JKR

Watching James Cameron promoting Avatar on last night’s news, it felt like there was nothing new under the sun – as he talked up the technology (3-D like you have never seen it, soon all films will be like this – 2-D is consigned to history etc.), it called to mind the approach of an earlier era exemplified by William Castle. Castle (top right) was a serial producer of B-movies in the 50’s and 60’s whose low quality was over compensated for with outrageous claims and over ambitious “innovations”.

For example, at the climax of “The Tingler” (filmed in Percepto) the titular monster escaped into a movie theatre -  the undersides of seats in the real cinema were fitted with larger versions of “joy buzzers”. When the Tingler in the film attacked, the buzzers were activated and a voice urged the audience to “Scream – scream for your lives”. The general response was giggles. Customers queuing for “Macabre” were issued with a $1,000 life insurance policy from Lloyd’s of London in case they should die of fright during the film. Showings also had fake nurses stationed in the lobbies and hearses parked outside the theatre. “13 Ghosts”  (filmed in illusion-0) encouraged audiences to hold a strip of coloured film up to their eyes to make the ghosts on the screen disappear if they so wished. And “The House on Haunted Hill” (filmed in Emergo) matched the climactic on-screen skeleton with an inflatable one hung on a wire over the audience. It generally got pelted with popcorn.

In short, Castle could be the patron saint of marketing hucksters. Avatar will probably deliver the goods (Cameron, unlike Castle, is so confident in his technology he’s releasing a fifteen minute teaser). At the speed things are changing we will probably be using our Blu-Ray discs as drinks coasters by week’s end. Yet while Castle’s gimmicks illustrate that innovation with slight substance is probably doomed, it would be wrong to assume his approach belongs to a less sophisticated time: take a look at the audience picture on “The Tingler” poster – it’s a mirror image of the movie ads we get on TV most weekends showing footage of audiences screaming at the latest horror flick. And is it really so removed from claiming crisps cooked in a kettle or lager cold-filtered are substantially different? Whatever, if you want a smile, check out the title for Castle’s exploration of the sex life of ghosts (bottom right).