In Theaters

The American Scream

Movie Details

The American Scream
  • Genre: Documentary
  • Release Date: 2012-10-05 Limited
  • Running Time: 91 min.
  • Director: Michael Paul Stephenson
  • Cast: Manny Souza, Victor Bariteau, Rick Brodeur, Matthew Brodeur
  • Producers: Michael Paul Stephenson, Lindsay Stephenson, Zack Carlson, Meyer Shwarzstein, Rod Olson
  • Official Site: The American Scream Official Site

One of the great running gags on Roseanne was its annual depiction of Halloween as both America's most sacred holiday and a powerful outlet for working-class creative expression-- it was shown to be the former precisely because it was the latter. Director Michael Paul Stephenson's The American Scream stretches the sitcom's take on the holiday into a 91-minute documentary, and though not must-see cinema, it is entertaining and affecting. Scream tracks three Halloween-obsessed men in Fairhaven, Massachusetts--Victor Bariteau, Manny Souza, and Matt Brodeur--and their families (patient, often willing accomplices) in the weeks leading up to Halloween. As they turn their homes into haunted houses for their respective neighborhoods (some with a meticulousness that is scary; others with an ineptitude that is somewhat charming), Stephenson peels back their history and psyches to get at why they connect with the holiday. There are platitudes about "doing it for the children," but Bariteau seems to really nail it when he echoes artists throughout the ages with the simple "I don't understand my reasons." As it turns out, he's the most resonant of the three primary subjects precisely because his motivation (having to do with an unhappy childhood, natch) is successfully teased out, and his reaction to his neighbors' responses to his hard work is moving.

Ernest Hardy
VOICE Daily Deals

Now Showing

Find capsule reviews, showtimes & tickets for all films in town.

Powered By VOICE Places

Now Trending

Los Angeles Event Tickets

Box Office

  1. Iron Man 3, 72.5 mil, 284.9 mil
  2. The Great Gatsby, 50.1 mil, 50.1 mil
  3. Pain & Gain, 5.0 mil, 41.6 mil
  4. Peeples, 4.6 mil, 4.6 mil
  5. 42, 4.6 mil, 84.7 mil
  6. Oblivion, 4.1 mil, 81.9 mil
  7. The Croods, 3.6 mil, 173.2 mil
  8. Mud, 2.5 mil, 8.6 mil
  9. The Big Wedding, 2.5 mil, 18.3 mil
  10. Oz The Great and Powerful, 1.1 mil, 230.3 mil
Movie Title, Weekly Earnings, Total Earnings

Movie Trailers

©2013 LA Weekly, LP, All rights reserved.
Browse Voice Nation
  • Voice Places Los Angeles

    Voice Places

    Find everything you're looking for in your city

  • Happy Hour App

    Happy Hour App

    Find the best happy hour deals in your city

  • Daily Deals

    Daily Deals

    Get today's exclusive deals at savings of anywhere from 50-90%

  • Best Of

    Best Of...

    Check out the hottest list of places and things to do around your city

Join
Log In