Usually, when there are rumors of off-camera shenanigans happening on a film set it’s to the consternation of fans who fear producers are meddling with the “artistic vision” of the film’s director, and therefore all but ensuring a campaign for a new “cut” of the film, typically denoted by adding the name of said wronged director. But, long before hashtags were commonplace and social media wasn’t even a flicker in the eye of some future tech bro, movies would experience the odd event or two during and after filming, leading some fans to dub them “cursed” and thereby ensuring a different and enduring kind of popularity. And it’s that specific brand of notoriety that’s explored in Shudder’s new and entertaining docies, Cursed Films.
It’s no surprise that the films around which exist the most prevalent and persistent rumors of being cursed are horror (or horror adjacent). The films themselves generate a kind of heightened sensitivity to the idea that something otherworldly or supernatural is going on when all that’s really happening are a bunch of weird and sometimes tragic coincidences that genre fans can’t seem to help but glom onto. It’s fitting, then, that AMC’s horror-centric streaming service would explore some of the most tenacious rumors in film history, visiting movies like The Exorcist. What’s interesting, though, is the way in which Cursed Films takes an even hand at examining the root cause of the beliefs, speaking with those who help perpetuate them and those who take a refreshingly rational approach to the notion of a horror film being cursed.
The series comes from writer and director Jay Cheel, who manages to cover a tremendous amount of ground in a remarkably small amount of time. Each episode clocks in at under 30 minutes, meaning Cheel delivers a solid refresher on the supposed curse, speaks with as many cast and crew as he can, and even finds time to chat with some people whose interest in things like curses and the supernatural have led them down a, let’s say, fascinatingly different path. The result is a thoroughly entertaining new series that’s perfect for horror fans but will also be of interest to non-horror fans alike. Though, what a non-horror fan is doing with a subscription to Shudder is anyone’s guess.
Cursed Films starts off with a bang, zeroing in on the often tragic coincidences surrounding Tobe Hooper’s 1982 haunted house classic, Poltergeist, as well as its two sequels. Much of Cheel spends much of his time discussing the murder of actress Dominique Dunne, who played Dana Freeling and the later death of Heather O’Rourke, who played Carol Anne Freeling, during production on Poltergeist III. Cheel’s approach affords the series ample opportunity to embrace and then distance itself from the notion of these curses, particularly when they are so distastefully attached to circumstances such as those surrounding Dunne and O’Rourke.
While each episode offers a competent recap of not only the film in question but also the questions of something spooky going on around the time of production (and after), Cursed Films knows its audience well enough to know they are likely familiar with the rumors and unpleasant notions surrounding them. That gives Cheel more time to cover various sides of the alleged curse, from interviews with those who worked on the films themselves — a later episode features an on-camera interview with The Omen director Richard Donner — and with those who are either horror super fans or dabble in the dark arts themselves. Again, The Omen episode involves interviews with a man who is a witch, and another who practices black magic.
Cursed Films remains remarkably straightforward, regardless of who is on screen at any given moment. By not winking at the audience or overtly pooh-poohing the differing beliefs held by those for whom magic and mysticism is the norm, the series is playing it safe. Thankfully, the series never falters when it comes time for more, let’s say, down-to-earth thinking with regard to the idea of curses and supernatural forces being involved in the production of mass-market entertainment.
Nevertheless, Cursed Films remains an entertaining watch, one that is more interested in how these rumors and legends are created and why they persist than in the validity of them. The end result is a fascinating look into the world of horror films and how they can sometimes take on a life of their own.
Cursed Films season 1 is currently streaming on Shudder with new episodes made available every Thursday through April 16.