(Fredric Hobbs, 1973)
From the director of Alabama's Ghost comes Godmonster of Indian Flats: equal parts western, atomic age monster movie, race-conscious allegory, psychotronic freak-out, and rambling history of Virginia City, Nevada (where the film takes place - home of auteur Hobbs). Yet, a litany of categorizations somehow fails to capture this roaming beast of a movie. Clearly made by someone with conviction, artistic vision, and access to a community theatre costume room, Hobbs had already been a person of note on the "avant-garde scene." Alabama's Ghost eventually made it into a series of Elvira-hosted horror VHS tapes. The American Genre Film Archive along with Something Weird Video has now rescued this gem, and it's among the most unique in the SWV catalogue, in my experience. The story arc is convoluted and the pace excruciating. Godmonster has a frustrating amount of plot for a so-called monster movie. The titular "Godmonster" - a lumbering, deformed sheep - only shows up fully formed over an hour in. Hobb's final film, it effectively straddles the fence of artistically engaging curiosity and uniquely dull genre mash-up. The finale is worth it: like Al Adamson directing the final sequence of Zabriskie Point.
Jen's Award for Best Dialogue
(Post-dubbed Boy about to be attacked by the Godmonster)
"Mmmm, these are good hot dogs!"
Tomorrow: Can you ever really "know" Nomi?
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