Slither

I'm one of those "Browncoat" types; the sort of person who loved Firefly; was angry that it got taken off the air after only one season; can relate some sort of conspiracy theory over why the people at FOX insist on vomiting out reality shows instead of giving established creative minds like Joss Whedon the chance to develop something original and new; was elated when the film Serenity was released to theaters; have another conspiracy theory about Serenity's release date being the reason it's box office wasn't great; have read Serenity and Beyond.

In addition, like Nathan Fillion, the star of Firefly, I'm an Edmontonian, which gives Nathan has a special place in my fanboy world. I have better than a snowball's chance in hell of meeting him on the street. And I think he's got one of the best delivery's for snappy dialogue in the film business.

Hence my initial interest in Slither, a horror film with snappy dialogue which tips its hat to everything that was good and cheesy about horror movies in the 80's. From the use of physical makeup effects in a CGI world to the plot borrowed from Night of the Creeps, this film is a thorough 80's horror homage. There's even a department store in the film named R.J. MacCready, the name of Kurt Russell's character from John Carpenter's The Thing.

It is crude. Over the top gross. It has the highest body count of any movie I saw in 2006. And it's good, gory, horror-flick fun. Slither never takes itself seriously, although the actors playing their roles certainly do, so it's classically campy; you wonder who's going to get consumed, rip apart or blown up next, and you're never sure if the heroes are going to make it. After all, MacCready likely froze to death in the Antarctica...

Like Serenity, Slither did poorly as the box office, despite an 85% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. I am sad to say my DVD purchase made no contribution to the box office, but instead can only hope it contributes to the same fame-game John Carpenter's The Thing evolved through, going from box office bomb to cult-status via the home theater market.

For those who watched The Thing on Superchannel as a kid, taped it, and then watched it too many times to count, I cannot recommend Slither enough. If the idea of alien slugs tunneling into people's bodies through their digestive tract is enough description to put you off, go rent Serenity again, or better yet, go buy it already.

Since Slither was released in 2006 and made it onto my top 10, I've included an adjusted list below.

Gotthammer's Top 10 of 2006...
1. Pan's Labyrinth
2. V for Vendetta
3. Casino Royale
4. Miami Vice
5. The Prestige
6. Silent Hill
7. Slither
8. Superman Returns
9. Underworld: Evolution
10. Cars

Only one left to see from my "must see" list..."The Illusionist"!