mojo. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=nightbreed.htm. Retrieved 2009-06-04. 
31. ^ ^{a b c d e} "Nightbreed: Award Wins and Nominations". IMDb.com. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100260/awards. Retrieved May 21, 2011. 
32. ^ do web 4u. "Night Breed Comics, Night Breed series, Clive Barker, Epic Comics, Horror series". Fullmooncomicbooks.com. http://www.fullmooncomicbooks.com/night.htm. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
33. ^ "Aaron Boone (comic book character)". Comicvine.com. http://www.comicvine.com/aaron-boone/29-55067/. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
34. ^ "Hellraiser Nightbreed: Jihad #1 - (comic book issue)". Comic Vine. 2008-06-06. http://www.comicvine.com/hellraiser-nightbreed-jihad-/37-130472/. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
35. ^ "Mile High Comics". Mile High Comics. http://www.milehighcomics.com/cgi-bin/backissue.cgi?action=list&title=39830031948. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
36. ^ "Put a Nightbreed in your tank, Clive Barker's Hellraiser, Imajica - song, music - Copyright Info". Faqs.org. http://www.faqs.org/copyright/put-a-nightbreed-in-your-tank-clive-barkers-hellraiser/. Retrieved 2011-07-08. 
37. ^ Your Sinclair: Nightbreed
38. ^ Nightbreed Uncut Report: Wondering What You Didn't See? We've Got the Answers!
39. ^ Zahn, James (June 1, 2009). "Nightbreed: The Director's Cut?". Fangoria. http://fangoria.com/home/news/16-dvd-a-blu-ray/2691-nightbreed-the-directors-cut.html. Retrieved 2009-06-22. 
40. ^ Zahn, James (June 10, 2009). "Update on the Director's Cut of Nightbreed". Fangoria. http://fangoria.com/home/news/9-film-news/2829-update-on-the-directors-cut-of-nightbreed.html. Retrieved 2009-06-22. 
41. ^ "See Nightbreed Uncut for the First Time EVER". http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/35706/see-nightbreed-uncut-first-time-ever. 

Notes

• Clive Barker's The Nightbreed Chronicles; Clive Barker, Murray Close, Stephen Jones; ISBN 1-85286-260-2
• Clive Barker's Nightbreed: The Making of the Film; Clive Barker, Mark Salisbury, John Gilbert; ISBN 0-00-638136-7

External links

• Nightbreed at the Internet Movie Database
• Nightbreed at AllRovi
• Nightbreed at Rotten Tomatoes
• Nightbreed at Box Office Mojo
• Information about Nightbreed Director's Cut