Of all horror subgenres,cosmic horror is the most visceral, human exploration of fearthere is. It doesn’t prey onimmediate fears such as ghosts and slashers, fears that we become accustomed to and desensitized by as we grow older and more cynical. No, cosmic horror explores the most universal fear of all, a fear that grows stronger as we age and the mortality of our weak, carbon-based flesh settles in:The vast infinity and mystery of the universe, and the truly insignificant, pathetic part that humanity plays in the bigger picture of existence. We like to believe that we’re special because of our culture, our art, our technology — like we’re the kings and queens of the kingdom of reality… but we’re not. We’re specs of sand on a vast, endless beach of nothingness. Dust blown by the cosmic winds holding no significance. Destined to die, degrade, and decompose back into a state of carbon and hydrogen to be forgotten by the infinite cosmos, like ants under the shoes of an indifferent passerby. The insignificance and frailty of humanity will terrifyanyoneif properly communicated, and a movie that absolutely nails this feeling is2016’sThe Void.
H.P. Lovecraft, the father of cosmic horror, is largely considered to have a body of work that is “unadaptable” for the big screen. That’s not to say that there haven’t been plenty of attempts at clear homages and inspired tales though, many of which are brilliant films, such asThe ThingandAnnihilation. There have even been some direct adaptions of Lovecraft’s work too, such asColor Out Of SpaceorRe-Animator,but these films tend to suffer from the same issue when trying to make cosmic horror work in a visual medium. What people mean by “unadaptable” is that the key element of what makes Lovecraft’s tales so terrifying isthe implication:the horrors of the furthest reaches of the universe are so blasphemously, incomprehensibly dread-inducing and make humanity look so pathetic and insignificant by comparison that they’re impossible to represent in visual media.The Voidsucceeds in showing a lot of thegross body horrorthat the genre is known for, making a mockery of the weakness of flesh. It also nails the implication of bigger, mind-breaking truths happening off-screen, making it one of the rare movies to emulate Lovecraft’s stories so well.
Shortly after delivering a patient to an understaffed hospital, a police officer experiences strange and violent occurrences seemingly linked to a group of mysterious hooded figures.
What Is ‘The Void’ About?
The Voidis a 2016 Canadian horror film brought to us bySteven KostanskiandJeremy Gillespie, telling the tale of a group of people from a small, isolated countryside town crossing paths one night in a rundown and understaffed hospital. A local police officer (Aaron Poole) brings in a hysterical man he found in the woods (Evan Stern). An elderly man (James Millington) is taking his pregnant granddaughter (Grace Munro) for a check-up, and the various staff members (including actors such asKenneth Welsh,Kathleen Munroe, andEllen Wong) work through their night shift like any other, keeping up pleasant, watercooler chit-chat with their colleagues and patients. Just as theminimalist, realistic kitchen-sink dialogue, subdued and believable performances, and restrained,cold, and detached cinematographylull the viewer into a comfortable feeling of small-town monotony, shit suddenly and violently hits the fan. Our group of various co-protagonists quickly find themselves being thrown into a blood, guts, andtentacle-soaked nightmare of cosmic proportions.
John Carpenter’s Apocalypse Trilogy Defined Cosmic Horror
“I think, therefore you are.”
One character suddenly goes insane and gets sadomasochistically busy with a pair of scissors. Our local cop tries to call for backup only to discover that all forms of communication with the outside world have been mysteriously cut off, and just as folks attempt to leave the hospital to go and find help,a robed-and-masked cultsurrounds the premises and ominously, silently threatens to butcher anyone who attempts to leave, keeping the whole building under siege. As a final piece of the mousetrap set-up in preparation for the true carnage to begin, a pair of mysterious and armed men (Daniel FathersandMik Byskov) burst into the hospital in search of refuge, seemingly knowing what mysterious horrors await the cast of characters, ready to plant bullets in whoever orwhateverlurks the hospital corridors.What follows is a hellish descent into cosmic madness ofdisgusting (and brilliantly practical) body horrorand gory, occult sci-fi nightmares. Why is there a cult blocking them inside? And why are those inside becoming possessed and horrifically deformed into agonized amalgamations of torn flesh and tentacles by unknown cosmic forces? Watch to find out!
‘The Void’ Pays Homage to Both Lovecraft and John Carpenter
The film isn’t a direct adaption of any particular Lovecraft story; rather, it sets out topay homage to recurring horror motifsand themes found throughout Lovecraft’s work. Everyman, self-insert protagonists facing madness-inducing Eldritch horrors doused in wet, meaty flesh and tentacles. Ancient Ones looking down on humanity like minuscule and under-evolved insects fit for squashing or eating.Occult worshipers and paganistic symbolsrepresenting a hidden underworld of secret societies that pursue enlightenment.The fearful realization of mortalitythrough feeling the proximity of death, pushing someone towards occult religions in search of an answer to humanity’s frailty and becoming corrupted in the process. These motifs, found in tales such asHerbert West–ReanimatorandShadow Over Innsmouth,are paid homage by the film’s tale of a doctor not being able to accept the death of a loved one, leading them to turn to the study of all-powerful, infinite cosmic forces to try and cure the weakness of man’s flesh and bone, only to be driven mad by what they find when they finally peer into the void.
The film also borrows quite heavily fromJohn Carpenter’s body of workin the form of plot points and visual inspirations. There are heavy doses ofThe Thingfound in the film’s monster design anduse of practical effects, as well asAssault On Precinct 13,with the film’s set-up consisting of a violent siege on a building full of unsuspecting, normal people. There’s an air ofThe Fogfound in the film’s visual style, isolated dark-woods-setting, and some remnants ofPrince Of Darknesswithin theslimy possessions and orifice-invading kills. Last but not least, the film’s overall homage to Lovecraft aligns with Carpenter’s own directly Lovecraft-inspired flick,In the Mouth of Madness, even selecting a title that directly references the Lovecraft mythos in the same way. Kostanski and Gilespie combine these homages together to create not only a catch-all tribute to Lovecraft and cosmic horror but to the wonderful world ofschlocky ’80s creature featuresas well.The Voidis equal parts gross, disturbing, packed to the brim with ambiguous mysteries and unanswered questions, and brutally, twistedly fun as hell — as any cosmic horror film should be!
The themes of Cosmic Horror Are Complemented By The Film’s Ambiguous Ending
One ofthe potential downsides for viewers of the film lies in its ending. For a seasoned fan of the cosmic horror genre,The Void’sfinale simply serves to drive home the key message of this particular brand of fiction, making it one of the bettercosmic horror filmsout there precisely because it leaves the viewer scratching their head. No, the film doesn’t provide any clear and concrete answers for the majority of its mysteries by the end. However, it’s the unsolved and incomprehensible mystery and brain-breaking implications surrounding what the audience doesn’t get to see that makes cosmic horror truly terrifying.
(Of course, spoiler warning here!) In the film’s ending, it’s revealed that the man behind the cult-driven siege and the rituals that have created the creatures that terrorize the hospital is the head doctor himself. Dr. Powell (played byTwin Peaks' Kenneth Welsh) becomes involved with the cultists that surround the hospital tocuredeath after he is driven mad by the loss of his daughter. Dr. Powell turned to the vast, unanswered mysteries of the cosmos to try and findsomething —anything— that would cure humanity’s biggest ailment, the punchline to the joke that is carbon-based life: That our meat and our bones are frail, weak, disgusting, and pathetic, limiting the power of our minds through the tragedy of mortality. In the end, we never learn exactly whatthe doctor discovered on the other side, besides the fact that it is intelligent, timeless, and sees humans as nothing but juicy little playthings to twist and deform, seemingly for fun. All we know is that it drove the doctor mad, making him reject the palpability of flesh in exchange for a form of hellish ascension, experimenting on people to create nightmarish hellspawn in pursuit of understanding and overcoming the limitations of mankind’s meaty existence.
Overall, the film nails Lovecraft’s particular brand more than most homages to his work. This is for many reasons, but most of all, it’s because the horrors we see are but a mere grain of sand on an endless desert of incomprehensible madness that edges closer to our dimension with a hungry belly, leaving the viewer’s imagination to do the heavy lifting for their own sleepless nights. Still, there’s plenty of graphic, gory horror to help kickstart that wondering mind at bedtime, as you stare into space and wonder what could be out there. Sweet dreams!
