The Bay

This week, the found footage film, The Bay, opens in a limited theatrical release - and on VOD and iTunes - bringing with it creepy crawly freak-out scares.  We recently caught up with director Barry Levinson whose film career spans Diner, Young Sherlock Holmes, Rain Man, Sleepers and more.

With The Bay, he enters new territory focusing on Chesapeake Bay where an unusual ecological outbreak takes place.  The story is told from various perspectives, utilizing Skype, camera phones and more.  The Cabin in the Woods' Kristen Connolly co-stars.

Head inside for our interview in which Levinson discusses the films origins and more.

What are the little critters from the forthcoming eco-horror tale The Bay capable of?  Well, we've been sent two new images featuring the victims of the film's isopods (learn more about the isopod here).

The found footage film, by Barry Levinson, opens on November 2nd.  You can look for an interview with the director soon here at Shock.

The quaint seaside town of Chesapeake Bay thrives on water; it is the lifeblood of the community. When two biological researchers from France find a staggering level of toxicity in the water, they attempt to alert the mayor, but he refuses to create a panic in the docile town. As a result, a deadly plague is unleashed, turning the people of Chesapeake Bay into hosts for a mutant breed of parasites that take control of their minds, and eventually their bodies. A brutal and harrowing creature feature for the 21st century, The Bay chronicles the descent of a small town into absolute terror.

Head inside for the pics!

Want a movie that's going to make your skin crawl?  Look no further than The Bay, the found footage creature feature from director Barry Levinson.  Two clips from the film have surfaced and you can watch them after the jump.

The quaint seaside town of Chesapeake Bay thrives on water; it is the lifeblood of the community. When two biological researchers from France find a staggering level of toxicity in the water, they attempt to alert the mayor, but he refuses to create a panic in the docile town. As a result, a deadly plague is unleashed, turning the people of Chesapeake Bay into hosts for a mutant breed of parasites that take control of their minds, and eventually their bodies. A brutal and harrowing creature feature for the 21st century, The Bay chronicles the descent of a small town into absolute terror.

Roadside Attractions has released, via iTunes Movie Trailers, a new clip from Barry Levinson's new horror movie, The Bay, coming to iTunes and limited theaters on November 2. Check it out in the player after the break!

In the film, the quaint seaside town of Chesapeake Bay thrives on water; it is the lifeblood of the community. When two biological researchers from France find a staggering level of toxicity in the water, they attempt to alert the mayor, but he refuses to create a panic in the docile town. As a result, a deadly plague is unleashed, turning the people of Chesapeake Bay into hosts for a mutant breed of parasites that take control of their minds, and eventually their bodies. A brutal and harrowing creature feature for the 21st century, "The Bay" chronicles the descent of a small town into absolute terror.

It's not that often that you see an Oscar-winning filmmaker tackle the horror genre so well into their career, but that's exactly what Barry Levinson, the man behind movies like Bugsy, Rain Man and Diner, has done with his latest movie The Bay.

It's the 4th of July in the small Chesapeake Bay community of Claridge, Maryland and people are starting to die as news reporter Donna Thompson (Kether Donohue) recounts the horrifying details of a viral outbreak as they unfold. As she narrates her story, we see video of the events happening using the now-standard "found footage" format, which is less surprising when you realize The Bay is produced by Jason Blum (Paranormal Activity) and the Strause Brothers (Skyline). Even so, it's still quite mind-boggling to see Levinson at the helm since the closest he's come to the horror genre in his extensive career was the movie Sphere, which is not exactly considered a classic.

Shock Till You Drop sat down with Levinson late in the Toronto International Film Festival, the day after his movie premiered in the "Midnight Madness" section, which was definitely another first for the esteemed filmmaker. Besides talking about the decision to make a horror movie and the technical aspects of making one using this format, we also spoke to him about the long-delayed Gotti: In the Shadow of My Father, which he took over directing duties, the already-filmed HBO Phil Spector Biopic, starring Al Pacino, and another HBO movie he's directing about silent actor Fatty Arbuckle, called The Day the Laughter Stopped.

Roadside Attractions has revealed the trailer for The Bay, a new film from Barry Levinson that finds the director not only dabbling in creature feature territory, but also treading on "found footage" grounds.

Levinson previously gave us Diner, Good Morning, Vietnam and Rain Man.  So, yes, this is a bit of a switch-up for him.

The Cabin in the Woods' Kristen Connolly stars in the film which is set in the quaint seaside town of Chesapeake Bay.  It's a town that thrives on water; it is the lifeblood of the community. When two biological researchers from France find a staggering level of toxicity in the water, they attempt to alert the mayor, but he refuses to create a panic in the docile town. As a result, a deadly plague is unleashed, turning the people of Chesapeake Bay into hosts for a mutant breed of parasites that take control of their minds, and eventually their bodies. A brutal and harrowing creature feature for the 21st century, The Bay chronicles the descent of a small town into absolute terror.

Now that Barry Levinson's The Bay has found its release date (it's coming out November 2nd) we're starting to see some publicity materials leak out for the film which has been rather quiet since it went into production.

We can thank its admission into a few film festivals for this as well.  Levinson's latest plays to Toronto International Film Festival audiences this month.  And, today, two new images have been discovered, courtesy of Shock reader "Avery."

The film chronicles an unprecedented biological disaster unleashed from the waters of the Chesapeake Bay- an isopod parasite, carrying a horrific untreatable disease, that jumps from fish to human hosts. The true horror and scope of the event unfolds on footage captured on home videos and the internet by the town's victims.

When it comes to Barry Levinson's The Bay, things have been rather quiet.  

Over the last year, we've seen some behind-the-scenes stills and weird concept drawings leak out.  Nothing too revealing.  Then came yesterday, which brought us news that the film - produced by Paranormal Activity's Jason Blum - was added to the Toronto International Film Festival's Midnight Madness slate.

Utilizing the "found footage" angle, The Bay chronicles an unprecedented biological disaster unleashed from the waters of the Chesapeake Bay- an isopod parasite, carrying a horrific untreatable disease, that jumps from fish to human hosts.  The story unravels via video footage from the town's victims and I'm hoping we get some good creature feature action going in this one.

A pair of official photos have been released - they don't give us much, but hey, it's the most we've seen so far from this film.  Lionsgate is going to distribute at some point - no release date has been set.

News fresh from the Twitter-sphere.  As you know, the Toronto International Film Festival is quickly approaching and we've been eagerly anticipating the Midnight Madness line-up, which never disappoints.  

This morning, the official Twitter account for Midnight Madness unveiled the titles participating in the program this year and, man oh man, it's a doozy.

It appears Dredd 3D is making the festival rounds before it opens September 21st.  Not only is the film playing to Fantastic Fest audiences in September, but it's now a Midnight Madness selection as well.

Confirming what we've been telling you for the last month, Rob Zombie's The Lords of Salem will make its premiere.  So will Hellbenders 3D, the latest film from The Burrowers' JT Petty which stars Clancy Brown.

Found footage never went away, it has always been here, contrary to the mainstream media’s claims that “found footage” films are smokin’ hot courtesy of The Devil Inside successful opening weekend.  And I’ve waxed philosophical before here on Shock as to why audiences are fascinated with this narrative device.

Some of it has to do with the curiosity and arousal one gets watching home videos on You Tube where the element of voyeurism is amplified.  Found footage – as far as horror films are concerned – eliminates the need for polished visuals, allowing filmmakers to get creative; however, on an audience level, the raw nature serves a more plausible connective tissue between the screen and the viewer, opening the door for immeasurable ways to create frights.  Take Neil Marshall’s The Descent, for instance.  It’s by no means a found footage film, but what is the one scene that elicits the biggest jump?  When Marshall employs the use of a home video camera, in night vision mode, and in a frantic state, the frame finds a creature lurking just over another character’s shoulder.

Found footage is here to stay, at least until movie-goers completely dismiss the sub-genre.  Then it may go into hibernation, only to be rejuvenated years later.  For now, with Chronicle opening on February 3, I thought we could look ahead at what is to come.