The Latest from the Talented Mr. Ruben
I first encountered Josh Ruben’s work through his brilliant movie, Scare Me (2020), which he wrote, directed, and co-starred in (along with the incredible Aya Cash and Chris Redd). The premise of the film is simple. Ruben plays a writer who has booked a cabin in the country to work on his writing. To his surprise, he discovers that Aya Cash’s character is renting a cabin nearby. Where his character is artistically frustrated, hers is incredibly successful. They agree to hang out together, and when she drops by his place, they begin telling scary stories to one another. (Chris Redd delivers the pizza they order later, then hangs around for a little while.) Here’s what makes the movie such an accomplishment: in a typical film, after this kind of setup, the scene would shift to dramatizations of the stories the characters are narrating, maybe with voiceovers by the characters. In Scare Me, there’s no cutting away: Ruben and Cash (and later Redd) act out the stories they’re telling (and possibly, singing). Yes, this is a cost-saving strategy, but it’s also a gamble, one that places a huge burden on the actors. We’ve all been in situations where someone who thinks they can tell a story demonstrates how profoundly they can’t. But Ruben, Cash, and Redd deliver standout performances that pivot from suspense to comedy to horror with grace and ease. The result is a film I continue to recommend to people.
Ruben’s directorial follow-up, Werewolves Within (2021), was an adaptation of a video game. I’ve never played the game, so I can’t comment on its faithfulness, but I can say that I enjoyed this movie as much as Scare Me. Here, Ruben’s working on a much larger canvas, with a story that involves a dramatically expanded cast of characters. The narrative uses the frame of the murder-mystery: the residents of the small town of Beaverfield are being horribly killed by what appears to be a werewolf (they aren’t sure, but we’ve read the title, so we can cut to the chase). As in most small-town settings, we’re introduced to a cast of eccentric locals, each of whom has their share of resentments against at least one of the others. The film weaves together small town life, detective work, and scenes of horror, building to a dramatic climax. (Interestingly to me, the second film Ruben chose to direct features a werewolf, which also plays a thematic role in Scare Me.)
Acting-wise, Ruben’s subsequent choices have been ambitious and provocative. In Travis Stevens’s wild and experimental A Wounded Fawn (2022), Ruben plays a serial killer who sees his plans for his next victim disintegrate into a kaleidoscopic phantasmasgoria. (If I were smarter than I am, I would remark on this being another kind of werewolf.) In Noah Segan’s vampire road movie Blood Relatives (2022), which Ruben produced, he plays a supporting role as a Renfield figure abandoned in a psychiatric center by Segan’s careless vampire. (For what it’s worth, there’s an entire second film focused on that character in his confinement waiting to be written and filmed. I’m just saying.)
Now, Ruben has written his first graphic novel, Darla, for which there was a kickstarter earlier this year. It is a knockout. Wonderfully illustrated by Bri Tippetts, it brings together politics, monsters, and insanity in a compelling and horrifying story. It’s available now through the Invader comics website; if you haven’t picked up a copy yet, I heartily recommend doing so. Reading Darla really makes me hope Ruben has more graphic novel scripts lurking inside him.
One of the things I love about horror media these days is its willingness to take chances at all levels, from story to character to presentation. (This fearlessness and freshness of approach is one of the things that makes the Shudder channel such a worthwhile investment.) Josh Ruben is at the forefront of those doing the good work. I’m grateful to him for it.
Mr Gaunt: 