Struggling prog-rock musician William Brown finds himself in a living nightmare when he accidentally kills Vlad, the neighbor from hell.
Destroy All Neighbors is the spiritual successor to School of Rock that we all deserved. It is a film that teaches us that no matter the adversity one must face nor the trials and tribulations that are inevitable while walking the cracked road of life—one must indeed fail before one is able to achieve.
While Destroy All Neighbors may lie somewhere betwixt a fever dream and a bad acid trip, it manages (somehow) to maintain focus, plot, and vision. It is a comedy that is not afraid to laugh at itself while avoiding any and all issues of actual substance, and that is a good thing.
The story follows Will (Jonah Ray), a struggling musician trying to complete this magnum opus of a prog rock album while working a thankless job at a music studio. He has a surprisingly supportive girlfriend in Emily (Kiran Deol) who seems to love him unconditionally. His tepid, almost inane existence then suddenly comes to a halt when his old neighbour, Alec (Pete Oloszek) moves out and Vlad (Alex Winter) moves in.
The film is silly to the point of slapstick, though not to the point where you’d catch yourself rolling your eyes. There is gore and viscera aplenty, though scary is one of the least-fitting adjectives I’d use as a descriptor. Nonsensical, boisterous, excessive and audacious maybe, but aside from the comical kill scenes, it is hardly horror.
Where we do need to give credit though is to the casting and the acting. It is easy to overlook characters in roles that seem simple and silly to pull off, but each and every cast member—even the cringy ones—deserves praise for their ridiculous performances and I mean that without the slightest hint of negativity or sarcasm. Too often have I felt disconnected from onscreen characters in recent films but as jarring as Destroy All Neighbors was, it at least had me invested in the characters, their stories, and the “truth” behind the events unfolding across the screen.
The prog jokes also definitely tickled my fancy as that’s probably my favourite genre of music, so to have the film itself poke fun at me and the idiots out there just like me was a ballsy and bold move. It was genuinely fun to be able to laugh at jokes that were directed at me—something that few films have the gall to do these days. If I have the right to sit here and dish out critique, I sure as hell should be able to enjoy a stab back in my direction.
There is little more that I can offer up in the form of criticism. It’s a slapstick horror with nods to various musical fandoms that it teases relentlessly. It has solid yet comical practical effects and uses props like films did back in yesteryear. It works because it doesn’t really seem to care either way. It’s obnoxiously over the top and proudly and profoundly stupid—yet you can tell that this was a labour of love…weird, creepy, problematic love but love nonetheless.
I was late reviewing this title thanks to the festive season vacations so, luckily for you, Destroy All Neighbors releases today. You get to watch it just after I did! Go check the film out on Shudder. The artwork and trailer are below. Thanks for reading and as always, stay sordid.
Poster for Josh Forbes’ DESTROY ALL NEIGHBORS
