Established himself as a director of thrillers such as Orphan, Unknown – Without identity, Run All Night And The Man on the Train – The Commuterthe Spanish director Jaume Collet-Serra he made his debut in 2005 with a pure horror film titled The wax mask, loosely based on the 1953 title of the same name (which was itself a remake of a 1933 feature film). Between the two films, however, there is only the title in common, while for the rest Collet-Serra gives life to an original reinterpretation in a contemporary key, being careful to distinguish itself from the adolescent horror films always omnipresent on the big screen.
To achieve his objective, in particular, the director decided to resort to the use of practical effects as much as possible, thus renouncing CGI, which he considered an invalid tool for generating real fear. At the time of its release The wax mask However, critics and audiences were clearly divided between those who dismissed it as a classic horror film and those who instead praised its elements of originality. The famous critic Roger Ebertfor example, said that it is not a great title, but it is effective in its task of inspiring terror in a way that stands out compared to similar titles.
In the years The wax mask has won over more and more fans of the genre, becoming a true cult. Almost twenty years later, it is still a film capable of scaring and entertaining, offering something different while remaining within the horror canons. Before embarking on a viewing of the film, however, it will certainly be useful to delve deeper into some of the main curiosities relating to it. By continuing to read here it will be possible to find further details relating to the plot et al cast of actors. Finally, the main ones will also be listed streaming platforms containing the film in their catalogue.
The plot of The wax mask
The film follows the events of six boys, Carlyhis brother Nick, Wade, Dalton, Blake And Page, who all leave together to go to a football match. At night they decide to sleep in the woods and the following morning, when they wake up, one of them realizes that the drive belt of the car is inexplicably broken. Just then a man who is carrying animal carcasses in a van passes nearby, offering to accompany them to the workshop in the city of Ambrose. Meanwhile everyone else goes to the game, while Wade and Carly go to the gas station.
Arriving in the town, the two discover that the streets are completely isolated. Attracted by music played by an organ, they enter a church but, realizing that a funeral rite is taking place, they decide to leave quickly. That’s when they meet Bo, the owner of the workshop. The man, however, has no good intentions at all but instead attacks the two boys trying to capture them. In an attempt to escape him, Carly takes refuge in the previously seen church. Here, however, she discovers something even more terrible: the people who are taking part in the function are wax statues made from human beings. A terrible fight for survival therefore begins for the group of boys.
The cast of the film
The real protagonist of the film is Carly Jones, played here by the actress Elisha Cuthbert. The director chose her after seeing her act in The girl next door, in which he was the protagonist. Particularly attracted by the story and what happens to her character, the actress dedicated herself very much to finding the best way to step into her character’s shoes. For the scene where her lips are glued together, for example, Cuthbert insisted on using real glue instead of fake glue. Next to her, in the role of her brother Nick, is the actor Chad Michael Murray. The relationship between the two actors, however, proved to be very strong, leading on several occasions to giving rise to something incestuous between the two.
It has in fact been stated by many that it should have been Murray who had the role of Carly’s boyfriend, Wade, who instead went to Jared Padalecki. These, particularly taller than Cuthbert, forced her to have to wear lifts on her shoes in order to reduce the height difference between them. In the roles of Dalton and Black there are the actors Jon Abrahams And Robert Ri’chard. Playing Paige, however, is the famous heiress Paris Hilton. The choice to have her act in the film was generally criticized, but there were also those who defended her and found it appropriate for her character. Hilton went on to win the Razzie Award for Worst Supporting Actress. Finally, in the role of the murderers, the brothers Bo and Vincent, there is an actor for both Brian Van Holt.
The wax mask 2: the sequel never made
In parallel with the release of the film, the screenwriters Chad And Carey Hayesnow known in particular for writing horror films such as The signs of evil, Whiteout – White nightmare And The Conjuring – The Conjuringhad expressed their desire to create a sequel to The wax mask. The open ending, in fact, seemed to allow us to continue what was told in this first film. Later, however, the two declared that they had developed a greater interest in creating a prequel, in which to tell the first murders committed by Bo and Vincent. Despite the good economic result of The wax maskhowever, plans to bring this second chapter to life never materialized.
The wax mask: the trailer and where to see the film in streaming and on TV
You can benefit from The wax mask thanks to its presence on some of the most popular streaming platforms on the internet today. This is in fact available in the catalogues Rakuten TV, Apple TV and Prime Video. To see it, once you have chosen the reference platform, simply rent the single film or sign up for a general subscription. You will then have the opportunity to watch it in total comfort and at the best video quality. The film is also present in the television schedule of Thursday 18 April at 9.15pm On the canal Italy 1.
Source: IMDb
Tags: Mask Wax plot cast curiosities horror film
