The Craving

Valerie R. Castro's "The Craving" has a couple of things going for it- a cast that is pretty much game for anything and a writer/director who knows what she's doing. It also has a couple of more things going for it anytime Velocity Chyaldd is onscreen but that's just icing on this frothy lesbian cupcake of Herschell Gordon Lewis-style gore and camp. Starring Anna Curtis (present at the screening tonight and looking even better in person than she does on screen) as Ronnie Sixtos, a San Francisco-chef-of-the-moment whose recipes call for that "little something extra" in a wicked, Joan Jett-inspired performance. Curtis and Chayaldd have genuine presence on the screen, despite (or perhaps because) Castro's material keeps them firmly rooted in the B-movie, grindhouse tradition.

There's much to enjoy here if you aren't looking for something original, including gratuitous gore, nudity and tattoos. Also, it's nice to see the usual hetero stereotypes of the genre upended and see a horny cannibal who isn't Jeffrey Dalmer portrayed without a nod and a (t)wink. The one serious misfire is a sound mix which is simply dreadful and should be fixed before the film hits release. I thought I overheard someone who worked on the film say the mix in the club scenes was deliberate because that's the way conversations sound in clubs. True, but this is a movie. Still, fans of gore, lesbians, breasts, and slasher flicks should enjoy this. The next (and last) showing at Another Hole in the Head is on Monday at 5:20.