Night Of The Zodiac — Night Of The Zodiac(DVD)
Night Of The Zodiac follows a horror geek/ videographer who gets employed by an ageing Zodiac killer to collect more ‘slaves for paradise’, i.e., kill a bunch of folks on video camera. The films from last year, and is a mix of serial killer thriller, bad-taste comedy, tribute to 90’s SOV, and lo-fi splatter-bound gore. Here from the swell folks at SRS Cinema is a region-free release DVD of the film, taking in a commentary track, and a few other extras.
Night Of The Zodiac was directed & written by Susana Kapostasy, whose only other credit is 2012’s Metal Maniac- which found a washed-out heavy metal DJ, digging up and resurrecting his old & dead metal band to cause chaos.
The film focuses on Richard (Philip Digby) a glasses-wearing, side parted-haired, thirty-something geek. Who lives in a small, rented room in the house of a bearded & long hair metaller (Victor-Manuel Ruiz). Richard has two key obsessions- 90’s SOV horror films, and the never caught serial Killer Zodiac, who killed at least five people in the Bay area in the late ’60s.
One day while hanging out in his small, crowded bedroom- the phone rings, and it’s someone who claims they are the Zodiac killer. The man on the other end of the film says he moved from San Francisco to Migan- where Richard lives, and he wants Richard to start up his work again. So, Richard starts getting clues to get his next instructions from the killer. And in time he is gifted the hooded smock, shades, and zodiac logo costume that the zodiac wore on one of his most notorious attacks at Lake Berryessa- where a couple were brutally stabbed.
So, Richard starts off on his killing spree- first doing a recreation of the Lake Berryessa attack, but resetting in the snow. The Zodiac is impressed but asks Richard to have a bit more imagination/ his own flare- so he gets to it. With a child in rucksack bashing, in wheelchair stabbings, beatings & gut rippings, bow and arrow attacks, amateur magician strangling, etc. The problem is that Richard is no good at using his camera and keeps bumbling up the filming of the murders. So, will Richard manage to get his camera work together, will he get caught, and will he finally get to meet his serial killer hero?
The picture is filmed on retro video camera equipment- though it’s captured with clear flare and talent, which goes above your normal 90’s SOV directors, bumbling if charming attempts. Added into this we get nods back to the original Zodiac killings- with the recreation of the killer’s cyphers & writing for the film's on-screen text, as well of course as on-screen details/ elements from the case. We also get loads of background visual nods towards SOV and horror fare, which are done really well- one of my favourites of these been the placing of Richard Laymon’s first novel The Cellar when Richard recreates the Lake Berryessa killing.
Digby plays the coming-out-of-himself SOV horror geek/ serial killer wonderfully- with a good mix of humour and hamming-it-up derangement. With the rest of the small cast been good enough too. The film is scored by moody synth cues, heavy metal, and a little bit of hardcore punk. All in all, Night Of The Zodiac is a lot of bad taste & gory fun, and a great tribute to the 90’s golden years of SOV horror.
On the extras side of this region-free DVD, we get a few things. First off is a commentary track with director Susana Kapostasy, lead actor Philip Digby, and a few others who worked on the film. This is a chatty & entertaining affair, with some great titbits of information/ insight along the way. We find out where they got the dripping guts from the dream sequence near the start of the film. How they dated & aged the more modern camera use in the bookshop scene, going on to discuss how most of the film was captured on original video cameras. We get chat about how the new cyphers in the films were created, and find out they are real/solvable. We find out the different whisky they drank on film, and how the lead actor coped with many cold nights covered in fake blood. Later on, they discuss the film's body count of twenty-five, and point out back poster/ item detail in the background of shots. Otherwise, we have a twelve-minute on-screen interview with one of the original SOV horror masters Tim Ritter- he talks about how he first met the director because she was trying to track down old VHS’s of his work, and how he admires her passion for SOV/ low budget film making. There's Blood Cannon (4.57) which sees the director showing you how to make a blood cannon. Cypher Dark (10.04) which sees the director talking about how she created the films cypher. Gore Score seance (2.24) which finds the director & other folk trying to rise the spirit of underground horror critic Chas Balun to rate the film. Trailer of the film, and an SRS cinema trailer reel.
If you have an appetite for where true crime, splatter-bound gore, and bad-taste humour meet then Night Of The Zodiac will most certainly appeal & be highly enjoyed. I’ll certainly be keeping an eye out for Ms Kapostasy name in the future, and look forward to seeing what she creates next.