VHS tape might be an antiquated medium but writer-director David Cronenberg’s sick idea to fuse it with flesh ensures Videodrome (1983) has a long shelf-life as a body-horror sci-fi cult classic. Even if the technology featured is dated, from VCRs to cathode tube TVs to cable satellite dishes, the cold eroticism and sick intrigue of this movie complicates any techno-fear with techno-arousal; the medium is the message and the message is horny and depraved. Rick Baker’s grotesquely spectacular special effects, which emphasises the tactile and gooey means that everything has a distinct physicality as VHS tapes are inserted into stomachs and heads are swallowed up by TV screens in two of the film’s most iconic images. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found myself responding more and more to Cronenberg’s aesthetic and mood. In the past, there was always a slight remove, a chilly distance that he was renowned for as an auteur, ideas over heart, intellect over emotion. Yet as the world gets more and more grim, Cronenberg’s work remains prescient even if we’re in a world of streaming platforms and social media. James Woods is perfectly sleazy and intense as Max Renn, programmer for Channel 83, a Canadian TV station that is controversial for broadcasting violent, sexual content. His demand for “harder” stuff comes true with the mysterious Videodrome, a pirate feed that broadcasts anonymous dungeon torture. As Max starts to become addicted to it, along with his sadomasochistic lover, Nikki Brand (Debbie Harry, perfectly cast), he goes down the wormhole of secret wars between underground parties over the use of advanced technology that causes disturbing mental and physical effects. Much like Scanners, I love that these Cronenberg joints start from a chilly, boring sense of place and eventually unveil strange conspiracies and ghoulish ruptures, an eventual apocalyptic breakdown of body and mind. They also feel like the entry-point into a larger, speculative netherworld; Having just watched Scanners II and III, I wish there were similar direct-to-video over-the-top sequels that expanded the battle between Spectical Optical Corporation and the New Flesh acolytes. Foreboding score by Howard Shore that almost works as sound design at certain points. Available to rent on iTunes. Long live the new flesh. Recommended.
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