Lords of Salem (2012)

House of 1,000 Corpses had its moments, The Devil’s Rejects was eh, and I’m not even going to comment on the two Halloween abominations because from what little I have seen of those does not count for me to have a true opinion; however, The Lords of Salem…

Wow!

As usual, Rob Zombie lines up the stars for his films: Ken Foree, Dee Wallace, Patricia Quinn, Bruce Davison, Judy Geeson, Michael Berryman, and many more. Of course Sherri Moon Zombie is the leading lady, again, but she surprisingly did a fantastic job and didn’t annoy the piss and vinegar outta me in this subtle and tame role. No, in fact, she acted human in this movie as opposed to her “cackling psycho” norm which she came to be known for doing as part of the character Baby in both House of 1,000 Corpses and The Devil’s Rejects. The fact that she overreached what to her is normalcy gives this film another redeemable aspect. It also helped that she looked the part instead of just looking like herself; the same cookie cutter image she seems to always have in her husband’s films. So that right here is a good start for me, but guess what? It gets better! If the acting is great from Mrs. Zombie, the one aspect I dreaded most, then that should tell you that the rest of the stellar cast did an amazing job as well.

According to IMDB, there were so many other actors and actresses who were supposed to be in the film but did not make the final cut: Camille Keaton, Sid Haig, Clint Howard, Udo Kier, and Daniel Roebuck to name a few. Don’t know what happened with that, but it would interesting to see how these actors fit into the story and what they would have done with their characters.

Before I officially switch gears here though, there is one important actress who stands out from the rest of the cast with her performance; she blew me MILES away from the couch that I was sitting on. One name, three syllables: Meg Foster. The ice-blue eyed actress, who has appeared in movies such as the 1988 sci-fi classic John Carpenter’s They Live and the William Lustig’s 1989 crime thriller Relentless as well as countless other movie, TV and theatre roles, really upped her game on this film. Her portrayal of Margaret Morgan, I guess you could say she is the head witch, has been somewhat ignored and that pisses me off quite frankly. People who review this film only talk about Rob Zombie, Sherri Zombie, and how horrible they think the movie is, or about how he casts the same people over and over, but no one really EVER gives credit where it’s due to Meg. Sure there may be reviews out there that praise her performance, but not enough. Very little good has been said about this movie and still somehow this performance of Meg's slips under the radar. So sad. But I’m here to gloat about it and tell you that it is amazing and, again, she makes the movie worth watching. I had to take a moment to find her in the movie and once I realized who she was and the role that she was playing, I didn't care if the rest of the movie did suck because her ability to achieve semblance of a dirty witch from Hell without being recognized blew me away. I was looking for those icy blue eyes and instead found a void of a woman in a role that I could not imagine anyone else portraying.

Now that I have expressed my love for Meg and my thoughts on the acting in the film overall, I’m going to step over to the story line. The movie kicks off with a badass title sequence totally reminiscent of ‘70s occult greatness. Diving into the story, basically, Heidi Hawthorne (Sherri Moon Zombie) is a DJ of a radio station which she shares air time with two guys "Whitey" (Jeff Daniel Phillips) and Herman (the familiar and lovable Ken Foree) and she is sent a cool looking wooden box containing a record labeled “A gift from the Lords”. She plays the record, and though it sounds awesome in my opinion, it causes some crazy shit to go down for Heidi such as hallucinations, coughing up blood, and having disembodied flashbacks from the 1600s. Her visions include a coven of witches holding a Black Mass; they are dancing naked around a fire, worshiping Satan, and playing music. The residents of Salem intrude on the witches and put them on trial soon to be found guilty of witchcraft and then of course they are all burned at the stake. Margaret Morgan (the amazing Meg Foster, I’m sure you didn't forget) curses the accuser, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and all of his ancestors. Hmmm…Hawthorne. Yep! Heidi Hawthorne is one of his ancestors. It all ties together in a story line that has kind of been done before, but it still has unique aspects about it and let’s not forget it gives us the amazing Meg Foster. (I will keep repeating this as much as I have to, ha!)

I would say around the midway point of the movie it starts to meander a little bit as far as the story goes, but imagery stays pretty strong. Some memorable shots include when Sherri Moon coughs up blood while listening to the record again and she hallucinates men with black, rubber masks killing her friend, the red neon cross hanging on the wall, the burning of the witches, and the scenes where Sherri is in the autumnal cemetery with her dog and experiences more hallucinations. Strong imagery can sometimes save lack of dialog and a lagging story, and this is the case in some parts of the movie. But I think this is one of the aspects I like most about this movie. Also, it takes place in the ‘70s and for the most part it succeeds in presentation. Again, though the story wavers a bit, the acting is still great and all of the actors and actresses deliver in all aspects. There are a few vicious scenes that I won’t spoil for you if you haven’t seen the film. If you have, then you know what I’m referring to. Expect many creepy images throughout the film too. I won't begin to explain here because you simply just have to see the movie to understand how it all fits together.

Lords of Salem isn't for everyone. Some people would still look at this as a crap effort from Rob Zombie if they’re fans of his and if they’re not a fan then chances are it would be difficult to sell them on it simply because they would expect the splashy music video approach that he can have with his movies. Something about the trailer drew me to wanting to see the film and I’m glad that I gave it a chance because I understand his approach to this movie – a heavy ‘70s Satanic/occult influence with imagery that is, dare I say, more mature than his previous films. His sixth effort has proven to be his best in my opinion. The fact that it seems to get so much hate makes it even more enjoyable. And if I can stress just one more time, if anything, watch it for Meg Foster’s performance; she will forever be seen with even more respect than before from me.

Basically, if you like Satanic cinema with moody atmosphere and vicious delivery then you may enjoy Lords of Salem, but don't just take my word for it...!

Before you leave there's just one more honorable mention I must make about this movie and that's its soundtrack. Like Zombie's other films, there are some '70s classic rock songs and some Rick James funk, but you also have one of the best classical pieces of all-time (Mozart's Requiem In D Minor, K 626 - Sequentia: Lacrimosa Dies Illa) and original pieces by the guitar virtuoso John 5. Some nerve jangling stuff for sure. Wanna hear some? Click the video below. Sweet dreams. The Lords are coming...