SWEET BENNY HAS A NEW MOVIE

Some Friday evening back in the early 2000s I was living in Seattle, surfing the channels, trying to find something to watch that wasn’t too fucking terrible, and I came upon the most amazing TV show I had ever seen in my life.

It was about a guy in a big, red monster suit named Jerkbeast sitting in a cable access studio with two dirtbags named Marty and Sweet Benny. People would call into the show and hurl insults at them and they’d insult the callers back. It was fucking hilarious. I was instantly hooked and I made sure to watch it every week. Then a few weeks later I was in a local Safeway and who walks in but fucking Sweet Benny in person! I was starstruck. I think I managed to get out “You’re Sweet Benny!” before nervously running out of the store. After that I mailed them some of my comics, and then one thing lead to another, and the next thing you know I’m playing a Klansman character in the “Jerkbeast” movie. It was a dream come true.

Now you’re saying “Why am I reading all this? I don’t give a fuck about this guy’s dreams.” Well, this article isn’t about me. It’s about Calvin Lee Reeder. He’s the dirtbag who played Sweet Benny all those years ago. Now he’s a movie-making machine with a brand new film out called

The Oregonian

, one of the weirdest and most original horror movies to come out in the last 10 years. I recently got a chance to catch up with Calvin and ask him some shit about the movie making biz.

Vice: I met you in a supermarket in Seattle like 10 years ago. How did that event change your life drastically? Calvin:

I decided to start reading.

Back in the early 2000s you were on a hilarious cable access show called Jerkbeast. Whenever I try to describe that show to people they look at me like I just pissed in a champagne glass and drank it. How would you describe the show to some ignorant dope that’s never seen it?

I'd say we dressed my friend Brady up in a paper maché monster suit and had a real bad time.

Did working on the Jerkbeast TV show inspire you to go further and start making movies? Or was that the plan all along?

Sort of the plan all along. We turned the public access show into a movie because we thought it should live forever. I don't really think that anymore.

Your first few films you co-directed with your Jerkbeast co-star Brady Hall. Did you like sharing the director’s spot with someone else or was it drag?

It was cool back then. Me and Brady just went for it. Shit on some film and let God sort it out.

Were you the top or the bottom?

With Brady you are always on the bottom.

I always read interviews where you shit on your early movies. You don’t even mention The Gibraltar Code or Polterchrist on your IMDB page. Does the existence of these films upset you that much? While they are pretty rough around the edges I think these early works still have glimmers of brilliance. Like, in Polterchrist you had that whole Jehovah’s Fitness scene and the fight with Johnny Appleseed…

IMDB won't list those films because there is almost no record of them playing anywhere and no one has ever shown any interest in putting them out. That’s all. I shit on them but that doesn't mean I don't love them.

You don’t even like the Jerkbeast movie, which I thought was a comedy masterpiece. I kind of see it as what Van Bebber’s Deadbeat At Dawn was to action movies Jerkbeast was to comedy. How does that sound?

Good.

Were there any movies or anything at this point that were influencing you, or did you grow up in a cultural blackout?

Blackout.

Do you think that growing up in a cultural blackout was a good thing? Do you think it's important that filmmakers avoid exposure to other people's movies as much as possible, especially during those early formative years?

OK, I didn't grow up in a blackout. I loved

Cat's Eye

,

Labyrinth

,

The Toxic Avenger

,

Total Recall

,

Men at Work

, and a bunch of other stuff that I barely remember. Some of that stuff has stayed with me and influenced my work subconsciously I'm sure. I have no idea what’s important for other filmmakers to avoid in their formative years, but I guess I'd start with

Jerkbeast

.

So Jerkbeast actually got a bit of attention. There must have been something good that came out of it, right?

Got to go to England a couple times and play a bunch of shitty Steaming Wolf Penis shows. Pretty good, huh?

After Jerkbeast you started directing things on your own and your movies started getting weird, more dreamlike. The Rambler particularly comes to mind here. What prompted this change in direction?

I always wanted to make psychedelic movies and there are elements of that in those early movies you wont shut up about, but I don't think Brady is a very psychedelic dude so I just kinda went for it on my own.

Why psychedelic movies? What do you think attracts you to that stuff? You don't look like a psychedelic guy.

I just like to put stuff in movies that I've never seen before. It usually ends up going in that direction. I like telling stories with images and sounds that don't necessarily make perfect sense at first glance but cause the viewer to think and react and possibly go somewhere way darker than they had prepared for. I think it creates a feeling that you don't find in standard horror films and remakes. This usually pisses off horror bloggers. Can't please everyone.

Let’s talk about the new movie. The Oregonian is totally fucked up and bizarre. How did you get someone to give you money for something like this?

A bunch of weirdoes put in a little bit each and now I have to find a way to pay them back.

I read that you describe this movie as a “psychic mystery,” but I also would describe it as a road movie. In fact, it’s a straight up ripoff of The Muppet Movie. Admit it.

Whoa, It's actually pretty close to that. Hadn't thought of it, but right again, you fucker.

The lead in The Oregonian, Lindsey Pulsipher—who you are currently in a relationship with—is both physically and emotionally brutalized in this movie, as well as in a few of your past short films. Why do you think you enjoy making movies about beating the shit out of her so much?

I made

Jerkbeast

, man. I have bad taste.

The music in the movie might be the creepiest part of the whole thing. It's very rare to find a horror movie where the music plays such an effective role in unnerving the audience these days. What was the inspiration there?

I guess I just play guitar like I have brain damage or something. It seemed to fit the tone of the film and it was free. A bunch of my friends also helped.

Does it ever bother you when you see your girlfriend making out with one of those big superstuds on True Blood?

Kind of.

Did you script out the entire movie? Do you allow for any extensive improvisation? How close did the movie wind up looking like the original script?

There was a script, but I let some actors improv. Mostly Robert Longstreet. Even with my

Jerkbeast

background he still shocks me.

There’s some pretty gory and violent shit in this film. Some of it gets pretty shocking. Do you think “shock” plays an important role in your art?

I think so. I like it when a movie actually shocks me. I mostly am into tone and ambiance. Once I get that right I feel like I can do whatever I want.

What are some movies that have shocked you and will shock us?

I think shock is relative, but movies like

Cannibal Holocaust

and

Who Can Kill A Child?

got me. I don't think they've influenced me at all that much, but they have big moments I can appreciate. I loved

Anti-Christ

, but the shocking shit just kinda passed me by. The tone is what I remember, that is the most important thing to me.

So now that this movie’s done what happens now?

Well, just got back from Sundance and got pummeled by horror dorks who have never heard of

El Topo

. So I guess I'll be stuck arguing with the wrong people for a while.

You don’t really like Jimmy Buffett, do you? You just like him ironically, right?

I love him, he parties way harder than anyone else and

A1A

is a legit album if you like country music. I don't necessarily like parrotheads or anything he's put out past side A of

The Coconut Telegraph

. I'd be surprised if he even liked his new stuff. INTERVIEW BY JOHNNY RYAN