Gimme Morb

“We are so jaded, what could possibly affect us? Morb attempts to provide the answer.”

So says Peter Dunne, creator of the newest and most unsettling (that’s a compliment) project in the city. But what inspired this committed film fan to take the next step, and start showcasing obscure and violent horror late at night?

“Last year I saw a documentary about the birth of the ‘Midnight Movie’ in the ‘70s,” Dunne explains. “Cinema owners began to show really over-the-top, subversive and shocking films, like El Topo and Pink Flamingos. I was so jealous of those audiences, of that feeling of watching something new, underground, and a bit illicit. Morb was my attempt to provide that, mainly for myself, but also for an audience.”

Since November last year, Dunne has held three Morb screenings, opting first to show Pascal Laugier’s 2008 bloodbath Martyrs (not, I repeat, NOT for the faint-hearted), then Inside (Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo, 2007), and finally Braindead, a 1992 New Zealand zombie horror directed by Peter Jackson (yep – he of the hobbits). Though all are extremely violent, Dunne maintains that Morb is not merely about screening a film – it’s a far bigger experience than that.

I have to agree. For the first Morb outing, a small group – your humble reporter included – were sent a cryptic e-mail, asking us to meet in a city-centre pub, one cold November eve. From there, we were led (phones switched off) to an empty art studio. In the dark, Dunne led us up a winding staircase to a sterile white room, and instructed us to sit. A brief introduction followed, and then – the film began. An exploration of human endurance, Martyrs features extreme acts of torture; its female protagonist is the victim of a sadistic group intrigued by the concept of martyrdom and the afterlife.

And although that night’s Morb was certainly not limited to the graphic images we were shown, I still maintain I am permanently scarred after witnessing that nice French lady being skinned alive. I have to ask – why did Martyrs and Inside appeal to Dunne? Is he trying to relay any particular message? About misogyny perhaps?

“Not necessarily”, he responds. “I knew the films contained violence against women, but they weren’t selected because of that. It would be very easy to label these films as misogynistic, but I don’t believe they are. Horror films have traditionally sided with the female – the ‘final girl’, and so on. These films are upfront in their violence, there’s nothing underlying. What I find really shocking are romantic comedies like The Ugly Truth or Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which are aimed at a female audience, yet in my opinion, seem to hate women. The fact that their misogyny slips under the radar and is considered acceptable, worries me more.”

He might have a point there: the next Kate Hudson rom-com probably won’t see her beaten to a pulp and/or de-skinned, but – chances are – she’ll play a ‘quirky’, career-obsessed loon who just can’t find Mr. Right. Graphic violence aside though, there are other factors at play which work to make Morb so unique. Dunne utilises the space of the city, incorporating dark streets and alleyways into an experience which aims to unsettle and isolate. How important is Dublin to Morb?

“Very!” he asserts. “Dublin is perfect, because although it’s a relatively small city, people find it very comfortable and familiar. There’s such a variety of little spaces off the beaten track. Dark lanes, empty buildings – just one turn can take you somewhere totally alien. Everyone who has attended a screening says the location has made just as much of an impact as the film”.

Alienation is key then. Freud claimed it’s in our human nature to try to familiarise the unfamiliar, the ‘uncanny’. Morb’s venues are very much at odds with the conventional cinematic experience. No comfy loungers, no popcorn – instead, a hushed, tense, almost uncomfortable atmosphere prevailed in this downright clinical location. Why does Dunne want to take people out of their familiar comfort zones? “Nowadays, we’ve seen it all”, he says. “In order to get that shock factor, I had to fiddle around with the way the film is experienced. People meet in a pre-arranged location, they have no clue where they’ll be led, they don’t know about the film they’ll be shown. There’s that initial rush of excitement, but talking to audiences later, a slow feeling of dread always creeps in. They realise they’re totally powerless against what they’re about to experience. By the time the film begins, they’ve built themselves into such a state of nervous tension, almost anything will be frightening.”

Agreed – such was the atmosphere that first night, an episode of Care Bears would probably have had us all cowering behind our chairs. So, what does the future hold for Morb?
“I’m going to just keep doing what I’m doing!” Dunne confirms. “It will always remain underground, there’s a limit of 45 people, it won’t ever become bigger, or that sense of secrecy and ‘specialness’ will disappear. I set up Morb because of a deep love of cinema, and sitting at the front and turning in my seat just as an especially ‘out-there’ moment occurs, to look at the faces of the audience members, is total magic. This is the dream.”

Read Peter’s Morb blog at [link]plasticisedmisery.blogspot.com/2010_11_01_archive.html[/link]. If you’re interested in attending a screening, e-mail [email][email protected][/email].