''Eggshells'' is a 1969 American
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
experimental film
Experimental film or avant-garde cinema is a mode of filmmaking that rigorously re-evaluates cinematic conventions and explores non-narrative forms or alternatives to traditional narratives or methods of working. Many experimental films, parti ...
directed by
Tobe Hooper
Willard Tobe Hooper (; January 25, 1943 – August 26, 2017) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his work in the horror film, horror genre. The British Film Institute cited Hooper as one of the most influenti ...
in his
directorial debut
This is a list of film directorial debuts in chronological order. The films and dates referred to are a director's first commercial cinematic release. Many film makers have directed works which were not commercially released, for example early work ...
. Hooper, who co-wrote the film with
Kim Henkel
Kim David Henkel (born January 19, 1946) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor. He is best known as the co-writer of Tobe Hooper's horror film ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre''.
Early life
Henkel was born in Virginia and g ...
, also served as one of the film's producers. The film centers on a
commune
A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to:
Administrative-territorial entities
* Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township
** Communes of ...
of young
hippies
A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...
, who slowly become aware of an otherworldly presence that resides in the basement.
Plot
A group of young
hippies
A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...
, having recently moved into an old house in the woods, slowly become aware of an otherworldly presence residing in the basement of the house.
Cast
* Mahlon Foreman as Mahlon
* Ron Barnhart as Ron
* Amy Lester as Amy
*
Kim Henkel
Kim David Henkel (born January 19, 1946) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor. He is best known as the co-writer of Tobe Hooper's horror film ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre''.
Early life
Henkel was born in Virginia and g ...
as Toes
* Pamela Craig as Pam
* Jim Schulman as Jim
* Allen Danziger as Allen
Reception
In 2017, Zane Gordon-Bouzard of ''
Birth.Movies.Death'' stated that the film "lay
out its rambling vision of hippie life in Austin, Texas in a series of acid-splashed reveries". Gordon-Bouzard also noted that the film displayed many of the themes and motifs that would become a staple in director Hooper's later films. Louis Black from ''
The Austin Chronicle
''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogr ...
'' gave the film a positive review, stating that the film very much emulated the works of
Jean-Luc Godard
Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Franà ...
. Black also praised the film for its capturing of 1960s
Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
attitudes and lifestyles, as well as the psychedelic visuals and Hooper's direction.
See also
*
List of American films of 1969
This is a list of American films released in 1969.
''Midnight Cowboy'' won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
__TOC__
A–B
C–G
H–M
N–S
T–Z
Documentaries and shorts
See also
* 1969 in the United States
External links
...
Citations
Sources
Books
*
*
Websites
*
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
*
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1960s avant-garde and experimental films
1969 films
1969 directorial debut films
1969 independent films
American avant-garde and experimental films
American independent films
Films directed by Tobe Hooper
Films with screenplays by Kim Henkel
Films shot in Austin, Texas
Hippie films
Psychedelic films
1960s English-language films
1960s American films
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