I absolutely loved writer/director Mitchell Lichtenstein's 2007 feature debut TEETH, a horror/comedy about vagina dentata. While rewatching the film recently, I was baffled by the realization that we have barely heard from Lichtenstein since; the only movie he has made in the interim has been the 2009 dramedy HAPPY TEARS, while in a perfect world TEETH would have launched him into a stretch of prolificacy and bigger successes.
Thankfully, Lichtenstein has another film on the way, one which brings him back into the horror genre: ANGELICA, based on the novel by Arthur Phillips.
ANGELICA is a gothic tale of a newly married couple living in Victorian London who endures a series of increasingly alarming psychological and supernatural effects following the birth of their child.
Lichtenstein and TEETH producer Joyce Pierpoline drafted some fantastic collaborators to help them bring this story to the screen, both in front of the camera – the film stars Jena Malone, Academy Award nominated actress Janet McTeer, and Ed Stoppard – and behind; Oscar nominated cinematographer Dick Pope and costume designer Rita Ryack, and Oscar winning production designer Luciana Arrighi. Composer Zbigniew Preisner has been up for multiple César Awards, the top honors in France, and has won twice.
It has been a year since we shared the first trailer for ANGELICA, but it is getting closer to securing a release, as Spotlight Pictures has acquired the worldwide sales rights ahead of a February 14th screening at the European Film Market. Here's hoping that ANGELICA will soon be getting picked up for global distribution, because the world is long overdue for more Mitchell Lichtenstein movies.