Del Playa is an upcoming college-set horror movie that has people upset because the killer sure seems a lot like psycho Elliot Rodger–who went on a murderous rage while a student at University of California, Santa Barbara. Actually, Del Playa would’ve probably been lucky to premiere at a local Redbox if some controversy hadn’t gotten stirred up over the trailer sporting footage of the college town of Isla Vista and even location shots of UCSB.
Well, the controversy is happening, complete with a Change.org petition demanding major changes to the film–to which director Shaun Hart has sheepishly (and officially) replied…
First and foremost, I would like to publicly apologize to everyone who has been offended in any way by our making of this film. It was never our intent to monopolize on the tragic shootings in Isla Vista that took place last year.
While I do admit there is the connection of Santa Barbara, this film is not about Elliot Rodger. The fictional character in the film is not meant to portray anyone in particular. It is meant to portray incidents that take place, not only in Santa Barbara, but across the country on a daily basis. Our intentions were not to make light of such a serious issue, but to engage our audience in an active discussion about bullying and violence.
As a graduate of UCSB and a former resident of Del Playa, that day was a knife to my heart. For me, the actions of one individual tainted a lot of good memories of an innocent time and brought darkness to a place that should only be home to the hopes and dreams of the young. For all touched by the tragedy at DP, know this: I stand right there with you. And share love and compassion for our fallen Gauchos.
Yeah. And, to be fair, the killer in Del Playa is called a “fatherless retard,” while Elliot Rodgers’ father got lots of attention as a documentary director who’d done some work on the Hunger Game series.
Anyway, take a look for yourself and decide if this is insightful cinema or crass exploitation. It sure is the damn murkiest movie we’ve ever seen. Forget the glory of Redbox. Del Playa was destined for one of those $3.99 DVD collections that cram in 30 low-budget horror movies….
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBF3jqeYjUo]
