Film Review: Color Out Of Space

It’s been 24 years since South African cult filmmaker, Richard Stanley, has been involved in making a narrative feature, and the last time he was, it was the notoriously troubled production of The Island Of Dr. Moreau that he was ultimately fired from. However, as you watch his return to the screen with his adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s short story, “The Colour Out Of Space,” it almost feel like he’s never left. Not only is Color Out Of Space a beautifully made horror film, but it’s effectively adapts the often difficult to pull off, yet highly influential style and spirit that makes Lovecraftian horror so distinct.

In the film, we follow the Gardner family, who live out in an idyllic farmhouse in the countryside where they take care of alpacas. We have the patriarch, Nathan (Nicolas Cage), his wife, Theresa (Joely Richardson), and their kids – two teenagers, Benny (Brendan Meyer) and Lavinia (Madeleine Arthur), and a young son, Jack (Julian Hilliard). Things seem fine until one day a strange meteor crashes in their front lawn. While the meteor looks harmless at first, its presence begins to cause some very strange and very horrific changes in both the environment and its characters.

The reason Lovecraft’s works have been a tough nut to crack is because the whole conceit behind most of his horror is the fear of the unknown, or more specifically, the unknowable. The threats are often ones that are impossible to describe, and thus impossible to visualize for the medium. Show too much, and you ruin the whole point, don’t know enough, and you risk boring or confusing the audience. Stanley gets this, so he utilizes some compelling psychedelic imagery when it comes to realizing the otherworldly presence that begins to make its mark on the world and the characters.

But what Stanley does get to indulge in are the consequences of those changes to the world and the characters. This results in some pretty spectacular moments of nasty body horror and gore gags, most of which seem to be practical makeup work. However, it’s not an overload. It is very much a slow burn that really takes its time between each terrifying moment, carefully building a sense of anxiety and dread as the situation gets worse and worse for the family.

The performances are very strong across the board. Nicolas Cage starts the film off as this incredibly dorky, but endearing father trying to hold the family together, and as the incomprehensible horror digs its claws into the family, he changes into someone completely different. And yes, you do get a classic Cage freak out moment. Joely Richardson brings some nice dramatic heft to some of the sillier moments. The kids in the family each have their own fascinations that give them something to make them unique, and Madeleine Arthur gets the most to work with since she has interests with the occult, and her conflict with her parents is one that given a more cohesive thread throughout the film. Plus, Tommy Chong shows up as a backwoods recluse, which is just too fun.

There is a lot to love with Color Out Of Space. If you enjoy Lovecraftian horror, this does it better than most. As a horror film, it’s a satisfyingly ominous experience enhanced by a creepy score from Colin Stetson. The inherently off-kilter nature of the story makes for a perfect match for Nicolas Cage and his delightful talents. Richard Stanley makes a welcomed return, really knocking it out of the park with this one, delivering a wild ride that looks like it was made for triple its fairly small $12 million budget, and if any of that sounds like a good time to you, then Color Out Of Space is absolutely a trip worth experiencing. Also, you see Nicolas Cage milk an alpaca, so that’s pretty cool.