For several years now the 80s has been the go-to decade for genre filmmakers. Audiences love the nostalgia that these films bring, but sometimes it can get a little much. This is why Clark Baker’s Test Screening offers a welcome respite. Whilst Test Screening is set within the 80s, Baker does not overload the screen with a load of forgotten items or fashion trends. He instead utilises the era to tell a compelling science-fiction story focussed on mind control and keeping traditional family values in order.
Set in the isolated sleepy town of New Hope, Oregon, Test Screening follows four friends – Reels (Drew Scheid), Penny (Chloë Kerwin), Mia (Rain Spencer), and Simon (Johnny Berchtold) – who have their lives forever changed after their local cinema is picked to screen a mysterious new movie. After the screening, Mia, Simon, and the majority of attendees, begin acting differently. It is then left to Penny and Reels to decipher the mystery to save their hometown and the people that they love.
Test Screening fits in perfectly with the conspiracy paranoia that was rich during the 80s; the introduction of an experiment to control the masses would have been a popular one. After the 70s a lot of people began to look at life in a different way and the fiercely traditional hated these changes. A brainwashing video that encouraged conformity would have perhaps been welcomed by some, and Test Screening pits the converted against the outliers who do not conform. Although set during the 80s, there are aspects of this story that relate to modern times such as the conflict between those trying to live their lives as their true selves, and those that take offence to this desire. Baker’s film shows that whilst society has moved on some, it has not progressed as far as it should have. This realisation is stark and uncomfortable.
Alongside this fascinating social commentary, Test Screening also contains some wonderful practical effects. Whilst on the surface Test Screening is a riff on the likes of Invasion of the Body Snatchers and The Faculty, the changes in New Hope’s population is more noticeable. During its final act, Test Screening begins to more closely resemble The Thing, and more disturbingly, Society. The practical effects that are utilised are grotesquely twisted, ensuring that they won’t be forgotten in a hurry.
Although Test Screening isn’t overtly nostalgia baiting, it does feel very much of the era. From the small town invasion plotline and graphic practical effects, to the use of cosy Amblin warm lighting, Baker has captured the essence of movies from this decade. The approach is far more welcome than such properties as Strange Things, which sometimes rely too heavily on a fondness of a song or product to appeal to the masses. With Test Screening Clark Baker lets the story speak for itself, and is all the better for doing so.
Test Screening
Summary
Test Screening is a science-fiction story of mass hysteria, hive minds and intertwined flesh that plays great with a crowd.
Test Screening was reviewed at Pigeon Shrine FrightFest 2024.
