Test Screening
New Hope, Oregon, 1982 – the church is full and the cinema is empty, with the pastor preaching against insidious evils represented by rumours of a ‘gay plague’ and the demonic influence of Dungeons & Dragons and not enough patrons turning up to have The Thing held over for another screening (and less chance of Blade Runner playing). Reels (Drew Scheid), who treats the cinema like his own church, is excited by the news that a mystery movie will be test screened in town – and presumes it’ll be Star Wars Revenge of the Jedi. Meanwhile, the bridge which is the only way in and out of New Hope – which really ought to be a Star Wars sort of town – has been shut down by men in black and their hi-vis vest minions on very vague pretences. Penny (Chloë Kerwin), the pastor’s daughter, can’t admit that she’s in love with her more outgoing best friend Mia (Rain Spencer) and their pal Simon (Johnny Berchtold) is worried about his terminally ill Mom and understandably depressed Dad. Of course, since the screening is unrated, Penny isn’t allowed to attend … but all her friends and many others turn up, only for the lights to go down and something unexpected to appear on the screen, with far-reaching, disturbing consequences.
Directed by Clark Baker, who co-wrote with Stephen Susco, Test Screening is set smack in the middle of a run of films which it takes cues from – Phil Kaufman’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Carpenter’s The Thing (of course) and They Live, Cronenberg’s The Brood and Videodrome, Yuzna’s Society … even Nicolaou’s TerrorVision and Lieberman’s Remote Control. The exact nature of the screening emerges gradually as we see its effects on a cross-section of the town … imposing conformist, conservative behaviour (Mia isn’t gay any more) but also prompting some flesh-twisting done by pleasingly apt-for-1982 physical effects. It’s grounded by solid work from Scheid and Kerwin as hold-outs from the gloopy communion which takes hold of the town, and manages some odd poignance between the yuck moments. With showings from Amy Hargreaves (Blue Ruin), Alex Hurt (Blackout) and James Urbaniak (Oppenheimer).
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