Horror Favourites – Matthew Goodhue

Writer and director Matthew Goodhue’s terrifying WOE premieres on DVD and Digital from Gravitas Ventures and Kamikaze Dogfight and we had the chance to sit down with the hugely talented chap to discuss horror.

Matthew’s feature directorial debut, after helming shorts and TV series the movie stars Adam Halferty, Jessie Rabideau, Ryan Kattner and James Russo in a spine chilling story full of genuine thrills.

One year after their father’s death, Charlie endlessly repairs the old family house while his sister, Betty, decides to sell their father’s car without her brother’s consent – the same car their father committed suicide in. As the two avoid confronting their prolonged grief, mental health, and each other, a hunchbacked creature shadows their every move. Their estranged Uncle Pete, believed to be dead, claims to have answers – if only Charlie and Betty would get out of their own heads and accept help.

Below the amazing Matthew Goodhue takes us on a deep dive into his favourite horror film:

“The answer to, “What is your favorite horror movie?” likely changes every day for me. The immediate ones that come to mind are Kubrick’s The Shining, Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby, John Carpenter’s The Fog and The Thing, Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man, and Nicolas Roeg’s Don’t Look Now. But, for the sake of trying to introduce people to a film that may have gone under the radar for them, I’m going to go with Brad Anderson’s 2001 film, Session 9.

Session 9 follows a group of workers who are hired to remove asbestos from a dilapidated building. The building happens to be an abandoned mental hospital, known as Danvers State Hospital. Danvers State Hospital is real, built in 1874 and opened in 1878 in Danvers, Massachusetts, until it was finally closed in 1989. Danvers was designed to house 500 patients. By the late 30s and 40s, there were over 2,000 patients, which led to the expansion of the asylum’s facilities. Still, there wasn’t enough room for everyone and the overcrowded hospital led to some questionable practices – some patients were even held in the hospital’s basement.

During the 60s, reports were made that various “inhumane shock therapies, lobotomies, drugs, and straitjackets were being used to keep the crowded hospital under control.” Of course, this led to controversy, and the inpatient population of Danvers started to decrease and soon the wards and facilities started to close.

Director Brad Anderson, from Massachusetts, decided to film Session 9 at the source. He and his crew shot in only a small section of the asylum, since the majority of the structure wasn’t safe for shooting. But, they essentially kept the place as they found it. Most of the production design and props were there when the crew arrived. This authentic, spooky environment, combined with a great script by Anderson and Stephen Gevedon and a solid cast of character actors (Peter Mullan, David Caruso, Gevedon, Josh Lucas, and Brendan Sexton III), create one of the most dreadful, unnerving, and disquieting films I have ever seen.

I grew up in Massachusetts, not far from where Danvers State Hospital was located (it was torn down in 2007). I never visited the place myself, but in high school, kids would sneak into the asylum to take pictures, do graffiti, and get in trouble. I’d hear stories about the place, about the noises you might hear while walking down a hallway, or the feeling that someone is behind you, about the deranged and rusted tools you might find in a crumbling operating room. It would totally freak me out. When I saw the DVD cover of the film, a creepy wheelchair alone down a long hallway, and learned that this was that Danvers Hospital movie, I knew I had to check it out.

From the opening frames, you know that things aren’t going to go well for this crew. The main character, Gordon, agrees to take on the job for little money and to complete it in an impossibly short amount of time. The aerial shots of Danvers Hospital are intimidating and foreboding. The shape of the asylum, from the air, looks like a bat with its wings spread open. It’s as if the place is inviting you inside, just to keep you there, like the ghosts and spirits of its patients. And once these characters enter Danvers, that’s what happens.

What follows is a psychological, cerebral procedural thriller that feels eerie and helpless and sinister. None of the characters are honest with one another, which strengthens the film’s tension and creates distrust among this ragtag group of guys. It always feels like one of these characters, and we don’t quite know who, is up to no good. Someone has an ulterior motive here and is putting all of these individuals in danger. And when the Stephen Gevedon character

stumbles on creepy patient tapes, and begins neglecting the work at hand, the feeling of doom and dread becomes unbearable. We begin to learn that things aren’t quite what they seem. Maybe it isn’t one of the workers who has a plan. Maybe it’s Danvers itself.

I find myself coming back to this film at least once a year, usually around Halloween, to remind myself what an independent, small film can do. With strong writing, actors who go for it, an engaging backdrop, precise direction, and a dreadful tone, Session 9 expands what a haunted house movie can do and makes you want to run away as fast as you can, although a part of you can’t help but want to stay. The problem is — you can’t leave, because it’s got you surrounded on all sides with the doors locked. Or, maybe you locked the doors, but don’t know it.

So, check out this movie! There’s also an interesting episode of LORE (Episode 06: Echoes) where the history of Danvers and some scary stories about what happened inside are discussed.”

FROM THE PRODUCER OF CABIN FEVER WOE IS AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AND DVD NOW