4 stars of informative film documentary. 
Once again Shudder have delivered a beautifully written and produced documentary series, this time directed by Jay Cheel (Helltown).
Cursed films takes a look at the myths and legends which have grown up around some of our favourite films and breaks them down to examine the truth.
This Shudder Original is available to own on Blu-ray from 27th February 2023, courtesy of Acorn Media International.
“We infuse inanimate objects with agency. Our brains are just really good at that.”
The first film to be looked at is Poltergeist, which has developed quite the reputation over the years, mainly due to the tragic deaths of it’s two female leads, Heather O’Rourke and Dominique Dunne, both at a very young age. This led people to speculate that the skeletons used in the pool scene at the end of the films were in fact real skeletons and this had led to a curse.
The second film getting the treatment is The Omen, which was widely considered to be cursed right from the outset of filming, due to the subject matter, so much so that a religious advisor had to be brought in. There were a number of incidents during filming all of which seemed at the time to indicate supernatural forces at play.
Third under the microscope is The Exorcist, another very conroversial film whose reputation as being cursed seemed to stem more from the marketing executivess than from any actual incidents and led to a hard time for some of those involved in the production, including Linda Blair.
The fourth episode features my own personal favourite of these films, The Crow and looks at the tragic circumstances leading to the fatal shooting of actor Brandon Lee (son of Bruce Lee) at the hands of fellow actor Michael Massey and the strange parallell between his fate and that of his father’s character in his final film. It also takes a look at the alterations which had to made to the story as a result.
The fifth and final episode (and perhaps the most distressing) deals with the film Twilight Zone: The Movie and shows what can happen when stunts go wrong. In an unthinkable accident, a helicopter was brought down by pyrotechnics, killing actor Vic Morrow, as well as two children who were being used in the filming illegally.
“No low budget “B” film is going to pay anybody to sculpt a human skeleton when all you had to do was go to a biological supply house and get a human skeleton. Wake up and smell the budget.”
All of these are fascinating insights into the world of filmmaking and also the human pysche. A host of experts, including Linda Blair, Gary Sherman, Richard Donner, Michael Berryman and many others offer their thoughts on the reality of cursed films.
Across the board the overwhelming feeling is that attributing a tragedy to a curse is far easier than simply accepting it for what it is, usually a case of poor judgement, human error or just plain bad luck. This is a brilliant series, a must watch for fans of these films and deeply compelling viewing.
Cursed Films Season 1 is available to buy now on Blu-ray.
| Director | Jay Cheel |
| Genre | Documentary, horror |
| Starring | Linda Blair, Gary Sherman, Richard Donner, Michael Berryman |
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