Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Night Breed (1990) Written and Directed by Clive Barker.

Aaron Boone is a man with a lovely girlfriend, Lori, and a few problems. He has nightmares about a place filled with monsters. That place is called Midian, and Boone feels he belongs there with the monsters. Not exactly normal REM activities at all. So Boone goes to see a shrink, Dr. Philip K. Decker. And Dr. Decker takes a very keen interest in his case.

Months pass; there is a serial killer in Calgary. And the murders are beginning to look very like the description of some of Boone’s dreams. Decker confronts Boone with pictures of crime scenes that match his descriptions. The police asked him if he had any patients who matched the profile of this killer. Decker gives Boone a prescription and 24 hours to turn himself in.

But Boone does not turn himself in; he gets hit by a truck. And those pills were not Lithium, but a powerful hallucinogen. In the hospital, between the time he comes awake, and the police arriving, Decker in tow, Boone hears his roommate talking about Midian. He too believes it is a place inhabited by monsters, where your sins will be forgiven. Boone gets some information out of the man, but it triggers a psychotic episode, and the guy cuts his face off, saying he must reveal his true face. Boone uses the distraction to escape.

He heads for Midian, an old prospector’s graveyard up near Shearneck. There, he explores, and the events of the day catching up with him, falls asleep. When he awakens, he realizes he is not alone.

He is attacked by a man with a face like the man in the moon, especially his profile, and another with dreads of living flesh. These two discuss the relative merits of eating him. Kinski, the moon faced man, says it is against the law. The other Peloquin, is of the opinion since he is natural, he is meat. Boone protests that he belongs with them, he is a killer. Peloquin laughs and asks who told him that? He can smell innocence. Decker lied. He bites Boone, who breaks free and flees the graveyard….

….into the waiting arms of the law, and Dr. Decker. Decker asks to talk him down, and then screams he has a gun. Boone is shot dead. And that is the end of the matter.

Or it should have been. Boone gets better. Peloquin’s bite has changed him. Boone makes his way back to the graveyard.

He is followed by two people, Lori, and Decker. Both suspect the reports of his death may be exaggerated.

Boone finds himself initiated into the Tribes of the Moon. These are races of shape shifters and creatures of the night, hunted to extinction by man. Midian is their last refuge. Here they worship Baphomet, their god, and hide from man.

What follows is a game of cat and mouse, Lori hunting for Boone, Decker using her as bait to lure him into the open. Eventually, Decker manipulates the situation into a full blown assault on Midian, and it looks like the tribes of the moon might not live to see another sunset.

The Cast

Craig Sheffer ... Aaron Boone / Cabal
Anne Bobby ... Lori Desinger
David Cronenberg ... Dr. Philip K. Decker. The real monster of the piece.
Charles Haid ... Captain Eigerman. You don’t have to be Night Breed to be a monster.
Hugh Quarshie ... Detective Joyce. Possibly the only decent person beside Lori.
Hugh Ross ... Narcisse, The faceless man, with thumbblades. Boone’s sidekick.
Doug Bradley ... Dirk Lylesberg. The leader of Midian. Facial gills that bleed, and open to reveal eyes.
Catherine Chevalier ... Rachel. A lovely woman who turns to smoke.
Malcolm Smith ... Ashberry. The priest, a drunk.
Bob Sessions ... Pettine. The old gas station attendant.
Oliver Parker ... Peloquin. The angry Breed with the serpent locks who bit Boone.
Debora Weston ... Sheryl Ann. Lori’s friend who proves no good deed goes unpunished.
Nicholas Vince ... Kinski. The moon faced man.
Simon Bamford ... Ohnaka. Tattoos, nipple rings, and the little dog.
Kim Robertson & Nina Robertson... Babette
Christine McCorkindale ... Shuna Sassi. The seductive porcupine woman.
Tony Bluto ... Leroy Gomm. Fat boy with a scathing wit, and worms living inside him.
Vincent Keene ... Devil Lude. A blue and horny devil.
Bernad Henry ... Baphomet. The God of the Breed, easily mistaken for a statue.
Richard Van Spall ... Drummer. Tusked
David Young ... Otis and Clay. The conjoined twin man.

The Analysis
This is a very dark Faery Tale. The Faeries may look more like monsters, werewolves and vampires, but the fact is they are fey. They are a subterranean race who have magical powers, and live under strange bans. They can be wondrous and cruel, or kind and loving. They are always capricious.

No, there are many monsters in this piece, and none of them are the Breed. As is typical with many Barker stories, the monsters are the sympathetic characters. Captain Eigerman is a narrow minded angry control freak who lashes out at anything that scares him, that he does not understand, or that does not do exactly what he says. This kind of control freak is always trouble, and one with authority is a nightmare.

Of course, he is an amateur in comparison to Decker. Decker is a serial killer who framed his own patient. As soon as he learned of the Breed, he was determined to kill them all. He lies, manipulates and controls to further his agenda of killing “breeders” meaning in this case, families he considers “bad”. The only example we saw seemed like nice decent folk down the street. But Decker is saving the world by killing them.

That kind of monster is the worst. They are joined by a third kind, the zealot priest, Ashberry. Originally in the drunk tank, he found religion again real quick as soon as he laid eyes on the breed. He is the sort that is very quick with his judgments.

In the end, I think Barker was really trying to show that message; not everything is what it seems. Like the frog that turns into a prince, the Night Breed demonstrate family bonds, loyalty, friendship, and bravery. The forces of the establishment, law enforcement, the church, and psychiatry, are all shown to be corrupt and monstrous. The message is clear; do not judge a book by its cover.

And Barker rather hits us over the head with this. And that is one of the elements that I feel qualify this as a very dark Faery tale.

The Production value of the movie is excellent; the make up in particular is outstanding. The premise is intriguing, and the writing is great. The acting mostly holds up. So where does this movie fall down?

Continuity. This movie was originally considerably longer. It was cut radically to remove the deeply disturbing gore. And knowing Barker’s style, I do not doubt that these scenes contain vital information and back-story that would explain much. As it stands, this movie is a little rough, and a little vague. It really screams out for the director’s cut edition.

Still, even with its flaws it is a very different sort of monster movie, and very underappreciated due to idiocy in its marketing. If you are a fan of horror, especially if you have ever rooted for the vampire, then this movie is for you.

Check out these Faery Tales.
MirrorMask
Night Breed
The Dark Crystal
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Legend
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
The Water Horse
Princess Mononoke



Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older