Deconstructing Evil
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Who is the best audience for "Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon"? Well, smart, young people who have studied horror/slasher movies and enjoy them for their vulgar energy. It's a film for genre deconstructionists who know the differences between Freddie and Jason and Michael but who have also seen "Man Bites Dog," an obscure 1992 Belgian outlaw masterpiece about a documentary crew that follows a professional killer through his workday.
In other words, the ideal audience for "Behind the Mask" appears to be its makers: Scott Glosserman, who directs, produces and wrote (with David J. Stieve), and actors Nathan Baesel and Angela Goethals, who give brilliant performances. (See Film Notes on Page 38.)
The conceit is borrowed from "Man Bites Dog": An aspiring camera crew, headed by Taylor Gentry (Goethals), encounters a small-town guy (Baesel) with a ready smile who believes he's the heir apparent of those three blood-splattered movie franchise ghouls: Jason ("Friday the 13th"), Freddy ("A Nightmare on Elm Street") and Michael ("Halloween"). The guy is willing to talk to the doc makers and to let them in on his trade secrets. ("There seem to be 13 windows for escape, but I've actually nailed down most of them so they have to come out of this one.")
The movie has more cleverness than violence, and its breakdown of cliches is vivid and witty. Baesel is an extraordinary presence, holding the film together with his mesmerizing performance, charm and openness, and Goethals measures up to him.
-- Stephen Hunter
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon R, 92 minutes Contains a milder variety of horror violence, profanity, sexual content and brief drug use. Area theaters.
