As Chuck Russell returns to the cinematic world of scares, screams and jump-cuts to reimagine the 1986-film Witchboard, the American director says, “Horror is big again because we’re dealing with all kinds of tension. When there’s political, social or economic tension, A horrifying sight goes on.”
Russell made his debut in 1987’s A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, followed by The Blob (1988), a gory remake of the ’50s B-film of the same name. He was at the 55th International Film Festival of India, Goa to conduct a masterclass on genre films.
Although the 66-year-old filmmaker found his early success with horror films, his breakthrough came with the success of The Mask (1994), featuring Jim Carrey and Cameron Diaz. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Visual Effects for the film. After that, he directed several popular films like Eraser (1996) and The Scorpion King (2002). In 2019, he directed Junglee, a Hindi-language, action-adventure film, set in India. Later, he directed Paradise City (2022), starring John Travolta and Bruce Willis, who was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2023.
A still from The Mask (1994),
With Witchboard due out next year, Russell wanted to direct “one last horror film.” “In Witchboard, I go into nightmares, dreams, danger, and fantasy. The device featured in this movie—an old pendulum board—is something I’ve been fascinated by for years. It predates the ouija board (which was used in the original Witchboard movie directed by Kevin Tenney). ,” says Russell.
For him, horror films are a way for viewers to face their worst fears. “They relate to heroes and imagine what they can do when faced with their ultimate evil. So, we try to take the audience on a journey out of hell. I want to find a hero in every human being, who can face a great evil. In a theater, we are dark. Sitting next to each other, watching something terrible and screaming at the exact same moment, it’s like we’re sharing a nightmare, and it’s a wonderful human experience when you survive that fear Then the endorphins are released,” says the writer-director.
In the early 90s, Russell chose to move away from making horror films and thinking about universal themes. This turned him towards comedy. Coincidentally, Carrie’s starpower and popularity were on the rise. “Jim was the perfect lead for Mask. Initially it was a horror film but I felt I should make a comedy,” he says.
According to Russell, the success of a comedy or horror film depends on setup, suspense and relief. ‘When we watch a comedy we want to laugh and when we watch a horror film we want to scream. It’s the most satisfying thing for a filmmaker because you can hear how you’re doing,” says Russell, oblivious to the whirring of a coffee machine in the background when we meet at a cafe in Goa.
Russell’s next, a futuristic film, is set in three different countries and India could be one of them. “My mother was a travel agent, who loved India. I was brought up with stone carvings and images of gods and devils around me. I read more mythology than comic books, including parts of the Ramayana and Mahabharata. So when I directed Junglee, which Primarily an anti-hunting story, I got on board immediately.
Still from the wild.
The relationship Russell shared with Indian cinema, however, dates the mask. In one of the movie’s most popular scenes, Carrey, who Russell calls “a comedic genius,” sings and dances Cuban-style while surrounded by police officers. Eventually, even the cops start beating him up. “In Indian cinema, actors dare to suddenly break into a dance or song. When Jim forces the police officers to dance, it’s like Bollywood. “Likewise, they dance in Indian films without any pretense and just because the audience likes it,” recalls Russell.