TWO FRONT TEETH
Take a slay ride to Hell!
“My character, as I see him, is a funny combo of Bruce Campbell (in Evil Dead), Clark Kent (Christopher Reeve’s version) and a little Jimmy Stewart (from It’s a Wonderful Life). He’s a Christmas tabloid reporter who uncovers a conspiracy that may forever change the balance of power for good s. evil… at least with regard to Christmas. And just maybe my wife and I are trying to fix that,” explains Johnny Francis Wolf on his central role in the new Yuletide horror flick Two Front Teeth, which finally saw the light of day recently on DVD. The bizarre tale of a blood-sucking Santa Claus and his army of evil elves adds a wicked spin to the traditional Christmas movie, which pits a naïve journalist against the dark forces of the festive season. “The evil, represented by the vampires and evil elves you mention, want to take over the warm and fuzzy, hot cocoa and eggnog Christmases we loved as kids. And Rudolph, the beloved reindeer of legend, is at the centre of this struggle.”
Every now and then there comes a film with such a unique premise that it instantly appeals, and Two Front Teeth – the razor sharp black comedy from directors Jamie Nash and David Thomas Sckrabulis - certainly fits the mould. Not since the criminally under appreciated Elvis vs. Mummy horror Bubba Ho-tep has a movie boasted such an over-abundance of crazy ideas that hint towards a cult classic in the making. There have been Christmas horrors before, some (Gremlins) have even entered the mainstream, but none have had such an irresponsible disregard for logic and taste. Recalling the early work of Peter Jackson (a zany blend of Meet the Feebles and Braindead, aka Dead Alive), with perhaps a dash of Troma, Two Front Teeth is a tongue-in-cheek pastiche of the commercialism of everyone’s favourite holiday.
“I think it’s a spoof of what Christmas has become – a great big mishmash. It’s commercialism and Santa mythologies and classic TV shows and movies and decorations and traditions and everything – people don’t know what it’s ‘really’ about anymore,” states writer and co-director Nash on the themes behind his blood-splattered satire. “I personally love the Christmas season – so I’m just as much busting on myself. Two Front Teeth is making fun of all that… while at the same time joining the club! We’re diving right into the mishmash and taking it to the next level.”
The story centres round the appropriately named Gabe Snow, a reporter for the X-mas Files, a festive newspaper that specialises in Christmas-related conspiracies and unexplained phenomenon. Yet one story in particular, a piece on the crash of Flight 1225, has attracted the attention of a horde of evil elves, hell-bent on finding Gabe’s source and silencing him for good. Meanwhile, his wife, Noel, is having an affair with a Santa that works in the local mall, as her husband’s spineless nature seems to provide little in the way of satisfaction for her. Throw in some nun assassins (known as the Silent Knights) and Clausferatu, a vampire Santa, for good measure and you have one of the craziest movies of the year.
“Tense and slapstick – with blood and kung-fu thrown in - and a side of romantic comedy without the romantic part,” says Sckrabulis on the overall tone of the movie, which aims for a similar horror-comedy balance as Sam Raimi’s ‘80’s splatter classic The Evil Dead. “In our pre-production meetings we had described it as a Christmas fantasy with lots of blood, ultimately we wanted to make sure out audience was having fun the entire time and not getting bored for one moment. That’s the one thing I want people to take away from watching the film - a good time.”
Blending Christmas and horror has always been a controversial move, yet the two have somehow gelled together successful. The 1984 slasher Silent Night Deadly Night was greeted with angry protests from mothers upon its initial release, forcing the studio to withdraw the movie, despite a respectable performance at the box office. That same year, Joe Dante’s playful monster movie Gremlins became one of the most successful films of the summer and proved popular enough to launch a line of merchandise, various imitations and even a sequel. Even before this, there was the cult classic Black Christmas (which would lay much of the groundwork for the slasher movies that would follow) and the little-seen 1981 flick Christmas Evil. In 1996 Jack Frost, a killer snowman horror comedy, was released straight to video. Despite its ultra low budget, the filmmakers managed to produce an entertaining and light-hearted romp that made the most of its premise, and would be followed a year later by Jack Frost 2: Revenge of the Mutant Killer Snowman. And with at least one family Christmas movie every year, another contribution from the horror genre is long overdue.
“Although I’ve seen every conceivable regular Christmas film ever made, I never tapped into the Christmas/horror genre. And although I considered myself a horror buff, I found out pretty fast, hanging around with Jamie and David, how newbie I was to the world of gore and cult classics,” says Wolf on his introduction to the festive subgenre, of which Two Front Teeth has become the latest member. “The film they most recommended that I watch (and couldn’t believe I’d never seen) was not a Christmas horror film, but Evil Dead 1. I think part of their reasoning was that, like Two Front Teeth, it had to rely on a very creative use if budget (or no budget). Glad they gave me that bit of homework, because I immediately became a big fan of Bruce Campbell. His honest, almost naïve, performance in ED influenced by own in TFT, not to mention that Evil Dead 1 is now my all-time favourite horror film. Oh, and Bruce and I both got some serious jaw lines.”
Two Front Teeth marks the feature debut as directors for both Nash and Sckrabulis after collaborating on various shorts. Nash had already penned the 2006 action horror Altered (directed by Eduardo Sanchez of The Blair Witch Project fame), which focused on a group of survivors of an alien abduction attempting to fight back against their captors who have once again returned to claim them. “Altered started as a slapstick comedy – it was called Probed. We shifted the tone, though Altered retained some measure of goofiness, Probed was probably more outrageous than Two Front Teeth,” reveals Nash. “And while I loved the hell out of Altered and wouldn’t change that much about that experience, I’ve always wondered what Probed might have been. It had some really funny stuff in it. I think they made the right choice for sure… but still”
Sckrabulis, meanwhile, not only served as co-director alongside Nash but was also the director of photography, the editor and producer (again, sharing credit with Nash). “It can be tricky directing form behind the camera but I’ve directed through the lens for many films and it’s just how I work. Or maybe I’m just a control freak,” laughs Sckrabulis on his multiple duties during both the filming and post-production of Two Front Teeth. “It helped to have Jamie as a co-director to work with the actors on character development while I focused more on the actor’s actions.”
The basis for Two Front Teeth was originally conceived when Nash was in college back in the 1990’s, though it would take many years before he would develop his ideas. “When I was in college I wanted to make a horror film in the worst way, so I started to think about the scariest stuff out there – nuclear disaster, home invasion, cancer? And Rankin-friggin’-Bass! Do you remember these shows? They put cute cuddly reindeer and elves right in the sights of pure evil – the Abominable Snowman? The Heat Miser? Baby Frickin’ New Year! That’s some sick shit, my friend,” says Nash. “Anyhow, I started to think about Santa and how he had this whole fantasy mythology – sort of like Tolkien – but more importantly I started thinking about how Santa fit the criteria of a demon, or a vampire – he was immortal, white chalky skin, only came out at night, was not afraid of heat or fire (chimneys and all). It just seemed to fit. Ten years later, I was looking for an ultra-low budget horror flick to write/direct, and I ran with it.”
“I think Jamie Nash, David Sckrabulis and Rob Content had been in pre-production about a year, and casting for several months, before I auditioned for them. I saw the listing for TFT in Backstage (weekly actor’s resource for jobs and industry info) and was immediately drawn to all three descriptions of the film…Christmas, gore, comedy. But I have to admit, knowing the production was based in Baltimore, Maryland (with me in New York), I didn’t hold out much hope I’d even be asked to audition,” says Wolf. “There began an unfolding of some weird lucky breaks for me… 1. Only days before I added a funny Christmas scene to my demo reel. 2. Jamie and David only recently decided to look outside of the early 20-something bracket, considering older. According to David, my headshot and reel landed at the very top of a huge friggin’ mailbag of other headshots, received from the Backstage listing. I mean right on the friggin’ top. 4. They had already decided to audition Megan Pearson for the role of Noel Snow, my wife (who got the part) and figured, if they’re gonna audition one New Yorker, couldn’t hurt to ship another one down.”
Two Front Teeth is the kind of movie that only comes along once in an actor's career (unless, of course, they made a sequel); an original story, a fun role and a whole host of bizarre props and co-stars. While this is hardly the kind of film to get noticed by the Academy, this has 'cult' written all over it, and if marketed correctly could slowly gain a devoted following. Could there be action figures and comics lined up for the future, could this be the start of a new, exciting franchise? One thing is for sure... in a genre awash with pointless remakes and Saw sequels, Two Front Teeth seems like a breath of fresh air. From the performances to the madcap script, the film's sole purpose is to entertain!
“The elements all fit in there surprisingly well and I think that’s a testament to Jamie’s storytelling abilities. Considering how freaking crazy this film is it’s amazing that a solid plot structure manages to stay alive with interesting plot twists and character realizations,” admits Sckrabulis. “If I had to sum up Two Front Teeth in one sentence… Possibly the best drinking game film of all time! I only say that because I’ve been drunk for most of our screenings… but our tagline has always been: Forget Milk and Cookies… He Wants Blood!”
Christmas movie inspired by The Evil Dead and full of kung fu and psycho nuns sounds like a horror fan's wet dream. Even the title alone is rather tongue-in-cheek, and both Nash and Sckrabulis promise that their movie will be full of off-the-wall and (slightly) offensive material. The spirit of Christmas was tainted somewhat with the Billy Bob Thornton comedy Bad Santa a few years back, and the world needs another adult take on the holiday. And with the obligatory Silent Night Deadly Night seemingly trapped in development hell then Two Front Teeth seems to have found a niche in the market.
“It’s violent, but it’s so cartoony it doesn’t really disturb many people. I have a ten-year-old nephew that watched it and loved it,” says Nash on the wide appeal that this movie may have on audiences, which has received mostly positive reviews from websites. But what does the future hold for both the filmmakers and Two Front Teeth? Could fans expect a sequel (a common device in the horror genre) and, more importantly, do the directors and lead wish to return?
“Well I don’t want to give anything away, but there has been talk of a sequel… the Easter Bunny is involved. But aside from that, I’m sure the cast and crew involved in this production will work together on other projects down the road – it was a great experience,” says Sckrabulis, who is eager to collaborate with his co-director once again. Wolf continues, “I would love if there was a sequel (or two or six)… Perhaps a continuation of Gabe and Noel’s Christmas adventures, or perhaps an exploration of ALL the big Holidays. Gabe and Noel save Halloween or Easter or Valentine’s Day or… And FOR SURE I’d want to return as Gabe. Hell, I’d be honored to work on ANY film Jamie and David collaborate on. ANY.”
As for Nash, the one who first conceived the idea and made it a reality, what are his intentions with regards to another Two Front Teeth? “Sequel…yeah…and it will have a big stop-motion animated battle between the Elves and the Snowmen… think Lord of The Rings scope… It probably won’t happen… the actor demands for sequels are outrageous, I hear Johnny Wolf is asking for his own portable Toilet.”
Two Front Teeth is now available to order from Amazon.com.
