Film Screenings: Forbidden Zone

In a subterranean Sixth Dimension ruled by a sex-obsessed king and queen, a wildly dysfunctional family of characters endures scatological sight gags, enslavement, and physical abuse in order to rescue a kidnapped heroine. Deemed politically incorrect upon its original black-and-white release, Fo... Read more

In a subterranean Sixth Dimension ruled by a sex-obsessed king and queen, a wildly dysfunctional family of characters endures scatological sight gags, enslavement, and physical abuse in order to rescue a kidnapped heroine. Deemed politically incorrect upon its original black-and-white release, Forbidden Zone is a mix of avant-garde tomfoolery, underground Yiddish cabaret, and the libidinous 1930s spirit of the Fleischer brothers, Cab Calloway, and Josephine Baker. The film, which documents the work of Los Angeles–based musical performance artists The Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo and features Danny Elfman’s first film score, serves as a reminder of the influence that West Coast pop culture of the era had on Burton’s creative imagination. Richard Elfman’s digital-color restoration of this cult classic reinvigorates it for new audiences.

Forbidden Zone 1982. USA. Directed by Richard Elfman. Screenplay by Matthew Bright. With HervÉ Villechaize, Susan Tyrrell, Danny Elfman, Viva, The Kipper Kids. 76 min.