Slither (2006 film)

Infobox Film
name=Slither


caption=Official Poster for "Slither"
director=James Gunn
writer=James Gunn
producer=Paul Brooks
Eric Newman
starring=Nathan Fillion
Elizabeth Banks
Michael Rooker
Gregg Henry
Tania Saulnier
Brenda James
Don Thompson
Jenna Fischer
music= Tyler Bates
distributor= Universal Pictures
Gold Circle Films
TVA Films
budget= $29.5 million
awards=
released= March 31, 2006
runtime=
language= English
amg_id = 1:319780
imdb_id= 0439815

"Slither" is a 2006 horror-comedy film by Universal, written and directed by James Gunn, and starring Nathan Fillion, Elizabeth Banks, Michael Rooker, Gregg Henry, Tania Saulnier and Jenna Fischer, and was produced by Paul Brooks and Eric Newman. "Slither" was James Gunn's directorial debut, and was influenced by classic alien invasion films such as "The Thing", "The Blob" and "Shivers". [ [http://www.bloody-disgusting.com/news/4340 Bloody-Disgusting Interview with James Gunn] ] [ [http://www.genrebusters.com/film/interview_jamesgunn.htm Genre Busters Interview with James Gunn] ] [ [http://www.jamesgunn.com/slither.html 50 Fun Facts about Slither] ] It also bears a number of narrative similarities with Fred Decker's cult classic "Night of the Creeps".

Gunn was said to be influenced by the wave of graphically violent horror B-movies of the 1970s and 1980s, largely created by such directors as John Carpenter, Lloyd Kaufman, David Cronenberg and Stuart Gordon.Fact|date=October 2007 "Slither" also pays homage to the studio Troma Films, where Gunn began his career. Troma co-founder Lloyd Kaufman has a cameo as a "Sad Drunk", and one scene includes a clip from the Troma film "The Toxic Avenger".

Plot

Grant Grant (Michael Rooker) is infected by a malevolent extraterrestrial creature that threatens to destroy the human race. Soon, unusual things begin to happen within the normally peaceful town of Wheelsy. Pets go missing, followed by livestock, and finally people, with all of it leading back to Grant. As Grant slowly mutates into a hideous creature, his wife Starla (Elizabeth Banks) begins to notice her husband's behavior and physical changes. Wheelsy's citizens are infected by the alien parasite plague, which is transforming them into zombies. The zombies are being controlled through a hive mind relationship with Grant. A small group of survivors led by the town's sheriff, Bill Pardy (Nathan Fillion), try to prevent the parasites from spreading. When the heroes discover the zombies can be traced back to Grant, they realize they need to kill him. In a desperate attack, the survivors manage to blow up the Grant monster, killing the zombies as well. An after-credit sequence shows Grant's remains infecting a cat.

Cast

Reception

Box office performance

"Slither" debuted in the United States and Canada on March 31 2006 in 1,945 theaters. In its opening weekend, the film grossed only $3,880,270 and ranked #8 at the U.S. and Canadian box office. "Slither" grossed a low $7,802,450 in its theatrical run in the United States and Canada. "Slither" also underperformed in France, grossing $236,261 from 150 screens. [cite news | author=Conor Bresnan | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=2053&p=.htm | title=Around the World Roundup: 'Ice Age' Spans Four Weeks, Tops $300M | publisher=Box Office Mojo | date=2006-04-24 | accessdate=2007-09-21 ] The film grossed $5,032,486 as of February 6, 2008 in territories outside the United States and Canada for a worldwide gross of $12,834,936.cite web | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=slither.htm | title=Slither (2006) | publisher=Box Office Mojo | accessdate=2008-02-23 ] Its box office performance was substantially less than its total budget of $29.5 million, including marketing costs;cite news | author= Borys Kit | url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002277545 | title='Slither' leaves gloomy trail | publisher=Hollywood Reporter | date=2006-04-05 | accessdate=2007-09-21 ] the production budget taking up about $15 million of the total. [ [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?page=main&id=slither.htm Slither (2006) ] ] Paul Brooks, president of Slither's production company, Gold Circle Films, said the company was "crushingly disappointed" by the haul.cite news | author= Borys Kit | url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/search/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002277545 | title='Slither' leaves gloomy trail | publisher=Hollywood Reporter | date=2006-04-05 | accessdate=2007-09-21 ] Universal Pictures distanced itself from the "Slither"'s poor box office performance, citing their distribution of the film as merely part of a deal with Gold Circle Films. [cite news | author=Brandon Gray | url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=2041&p=.htm | title='Ice Age 2' Hot, 'Basic Instinct 2' Not | publisher=Box Office Mojo | date=2006-04-03 | accessdate=2007-09-24 ] "The Hollywood Reporter" speculated that Slither's performance "might have killed off the horror-comedy genre for the near future." Producer Paul Brooks offered this explanation about why "Slither" failed to catch on with movie-goers:

Critical reception

Film review website Rotten Tomatoes, which calculates the consensus of critics across the United States, found that "Slither" was generally embraced favorably by critics, [ [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/features/rtawards/movie_2006.php?r=21&mid=1159017&type=w ROTTEN TOMATOES: 8th Annual Golden Tomato Awards ] ] with a rating of "84% fresh". [ [http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/slither/ Slither - Movie Reviews, Trailers, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes ] ] The movie was also featured in the April 14, 2006 issue of "Entertainment Weekly" as #1 on "The Must List"; "Ten Things We Love This Week". [ [http://www.ew.com/ew/article/commentary/0,6115,1181146_7%7C%7C451056%7C0_0_,00.html The Must List: April 14, 2006 | Must List | News + Notes | Entertainment Weekly ] ] "Slither" picked up the 2006 "Fangoria" "Chainsaw Award" for the "Highest Body Count", and garnered nominations in the categories of "Relationship From Hell", "Dude You Don't Wanna Mess With", and "Looks That Kill". [ [http://horror.about.com/od/tvseriesminiseries/a/chain_award06.htm Chainsaw Awards - Nominees ] ] Additionally, the horror magazine "Rue Morgue" named "Slither" the “Best Feature Film of the Year,” a title bestowed on the film by the magazine’s messageboard community as well. [cite news | title =R.I.P. 2006 The Year in Review | publisher =RUE MORGUE | Issue 64 |date=Jan/Feb 2007 ] Among the critics who did not like the film, Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper gave "Slither" a "two thumbs down" rating on their television show, with Richard Roeper saying he was "all zombied out" after reviewing a wave of zombie-themed movies from the year before. [ [http://tvplex.go.com/buenavista/ebertandroeper/060403.html Reviews from the Weekend of April 1–April 2, 2006] . Ebert & Roeper, from movies.com.]

Distribution

"Slither" was released on regular DVD and on HD DVD / DVD hybrid disc on October 24, 2006. [cite web|url=http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Announcements/Universal/Slither_Oozes_to_HD_DVD_this_October/142|title=Slither oozes to HD DVD This October] . The HD version is presented in 1.85:1 widescreen encoded at 1080p and Dolby Digital-Plus 5.1 surround. Guest critic Michael Phillips named "Slither" his DVD pick of the week on the television show "Ebert & Roeper". The DVD opened at #8 in sales and #15 in rentals, grossing $3,389,405 [ [http://www.the-numbers.com/dvd/charts/weekly/2006/20061029.php DVD sales as of 10/29/2006] ] (sales) and $2.08 million [ [http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/rentals?date=2006-10-29&region=us USA DVD Rentals: 29 October 2006 ] ] (rentals) in its opening week. The DVD total Rental gross reached $11.1 million [ [http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/rentals?date=2006-12-24&region=us USA DVD Rentals: 24 December 2006] ] and total DVD sales were $4,541,528 [ [http://www.the-numbers.com/dvd/charts/weekly/2006/20061105.php DVD sales as of 11/05/2006] ] as of 11/05/2006. "Slither" was listed as one of the “Top 25 DVDs of the Year” by Peter Travers in "Rolling Stone" magazine. [cite news | last =Travers | first =Peter | title =Best 25 DVDs | publisher =ROLLING STONE | Issue 1014 |date=November 30, 2006 ]

In addition to the film, the DVD contains two making-of documentaries, one being solely dedicated to the visual effects. The DVD also contains deleted and extended scenes, a blooper reel, visual effects progressions, a set tour with Nathan Fillion, and audio commentary by James Gunn and Nathan Fillion. Also included are featurettes outlining how to make edible blood, and Lloyd Kaufman's documentary discussing his day on set, and the shooting of his one line (which was eventually cut from the film). Finally, there is an added bonus entitled "Who Is Bill Pardy?" which is a joke feature made by Gunn with the sole purpose of roasting Nathan Fillion, and was shown at the film's wrap party. [cite web|url=http://www.jamesgunn.com|title=jamesgunn.com]

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0439815|title=Slither
* [http://www.slithermovie.net Official site]
* [http://www.apple.com/trailers/universal/slither/ Trailer]