Clive Barker’s Flawed & Majestic Monster 35 Years Later

Written and directed by Clive Barker, based on his novella called Cabal, Nightbreed is a window into another place, Midian. This movie is an ambitious urban fantasy, with dark tones, gothic aesthetics, and a complex romance, perhaps with a story that’s too rich for its own good. It is a film that was not meant for this world, but remains one of the most interesting pieces of misunderstood cinematic art, even after thirty-five years.

This is an exciting movie, maybe not quite like we’re used to, but the setup feels strong, and at no point does Nightbreed ever lose my interest. Our main character is Aaron Boone (Craig Sheffer), a troubled young man who is having violent nightmares and is actually seeking therapy to help with his problems. Things are about to get much worse, however, as his Psychiatrist, Dr. Philip Decker (David Cronenberg) seems to have his own murderous intentions. Boone is betrayed, his girlfriend Lori Winston (Anne Bobby) goes on her own journey to find the truth, and both end up encountering the monstrous inhabitants of Midian, a secret city under a cemetery where a war between humans and the Tribes of the Moon is unavoidable.

There is much more to the tale, and the film’s pacing and editing can make it a little tough to follow, often feeling a bit disjointed, even more so depending on which version is viewed. We aren’t given much exposition in the beginning, so the mysteries of this world are kept somewhat guarded for the first half, but the movie carries on even after the climax. Even then, it never feels the need to share too much or reveal the history of its titular society. The narrative feels as if we’ve joined at the start of Boone’s story but in the middle of a much greater journey for many others. Some of the dialogue seems to hint that certain people knew about these creatures’ existence already, and the ending appears as an obvious setup for another epic adventure. I don’t blame anyone for being a bit confused on their first viewing, but it’s a world well worth diving into.

There are a lot of threads to follow, and although Boone is the main character, he takes a backseat for a bit. Other characters seem more important than they end up being, and not everything is given a backstory or answered neatly. The novella is slightly different from what I understand and offers some explanations for certain characters but isn’t as detailed in every area. It also makes many elements more sexualized. There are small moments of exposition, but most of them seem to be present just to give the residents of Midian a little more character and sympathy, as most of them become a kind of antihero, even if they still eat people on occasion. The production studio, Morgan Creek, seemed a little confused about who viewers were supposed to root for. Their marketing head hadn’t even watched the whole film, apparently distressed by it—they didn’t understand the movie they had agreed to help make, weren’t familiar with the source material, and simply wanted something else like Hellraiser from Barker.

Nightbreed was a failure at the box office and with critics. It was a victim of heavy studio interference, which tried to market the movie more like a braindead slasher flick because it didn’t understand the fantasy elements. There were also several reshoots, some even after the test screenings. It was saddled with bad posters and a strict R-rating that didn’t let the director go as gruesome and gory as he wanted to. The trailer for the film didn’t do it many favors either, being confusing, misinterpreting the tone and purpose of the story, not to mention the MPAA forced them to cut out almost all of the monster footage, omitting one of the best and alluring draws. The biggest battle happened in the editing bay, causing one editor to quit and costing the film almost an hour off of its already diminished runtime, with entire subplots and roles trimmed out. The next person brought in was under the company’s thumb and told to produce the cut they wanted. Barker wasn’t pleased; his vision was far from realized, and he was further upset that his work wouldn’t even be screened for critics because the higher-ups believed horror fans didn’t read reviews.

We live here in the future, where after a lot of work from people behind the scenes and the passionate fans have given us two endings and four pretty distinct cuts of the film (and the Cabal cut having two versions of its own), all clocking in at various times and featuring significant differences. An argument can be made for what the true definitive edition is, but hardcore fans will want to watch as many of these as they can, considering the amount of additional and altered footage, while new fans should probably avoid the theatrical release. I wouldn’t be shocked if more lost bits were found at some point, and who knows what those people in the test screenings saw that no one else ever will. The Director’s Cut was released on Blu-Ray in 2014 and appears to be the new standard for this cult classic. If there was ever a question about Nightbreed’s underdog status and the determination of its fans, there shouldn’t be now.

This isn’t a perfect piece of cinema, but almost every aspect of the film is interesting. The visuals receive a tremendous amount of praise, mostly because of how many unique monsters were brought to life to make Midian feel crawling with activity. The idea was to do several of the creatures with stop motion, but that was expensive, and CGI wasn’t quite where they wanted it to be, so viewers see some incredible makeup work instead. It’s Clive Barker, so the effects are going to be cool, practical, and creepy, complete with slightly uncomfortable nudity. A lot of time, money, and admiration was put into these visuals. The HD versions of the film are a blessing and a curse, improving many of the shots originally seen on VHS while also making the murals and matte paintings more noticeable. Midian itself is an interesting and detailed underground city that reminds me of the Netherrealm fight featuring Johnny Cage and Scorpion from the first Mortal Kombat movie. The monsters and environment make for a perfect mix to host the massacre during the climactic ending, where the humans finally find the demons they were looking for.

The music was composed by Danny Elfman and written/conducted by Shirley Walker, both Batman alumni (1989 and The Animated Series, respectively). Elfman saw the score as a chance to stretch his wings a bit, going for something dark and tribal, music to fit the Nightbreed themselves, but he imagined something that could be enjoyable and a little sweet as well, complex like the movie and it didn’t face the wrath of the studio the same way the filmed portions had. Some scenes are perfect, potent, and poetic, while others feel a bit out of place, almost too whimsical. There’s also a cover of an Oingo Boingo song in there for a fun nod.

Another obvious, yet clever tip of the hat is that Nightbreed’s central antagonist, Dr. Philip K. Decker is a two-pronged reference to the main character of Blade Runner (1982), and the author of its source material, famous sci-fi author Philip K. Dick. Cronenberg is more notable for his directing, and there are probably reasons for that, but in a sea of decent acting, he stands out as a truly vicious and unsettling psychopath who, in the novella, speaks to his creepy mask. He’s not a monster like them, something more evil it would seem, and his nature is violence, but his true motivations aren’t touched on much and are mostly left up to the audience. There’s a ton of murder in this movie, but Decker’s are the most vicious, and not knowing exactly “why” he does it gives his scenes a little more edge, emphasized by Cronenberg’s almost inhuman tone and voice.

Nightbreed is doing a lot at face value, and in the subtext, maybe it was expanded too far, doing too much. There are several religious overtones that don’t seem to shine politely on the faith, even if Midian is where Moses saw the burning bush, and Boone is a clear resurrected Christ figure that will guide them to a better place. This film is often talked about in the LGBT community and what it says to people who identify as outcasts and understand Boone’s conflict with his relationship and the place that’s calling him (Lori may not be getting the picture here). Okay, if that seems like a joke, just know that Alejandro Jodorowsky, the French filmmaker, refers to Nightbreed as “the first truly gay horror fantasy epic,” and there is more there for people who want to take a look into that aspect because it is believed that 20th Century Fox asked for some of the more homoerotic subtexts to be edited out. Though none of this paragraph is a surprise for those familiar with Barker or his work. This has also been called an underrated X-Men film, dealing with the role of outcasts and how all the monsters have different powers. So that lines up as well. Most of us are looked down upon and thrown out by society in some way, so it’s an easily relatable aspect of the movie.

“Everything is true. God’s an Astronaut. Oz is Over the Rainbow, and Midian is where the monsters live… And you came to die.”

Maybe it was too much, all of the social commentary, action, the monsters—Barker wanted to make a thinking movie, a horror cornerstone, tread new ground, and yet, sometimes ambition can just be too much weight, bringing it all down, even without a clueless studio sticking their dicks everywhere because it’s all they know. I’m not bitter, but Barker was, partially because he did have more story to tell, originally wanting to do a trilogy to explore the world the Nighbreed inhabit. We did get two video games, but that was supposedly going to be a trilogy also, there were numerous comic books and other prose adaptations as well. I think I even saw some trading cards, so it’s good to know the merchandise was still there. They’ve been trying to do more. There was a television show in the works, one that was supposedly going to pick up right after the film and was then re-tooled as a remake, but things have gone quiet on that front. Some hearts still burn for Midian, but this is the story of a people who have always struggled.

That doesn’t mean Nightbreed doesn’t live on through those who loved it. It’s not a horror powerhouse, but this film leaves an impression. One of my favorite discoveries this round was that the WWF wrestler Mideon (Dennis Knight/Phineas I. Godwinn) took his name as inspiration from the film, and seeing a cultural impact like that is always excellent. This is a movie for people who want to feel for the monsters, who are willing to look past it all and try to figure them out, for viewers who like it a little dark and maybe don’t mind watching four different versions because they love that world so much. Nightbreed is far from perfect, but art is often messy and film history, even more so, and this has something to say about both.