Cthulu - Oregonian - Review - 0912

CTHULU PORTLAND THE OREGONIAN STAN HALL REVIEW (CIA-F) SEPTEMVER 12, 2008 COLOR PHOTO PAGE 1 OF 1

Creepiness on

the coast

"cthulhu" ·:I::uh,· 11-100-1001 shows Illal you can'l go home agollo. Seriously: Don' t ,wr go home- )'Ou'U be sorr)'. The selling for this lat­ est adapwlion of 11Jc Shadow Ovet In. 11SJl\0 uth: a 1931 nove JJ.1 by cosmic-horror author liP. I-O\=ft. has been moved from Nl'w England to fictional Ri~ermourl1. Oregon - it's lilmed in Astoria - and the plot's heen jtivco 3 twjs I: -j hI'

main character. Russ Ja­ sou Cottle), is K3)'­ Against it backdrop of impending world chaos, a family deam causes Russ to reJuClantly return to the smaU tO\\'1I he hales and to hi~ dad. a wild­

eyed, homophob Ie, PIUPIe-robed worshipper of me fish god CthuThu. Weird. creepy mings start to happen. an d Russ be­ comes unhinged a5 be tries 10 make sens~ of it

all UnbeJ::nownsl 10 him,

Russ figurl'S Into a terrify­ ing prophecy as beings answering OhuIbu's call p rcpare to em erge from

me ocean to rule ElInh. \\11I1c 'CmuUlU" has a few unsctiliog momellls

and lhe refashioning of -Innsmoum" as an allego­ ry for small-Imvo gay life is intCll:Stiug. the movie

as a whole seems destined to appeal mainly to Love­ craft cnthusia<;LS, It's also plagued bl' hammy act· ing, particularly by Cottle, whose numerous angry outbursts are liable \<> cause in dilfcrcnce co h i~ charnclcr's

fate,

Tori

Spelling. unconviDcing as an Oregon co"-'" lIatiw, plil}'S a female rapist (n" joke) in an uoiotl'DtionaJ­

Iy hilatious subplot (101 minutes, raW Il. Hollywood TllI!arre) Grade: C -

,<;tan Hull

Sp