Cult doesn’t even cut it when trying to describe the niche into which Jim Hosking’s debut feature fits, as it slides into cinemas this weekend. The Greasy Strangler is a mucky 90 minutes of monster and micro prosthetic penises, death at the hands of the most lubed up man imaginable, and gleeful stabs of profanity, childishness, and fart jokes set to a soundtrack by Fuck Buttons. Still interested?
The film sees misfit father and son Big Ronnie and Big Brayden’s blissful existence (they conduct disco tours while wearing matchy-matchy pink turtlenecks and short-shorts) become competitive when a lonely cutie pie named Janet turns up in the mood for love. Big Brayden may have a good heart, but his daddy — played with brilliant abandon by cult 80s actor Michael St Michaels — is the one with the monster appendage. He may also be the greasy strangler, a local killer who does away with his victim while wearing nothing but a tub of Vaseline. It is silly and outrageous but The Greasy Strangler also has undeniable style, even if it’s punctuated by farting. Hosking explains some of his thinking behind this year’s filthiest film.
What genre does the The Greasy Strangler fall under?
I labored under the belief that The Greasy Strangler was a comedy. And I still do. Except I have now refined that descriptor to ‘a sexy comedy.’ It’s not a scary film, not a horror film, not a thriller, it might be a drama, it’s not a kid’s film, and it’s not a documentary. It is, however, sexy.
We loved Brayden and Big Ronnie’s coordinating outfits. Where did some of those ideas come from?
The ideas for the clothes were inspired equally by old Fassbinder films, Russian erotic pictures, Crumb drawings, doll clothes, memories of my dad in his grey tracksuit. The Disco Tour pink matching outfits were supposed to be sad, pathetic ‘fun’ costumes to brighten the disco tours. Pink is a fun color, and it is Ronnie and Brayden’s idea of a disco color. The design of the costume is by Christina Blackaller, the costume designer. We wanted Ronnie and Brayden to feel futuristic. Ronnie still believes disco music is the sound of the future.
Was there anything you decided not to include on the grounds of taste?
I didn’t reject anything on the grounds of taste. But I found a certain unwillingness from some actors to go quite as far in the sex scenes as I was prepared to. But then, I wasn’t actually in the sex scenes myself, so of course I was happy to go further. This means that extended scenes of licking and nibbling of particularly unlikely areas are not featured in The Greasy Strangler. But this gives the film a rather chaste quality that I like. For a graphic sexual film, it is remarkably innocent and chaste.
Who are your bad taste idols, and why?
I don’t have any bad taste idols. Or rather, I don’t idolize bad taste. I like good taste. I’m not being facetious. I’m drawn to things that I find beautiful. I think The Greasy Strangler is beautiful. It may be perverted and grubby in ways, but that’s how life is I think.
What’s with the monster and micro penises?
I don’t analyze things much. I go with what feels right. It just seemed funny and obvious to give the dad a big one and the son a small one.
What direction did you give Andrew Hung of Fuck Buttons to do the score?
I tried some of Andy’s music with scenes when I was editing the film. It worked brilliantly, and hilariously. But at the same time it felt unsettling and powerful, it gave the film an extra layer of oddness and dementedness. We talked about it, I told him what I liked about his own music, and I left it as broad as possible for Andy to express himself. Although I did mention that I liked the singing mice in “Bagpuss,” and that maybe we could have some small singing creatures in some of the soundtrack.
The film has a really strong visual style. It’s hip. How do you plead?
That’s funny, because I was thinking it was so unhip. I think if it is hip at all that’s by mistake, and then it’s only hip because it isn’t hip. There’s nothing less hip than a hip film, if you know what I mean.
How did you think about that visual attractiveness in relation to the gross out?
I definitely did think about scenes being sweet or cute, innocent and friendly and then be ruined by a fart, or a moment of rudeness. That seems very real, though, to me. That’s how people behave in families and amongst friends I think. At least in my sorry experience. I really never ever presume to know what an audience will be into. I wouldn’t want to be that calculating, but beyond that I have no idea honestly. Or rather, I would run a mile from doing something that I thought was current or cool simply to pander to an audience. I’m not going to try to tap into the zeitgeist.
The Greasy Strangler is in cinemas October 7, and available digitally on October 10.
Credits
Text Colin Crummy