Film festival's name suggests frightening fun

photo Frightening Ass Film Festival poster

If You Go> What: Frightening Ass Film Fest 4.> When: 7 p.m.-2:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 31.> Where: Barking Legs Theater, 1307 Dodds Ave.> Admission: $10.> Phone: 423-624-5347.> Website: www.barkinglegs.org

Chris Dortch was sitting in Champy's Chicken in downtown Chattanooga when he heard an elderly man nearby declare in a Southern drawl: "This is a good a piece of chicken." Suddenly, Dortch had the perfect name for his annual film festival.

"Here in Tennessee, Southerners use (that word) as an intensifier so why not a Frightening Ass Film Festival; now we're in our fourth year," said Dortch, whose passion for horror movies ranges from brilliant Hollywood jewels like Val Lewton's film noirs to B-movie baubles like "Spider Baby" in which a bug-munching murderess traps humans in a giant web.

This year's lineup includes "The Babadook," a critically acclaimed Australian film about a young widow whose son has nightmares about a monster slaughtering them. When a creepy picture book called "The Babadook" mysteriously appears in their home, he spots his nightmare beast in it, prompting bratty hysteria so severe, mommy medicates him - only to discover his monster was real.

In "The Demon's Rook" little Roscoe is kidnapped by a demon hiding under his bed who raises the little boy in a hellish universe. Roscoe escapes back into our world followed by three demons. Dortch says he loves this indie movie, financed via crowdsourcing, which achieves stunning special effects without CGI.

The evening's highlight is a classic, "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Dortch observes that anyone who saw the 1974 film in the last decade viewed a crumbling, grimy version, not the digitally restored version he will unveil for Chattanooga on Halloween night.

"With all the crud cleaned off of it, the nighttime horror scenes have this very eerie, crystal-clear quality like a waking nightmare," Dortch says.

Dortch clearly loves his loyal audiences, a mix of all ages including a group of 70-year-old ladies who attend annually as well as millennials who make their own short horror flicks that kick off the festival. Film director and Dalton native Jeff Burr ("Pumpkinhead II," "Stepfather II," "Chainsaw III") will chat with the audience about how the low-budget "Chainsaw" resonates so powerfully with Americans and terrorized several generations.

There are horror movies Dortch won't show because they are too misogynistic or the violence is too soul-annihilating.

"As much as I admire the great Wes Craven, I wouldn't show 'I Spit on Your Grave' at my festival. At the end of the night, I want people to feel scared in an energized, exhilarating way, not depressed and heartsick. The best horror is less about the blood splatter and more about the suspense. Oscars aren't often given to the horror, but the best movies in the genre have solid, smart scripts, great pacing and terrific style. A lot of great directors and actors worked in the genre. Viggo Mortensen was in 'Chainsaw III.' "

Contact Lynda Edwards at ledwards@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6391.

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