The Last Lovecraft – Relic Of Cthulhu (2009/Dark Sky/MPI DVD)
Picture:
C Sound: C Extras: B Film: B (A for Lovecraft fans!)
Movie
makers have been mining the works of H.P. Lovecraft for years. This is not at all surprising. Lovecraft was an author with a unique style
and vision whose carefully crafted tales of horror would live-on to inspire
modern horror authors such as Barker and King.
It also helps that Lovecraft’s works reside in the public domain and can
be mined for story ideas at little-to-no expense. From early attempts such as Die Monster Die to the more modern Dagon, many movies have tried to
capture Lovecraft’s visions of terror.
Often these movies end up being quite unintentionally humorous. Luckily for The Last Lovecraft (2009), all of the humor is by design.
It is
profoundly sad that H.P. Lovecraft never lived to see how popular his works
would become or the great extent to which they pervade “geek” culture. The
Last Lovecraft is the greatest evidence of this phenomenon. It is a Lovecraftian comedy, parodying the
common themes of a classic Lovecraft short-story. The movie draws most heavily from The Shadow
Over Innsmouth, The Call of Cthulhu, and At the Mountains of Madness. These are
considered Lovecraft classics and create the foundation for much of the
background in Lovecraft’s version of Earth.
The
premise of The Last Lovecraft is
that Lovecraft’s stories were actually the recorded history of H.P. Lovecraft’s
actual encounters with the paranormal.
Evil Cultists have uncovered half of a relic to awaken the slumbering
Cthulhu and only a living descendent of Lovecraft can protect it. Of course Lovecraft’s only living heir is
Jeff and “average Joe” character depressed by his mundane life. Jeff and company are reluctantly thrust into
a paranormal adventure, protecting their half of the relic from the evil Cult
of Cthulhu and Cthulhu’s general, Star Spawn.
All the
actors perform their roles competently and with good comedic delivery. However, Barak Hardley steals the show as the
delightfully awkward Paul. Paul is the
neighborhood’s resident H.P. Lovecraft expert and was a victim of bullying at
the hands of Jeff. Paul’s character is
an iconic awkward geek and he delivers tremendous laughs almost every time he
is in a shot. Many of the laughs
delivered by Paul’s character are more general geek references (his amazing
interactions with his grandmother for instance) which will be humorous to all
viewers.
The
animated sequences used during montages and interludes are a beautiful
addition. Done in a colorful comic book style (reflecting the thoughts of
Charlie, a wanna-be comic book illustrator and protagonist Jeff’s best friend),
the animated sequences provide a general introduction to the Lovecraft
universe. This is helpful to viewers who
do not have the prior knowledge base necessary to understand the plot and they
are just incredibly entertaining to watch.
In one over-the-top sequence, an animated Cthulhu swings a submarine like
a baseball bat while battling the military!
All of
this pop-culture fan service does of course come at a price. To a Lovecraft fan, The Last Lovecraft is a hilarious parody, but as a parody, relies
heavily on its source material for its humorous effect. After all, the funniest “inside joke” still
requires you to be on the inside. At
minimum you would need to have read The Shadow Over Innsmouth, the story from
which The Last Lovecraft borrows
most heavily. If you haven’t, many of
the best jokes and references will fall flat.
That said The Last Lovecraft is an amazing achievement for a low-budget
film and an absolute must-see for Lovecraft fans.
- Enrico Nardini
