Directed by Gregory Wilson, and shot and produced by William Miller, Jack Ketchum's The Girl Next Door is a movie that few who've seen will ever forget. Black-hole dark and beyond harrowing, it's nonetheless a carefully crafted work and also extraordinarily sensitive. In fact, if it's not strictly a horror film, then one can only conclude that it's the genre's loss. Jack Ketchum's novel, like much of his work, is based on compelling real-life events. In this instance the story draws upon a 1960s case of almost unspeakable child abuse—most of that abuse committed by other children under adult supervision. Ketchum, who is extremely proud of this film adaptation, speaks openly about production company Moderncine's initial pitch to him: "Let us make this movie before Hollywood does and ruins it."
To bring The Girl Next Door to the screen, Moderncine enlisted some topnotch talent, including award-winning director Gregory Wilson, who here displays a tremendous talent for working with actors, and veteran writers Philip Nutman and Daniel Farrands. Still, in a period when horror movies have repeatedly pushed, and even mangled, the envelope, this one derives most of its emotional shock not from graphic content but from the realistic and courageous presentation of a long-standing cultural taboo: on-screen violence to children. Unfortunately, it's all too easy for some critics to shoot down this kind of movie by terming it "exploitative" when actually it's the opposite: a tragedy that immerses the audience in the misery of the real rather than promoting escapism with comfortable, and clichéd, lessons about violence and evil.
After a successful theatrical run in New York early in the fall, The Girl Next Door is now available on DVD from Anchor Bay. I urge you to see it. Like another powerful film released in 2007, Bug, it may hit too close to home to appeal to the typical horror fan. Indeed, it has a slightly different audience in mind: human beings.
Firefox News: First, a bit of background so that you can see where my questions are coming from. When I saw The Girl Next Door I was so stunned that when it ended, I turned around and addressed the audience members in the next couple of rows, many of whom had already filed in for a different movie. "Did any of you just see that...?" I felt that I had to let others know about it immediately if they hadn't seen it.
Bill Miller: I'm glad you enjoyed the film so much and seemed quite affected by it. When I made the decision to purchase the rights from author Jack Ketchum for the novel, I knew I wanted to make something different than what was currently out in the market. I wanted an incredible challenge—to make a film that has scared off filmmakers and producers for almost ten years. The book was so amazing that I trusted the material to sell itself to the cast and ultimately, the public. Although I don't really consider The Girl Next Door to be a horror film, it's so dark and disturbing, it doesn't really fit into any other genre.
The torture films of recent years (Saw, Hostel) seemed to be nothing more than an assembly line of gore effects. The Girl Next Door certainly has its grisly moments, but it's really about the characters and the situations they are put into. It also has a lot to do with society in the late 1950s where people reacted much differently to violent situations than they would now in 2007. Child abuse has been brought farther into the public eye and laws protecting children have since been enacted. It was a completely different world back then, which makes what happened in our movie even more tragic.
So Greg, let me ask you—like Bill, do you not really consider The Girl Next Door to be a horror film? I understand his point about it being so dark it almost has to be horror even though it also, to use an overworked phrase, transcends the genre. On the other hand, it saddens me when some of the most talented filmmakers out there—and this happens a lot—distance themselves from the genre. I think it confirms for the general public that a thoughtful, artistic and dramatically powerful film could not really be a horror movie, a perception that unfortunately leads to others denigrating the genre... causing a bit of a vicious circle. Any thoughts?
Greg Wilson: That's an excellent question. There is a lot of truth to your statement. I think the reason I was chosen to direct GND was because I did not see it as a horror film. It was a social horror. I think the general perception is, if the story does not cater to the lowest common denominator then it is considered outside the genre. Silence of the Lambs is a good example of excellent film but unconventional with respect to the genre in my opinion.
The other way of answering the question is you know a true horror film when you see it. GND for me was a very dark drama and that was always my approach. I think you are right however about some filmmakers trying not be trapped in the genre. I honestly have to think about that.
Traditional horror has a unique formula and a specific language that we clearly recognize. When films do not subscribe to that formula or language they are considered either foreign to the genre or a new branch of the same tree. I truly believe that true horror fans might not appreciate GND or feel that we did not go far enough, especially with respect to the book. There are legal and logistical reasons for that. While the average movie or cinema viewer might feel that we went way too far. I've gotten both responses.
I've been looking forward to the DVD commentaries because I know that what you had to deal with in terms of the logistical side of the production, with protecting the child actors and so on, is fascinating. Let's cut to the heart of the experience, though, at least as it occurred for me. What I found so masterful is that the movie recreated the old notion of turning the heat up on a frog gradually, so that it doesn't notice it's cooking. I have a feeling others have experienced this as well, whether they appreciate being called frogs or not. My question is, as filmmakers, how conscious of this dynamic with the audience were you? Did you see that potential for a "gradual descent" structure in the source material itself? Or did it emerge largely from how you worked with the actors, coaching them to reveal certain nuances at certain times, or even later, in the editing process?
Bill Miller: I'll let Greg answer this, but from my perspective, we accomplished exactly what I experienced in the book, and that is that every chapter Jack Ketchum wrote was followed by a chapter that raised the stakes and increased the danger. Just when you think things can't possibly get any worse for the children, it does. It was one of the first things I noticed when I read the book for the first time, how the author gradually pulled the characters into hell—and this was done consecutively throughout the 46 chapters of the novel. The script had that same style and I knew with Greg directing, the movie would have the same effect. I don't think I've ever read something like that before that utilized that technique. It made for a very addictive book, and hopefully people respond the same to the movie. Like a car wreck—you want to look away, but can't take your eyes off the horror in front of you. It's human nature, I guess.
Greg Wilson: The analogy you used with regards to turning up the heat is valid. This element was inherent in the story. However, because a full and total translation of the book was not possible, we did make the conscious effort to isolate and magnify the four dominant themes in the narrative which allow for this gradual descent. Since we were working with adolescent cast, it was important to reveal the "coming of age" element due to the adult and sexual themes. Second, was the blossoming love story between Meg and David that was never realized. Third, the fact that older David was permanently scarred by his childhood events, and finally the collective effects of the basement scenes.
As for viewer coercion or manipulation, one of the most powerful and poetic elements that most people do not realize was the fact that with each consecutive scene in the basement the color saturation was decreased, and it is not until we return to present day that this effect is appreciated. This was exquisitely done by Bill who was also our cinematographer. Finally, as with all films, the editing process allowed for the fine-tuning of the above-mentioned elements particularly with regard to the audience.
It's interesting that Stephen King and some reviewers have referenced Stand By Me in relation to The Girl Next Door. While that specific title didn’t come up for me, I was struck by how some of the set-ups, particularly in the voyeurism scene, evoked elements of typical coming-of-age movies—which is great, because later the audience can look back and realize that maybe such scenes are perhaps not as "innocent" as Hollywood would have us believe. Thematically, I was reminded of Hitchcock's Shadow of a Doubt and the Halloween sequence in Meet Me in St. Louis. That is, you touch upon the creepiness of suburban Americana and the notion that we don’t quite know—or want to know—what our neighbors are up to. As you worked on The Girl Next Door, did certain directors or other films come to mind? Not as influences necessarily, but just along the lines of, "Hey, there's some common ground here."
Bill Miller: For me personally, I never thought about any particular filmmaker as I put the movie together or worked on any scene. My love for the horror/suspense genre I'm sure had some influence on where I placed the camera, lighting, etc. Brian DePalma's voyeuristic approach and John Carpenter's atmosphere within an environment are always in the back of my mind, but I never actively imitate them, parts of their style just come through my work.
Greg Wilson: I didn't think of any specific film or director when I made GND. I really am trying to develop my own signature. Also, each project for me requires a different approach. For GND I did not want to bring too much attention to the camera.
Can you describe the casting of Blanche Baker and how you worked with her to develop her interpretation of Ruth Chandler? Did she test for the part? And if so, what did you see in her at the time? While I greatly admire Javier Bardem's work in No Country for Old Men, I think her performance is the greatest portrayal of villainy in recent film memory. She's the unforgettable "monster" that, for me, makes the film part of the horror genre.
Greg Wilson: With regard to Blanche Baker, we auditioned many actresses for the part of Ruth. I had one actress come in and explain to us why she felt she could not reach that emotional place necessary to play the part. For me Blanche was perfect. She in many ways became the center of gravity of my cast. We both agreed completely on how this character should develop.
In the original script there were many physical elements that Blanche and I completely disagreed with. We both agreed and understood that her decline should manifest itself more psychology than physically. But also understanding that the character that was most responsible for her degeneration was the character that we never see, Ruth's husband. I treated her character like a victim in many respects, not just the perpetrator of torture. She was a human being with honest dreams and real faults. A true tragedy of spirit.
I agree… So what's next for both of you? You've made a fan out of me and a lot of other moviegoers, so we'll want to know what we can look forward to.
Bill Miller: Our company, Moderncine, recently completed another extremely dark horror project titled Home Movie starring Adrian Pasdar of the hit NBC series Heroes (horror fans know him from the cult vampire film Near Dark). The story involves two twin ten-year-old children raised in an isolated area of New England. We follow them over the course of a year as they become more and more distant from their parents and begin to delve into acts of evil. Their father, a minister, believes he can cure them with his faith in God and the children's mother, a world famous child psychologist, believes she can cure them with her therapy methods.
Our most recent feature film, Made For Each Other, is a change of pace for our company. It's an adult comedy starring Chris Masterson [Malcolm In The Middle] and Bijou Phillips [Havoc, Bully] in which a husband is attempts to find a man to sleep with his wife to make up for his own extra marital affair. The film also stars Lauren German [Hostel 2], Samm Levine [Freaks and Geeks], Patrick Warburton [Seinfeld, The Tick] and George Segal [Just Shoot Me!].
Both feature films will be released in 2008. We are currently looking at a few new horror projects to begin production in the spring.
Greg Wilson: In 2008, I will see the release of my first film, which was co-exec produced by Spike Lee. And I am currently developing my next feature film that will be shot in China.
Great, a lot of exciting projects either in the works or already in the can. Thanks, both of you, for taking the time to let people learn more about the creative process behind The Girl Next Door… and moreover, thanks for delivering such a memorable movie.