The magic of cinema is enhanced by watching its nuances on the big screen which provides an unforgettable experience for audiences. With the boom of streaming platforms, many films have taken the OTT route especially post the pandemic. While this resulted in a greater reach across the world, many movies that are are visually and technically spectacular, warrant a viewing in theaters.
The horror genre has created multiple films that have been enhanced by their haunting visual imagery that adds great nuance to the narratives. While many of these aesthetics can be captured by audiences only through a big screen viewing, there have been certain movies that deserved appreciation in cinema halls but didn’t get the opportunity to make an impact. The Midnight Meat Train is an underrated flick that slowly gained appreciation as a cult classic.
This Underrated Horror Flick Is Finally Getting The Recognition It Deserves
In 2008, The Midnight Meat Train based on the short story of the same name by Clive Barker, saw rising star of the time Bradley Cooper sharing screen space with Brooke Shields. This horror thriller also starred Vinnie Jones who was part of CW’s Arrowverse and featured in Stephen Amell’s Arrow as Danny Brickwell aka Brick.
The film follows a photographer played by Cooper who attempts to track down a serial killer dubbed the Subway Butcher and becomes obsessed with him as he goes down a deadly path of discovery. Distributed by Lionsgate, the movie was selectively released in about 100 theaters, which therefore did not reach a wide section of viewers.
Barker who believed that director Ryuhei Kitamura made a brilliant movie that visually captured the essence of his story to perfection, was openly upset about the showrunners at Lionsgate for shortchanging the film in this manner. In a no-holes-barred interview to MTV News in 2008, he was severely critical of this move while also predicting a bright second innings for the film.
This is all about ego, and though I mourn the fact that ‘Midnight Meat Train’ was never given its chance in theaters, it’s a beautifully stylish, scary movie, and it isn’t going anywhere.
The author believed that a film of this nature will always find its way to audiences through any means owing to its quality, and stated that the limited audiences who had seen it were already ensuring that the movie will go down as a cult classic in the future, which eventually happened. The film is also considered one of Bradley Cooper’s lesser known but critically acclaimed movies that laid the foundation for him to rise in Hollywood.
This Film From The Predator Franchise Also Missed Out On The Cinematic Experience
2022’s Prey which was a prequel to the first four films in the Predator franchise, was widely considered as the best film of the popular sci-fi horror series. Directed by Dan Trachtenberg, the narrative set in the 1700s revolves around a young Native American woman who must protect her people from a humanoid alien that hunts humans for sport.
The action set in the lush forests of the American West, featuring some jaw-dropping bow and arrow action that was captured by stunning cinematography. Unfortunately, audiences did not get to appreciate this visual prowess in theaters as the film had its premiere on the Disney-owned streaming platform Hulu.
But unlike Clive Barker’s antagonistic reaction to The Midnight Meat Train being denied a sufficient theater viewing, Trachtenberg was not critical of the production giant’s decision to release Prey directly on OTT. Elaborating on Disney’s thought process behind this movie, the filmmaker told Uproxx,
They’re hoping to really ignite the platform to say, ‘We’re not just putting out the smaller, lower-budget fare.’ That this is also a place to have giant cinematic experiences.
Nevertheless, the fact remains that the technical expertise that went into a film like Prey would have been widely appreciated by fans on a big screen that could have captured these visual nuances. With a second part officially in the works (via Screen Rant), the hope would be that this film would be made for a theater release.
The Midnight Meat Train can be rented on Apple TV.
Prey is streaming on Hulu.
