I happened to be at Chiller when this documentary was being shot, and I gotta say that it was more like three days of booze, drugs and weirdos.
For those of you that are unfamiliar, the Chiller convention goes down every Halloween weekend, taking over the entire Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel in New Jersey with two massive dealers’ rooms, a bevy of celebrity guests, a full bar, beer vendors, drunken Stormtroopers passed out in the hallways and a major Halloween party that sees its attendants decked out in some of the most creative costumes I’ve ever seen to bang their heads all night to live bands.
So now, here we have a documentary about one of these infamous weekends. “Funnier than Trekkies,” it says on the cover of the video case. Mmmm…no. Not even close. This documentary merely scratches the surface at what goes on at these conventions, whereas “Trekkies” digs deeper into the meat of its subject than anyone would ever want to get, and that’s where most of the comedy comes from.
As the filmmakers don’t get really personal with any of their subjects but instead take the stance of your average con attendee, this documentary is only interesting for those who’d like to nab a peek at the goings-on of Chiller, and also as a video album for those to remember the good times they had at the Sheraton Meadowlands.
The guys at Fangoria would be smart to take some tips from the folks at Chiller. These guys know how to put together a real convention.
