| Pig | |
|---|---|
Original 1998 VHS cover of Pig. |
|
| Directed by | Rozz Williams Nico B. |
| Produced by | Nico B. |
| Starring | Rozz Williams James Hollan |
| Studio | Open Eye Productions Cult Epics |
| Distributed by | CAV Distributing |
| Release date(s) | 1998 |
| Running time | 23 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Pig is an experimental, psychological horror, short silent film released in 1998, co-directed by the underground film maker Nico B. and notable deathrock pioneer Rozz Williams. The film stars Rozz Williams and James Hollan and was produced by Nico B. It was distributed by the CAV Distributing company in South San Francisco and produced by the studios Open Eye Productions and Cult Epics. (The latter of which Nico B. was a part.)
The film was the last work of Rozz Williams before his suicide in 1998, and incorporates a highly surreal, absurdist technique blended with intense graphic horror and religious allusions and metaphors. The film was never publicly screened, although it was first released on VHS in 1998 and then re-released on DVD on April 2 of 2002. On both the VHS and DVD versions of the production it was unrated due to uncensored sexuality and nudity as well as depictions of torture and fetishistic sadism.
The DVD edition contains a large assortment of featured content not previously seen on the VHS version, especially in commemoration of Williams' death. This includes a commentary and Rozz Williams memorial video by Nico B., "Behind-the-scenes" footage, outtakes and optional commentary, a Rozz Williams photo gallery, a previously unreleased music track by Rozz Williams, actor biographies, chapter selections, excerpts from the last interview with Rozz conducted by John E. Ellenberger, a copy of the original "super-8" test footage of Pig with commentary by former Christian Death drummer and friend of Rozz, Ignacio Segovia, and finally a 40-page booklet and adaptation of the fictional book featured in the film, Why God Permits Evil. The booklet was Williams' only published written work.
The soundtrack accompanying the film —Pig: Original Soundtrack— was composed entirely by Rozz, and included some of his last musical output.
Running about 23 minutes, Pig is a disjointed, heavily stylized and minimalistic film depicting a serial killer (Williams) journeying out to an abandoned house in the desert where he proceeds to ritualistically murder an unidentified man (Hollan).
The movie opens with the scene of the black-garbed killer preparing to disembark from a small house. The individual places several items into a brief case, appearing among them a deck of cards, a notebook, and a copy of the children's novel Mr. Pig and Sonny Too — a real publication written in 1977 by the American author Lillian Hoban. The book's title has an obvious connection to the film's.
The individual closes up his brief case, standing upright and turning to reveal on camera the bleeding, half-naked body of another man lying prostrate on the floor. The living man kicks aside the corpse of the dead one and continues downstairs, packing up his belongings into a black car and driving away along a deserted road.
The suited driver continues through an outstretched desert with power lines lining the side of the dirt trail. His vehicle passes an outcrop of rocks with an inscription painted on its face. Although perhaps being unintelligible, it appears to read either as "ELLE" or "ELLIE". Another sign crops up immediately after, written in black, though is essentially unreadable.
The film cuts to another individual, the unidentified man (Hollan), masked in white bandages covering his head. He wanders through the desert until reaching a telephone poll and sitting down, cross-legged.
The driver's car pulls up to the side of the road, and the masked figure enters on the passenger's side. The two drive down another path and stop at a small house. They exit the car, where it can be seen now that the driver is leading the masked figure by a rope which binds his wrists, all the while carrying his brief case. The dilapidated doorway to the house is shown to have the number "1334" laid out in small bones at the top, otherwise adorned with a dominoes, a crucifix, caution tape and various photographs of someone's arms being bound.
As the camera zooms onto the door frame, scenes flash to the victimized masked man's arms being tied with gauze tape, and then finally at the bottom of the doorway a box of dominoes opens up to reveal a keyhole. Through the keyhole a pig mask can be seen sticking through a broken wall.
The scene cuts again to a corridor in the house – the word "Look" is graffitied along the wall where the masked man is bound at the wrists to the ceiling. The camera spins around the room before showing the two men outside again, this time the masked victim being led by his rope to a cellar. There the victimizer empties his brief case, among his things his deck of cards, a large metal key, a wig and a book entitled Why God Permits Evil with a demonic face printed on the cover.
The captor places his hand on the head of a once-more bound-to-the-ceiling victim and pulls part of the bandage-mask from his eye, exposing his darting sight and sense of fear. A collection of pliers, knives, scissors and other instruments can be seen below.