Cthulhu (2000 film)

Cthulhu
Directed by Damian Heffernan
Produced by Kevin Dunn, Damian Heffernan
Starring Paul Douglas
Melissa Georgiou
Malcolm Miller
Music by Jason Sims
Cinematography Carl Looper
Running time
 75 min
Country Australia
Language English

Cthulhu is an Australian low budget horror film made in 1996-1997 and released in 2000, by producer-director Damian Heffernan. It was mostly based on the two Lovecraft stories: "The Thing on the Doorstep" and The Shadow Over Innsmouth.

Filmed on location in Canberra during the winter of 1996 with additional scenes shot in early 1997, the film was finished digitally in 1998. Most of the filming was completed in the first two week shoot. A large number of the interior locations were shot in the (now demolished) Royal Canberra Hospital which was de-commissioned in 1991 and remained vacant for many years before the building was imploded in July 1997.

Produced on a very low budget the movie was actually shot on 16mm film and transferred to Digital Betacam for finishing. The film also features an entirely original soundtrack by Australian musician Jason Sims.

A rough cut, dual head print was screened for Miramax in the Australian Film, Television and Radio School's theatre in the hopes of obtaining finishing funds but was not ultimately purchased. The Producers abandoned hope of a theatrical release and raised additional funds to finish on video for a DVD release.

After a festival preview screening at the Melbourne Underground Film Festival the filmmakers signed with the sales agent Max Stuart and Associates for worldwide representation. The film was purchased by Channel 9 for screening in Australia as part of their Australian content quota obligations. The film was also purchased by Trend Films in Italy for screening via their Satellite Television network.

The film was most recently screened at as part of a collection of Canberra feature film, known as Local Feats.

Critical reaction

In their book Lurker in the Lobby: A Guide to the Cinema of H. P. Lovecraft, Andrew Migliore and John Strysik write: "Even though the seams show, the plot creaks, and the acting clips in and out of reality, the makers of Cthulhu really do mean it, and sometimes meaning it is enough. In the end it's an earnest effort at weaving together different Lovecraftian motifs into a cohesive movie."[1]

Cast

References

  1. ↑ Andrew Migliore & John Strysik, Lurker in the Lobby: A Guide to the Cinema of H. P. Lovecraft, Night Shade Books, February 1, 2006, ISBN 978-1892389350

External links