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| UK censors castrated the film's moral statement and made the violence worse! | |
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INTERVIEW WITH JOHN MCNAUGHTON, DIRECTOR OF HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER
Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer was made in 1986 but didn’t release in the UK until 1991. Did you have a problem releasing it over here?
Actually the main reason was that the people who funded the film wanted pure exploitation but because we made an artistic film, they put it on the shelves for a while. But there were also legal issues over using the character’s [Henry Lee Lucas] real name.
What type of film did you set out to make with Henry?
One that people wanted to see! When I was growing up, there was always one film that would push the envelope. It started with Night Of The Living Dead, then Last House On The Left, and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. When I was given the chance to make a movie, albeit with a very low budget, I had to make something that was in that lineage. We wanted to be one of those films that stepped over the boundaries set by previous films.
The film was heavily cut in the UK, and was cut again for two further submissions to the BBFC in 1993 and 2001. It eventually released uncut in 2003. Can you remember the problems you had with the film?
The UK censors had a problem with the home invasion scene where Henry and his friend are watching themseslves murder a family on a camcorder recording. My intention was to implicate the audience and filmmakers in the everyday practice of entertaining ourselves with the slaughter of human beings. But the censors changed the edit, castrating the film’s moral statement and making the violence worse!”
Your film also has a very gritty, semi-documentary style. Is this why some people found its violence so intense?
For sure. I once overheard a British director say ‘you can’t have a horror film without fantasy, santasy is an element of horror film.’ I just stopped dead in my tracks. I believe the opposite, I believe the truest horror is devoid of fantasy. There was no fantasy with Hitler. Fantasy gives you a safety zone, but if you remove that and go to the heart of what humans are capable of at their worst, that’s the truest horror to me.
What are your general views on film censorship?
My opinion was that Henry wasn’t made to be seen by children. But I feel that when you’ve reached the age of what your culture says is the age of consent, you should be able to see whatever there is to see. It’s not the government’s responsibility to tell adults what they can and can’t see.
How happy are you that the film has achieved cult status in the UK?
In the United States, it’s more of a product. It made its mark, but it’s gone and life goes on. But I appreciate the continuing appreciation it has in the UK.
A brand new Blu-ray Special Edition version is now available to own through Studio Canal
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