By Mark Saldana
Rating: 3.5 (Out of 4 Stars)
From Canadian film company, Astron-6, comes an often hilarious and always over-the-top horror/giallo spoof that made for a fun midnight screening at Fantastic Fest. Written and directed by and starring Adam Brooks and Matthew Kennedy, The Editor focuses on a string of murders taking place in a movie studio. Editor Rey Ciso (Brooks) was once considered one of the great art house editors working in film. After a catastrophic accident leaves him with prosthetic fingers, the only work he can get is editing sleazy pulp movies. His dull and unhappy life and career become even more frightening when a series of murders rock the production and editing of the studio’s latest film. Ace detective Peter Pofiry (Kennedy) begins an in depth investigation of the murders and of the possible suspects working for the seedy movie studio.
I must say that I had a lot of fun watching this movie. Fans of giallo flicks (Brava, Argento, Fulci) will laugh and applaud Brooks and Kennedy as they do a great job lampooning the genre. The cinematography, the editing, the dialogue, the acting, and the score are all elements that Brooks and Kennedy nail perfectly. The writer/directors and their makeup department also beautifully create the gory kills for giallo is infamous. There are a few lame jokes, but most of the humor is right on the money. The additional cast, which includes Paz de la Huerta, Udo Kier, Laurence R. Harvey, Tristan Risk, Shelia Campbell, and Cal Konitz are an absolute joy to behold.