Scream popularized metatextual horror in the ‘90s, and that trend continued to flourish well into the 2000s. Following Wes Craven’s seminal slasher effort, filmmakers continued to poke good-natured fun at the horror genre while simultaneously adhering to many of the tropes these films were supposed to be lampooning. Few have walked that line better than Scott Glosserman’s Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. As effective as the film is, it only played a small handful of theaters during its initial release in 2006 and never really caught on outside the horror space. Fortunately, the film is now available to stream for free, there’s a catch though.
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The catch to stream Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon is that you’ll need access to Hoopla. If you’re not familiar with Hoopla, it’s a streaming service powered by libraries. To sign up for the platform, you’ll need a library card from a participating institution. Not all libraries support Hoopla, meaning that access is not guaranteed.
If you have access to the Hoopla platform, you should make haste to check out Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon. It’s a clever and well-written meta slasher comedy that serves up chuckles and chills at regular intervals. Sadly, the flick doesn’t have the name recognition or staying power of some of its more celebrated contemporaries.
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon functions as a mock documentary profiling the titular character, a charismatic antagonist with a penchant for bloodshed and aspirations of rising to prominence as the next great slasher icon. Vernon proves to be a well-written character who is brought to life with charm and wit by Nathan Baesel.
The film makes effective use of the mock documentary conceit, giving the viewer unprecedented insight into the mind of the central antagonist. It’s an admittedly outlandish premise, but Glosserman leans directly into the internet silliness, giving us cause to go along for the ride.
Though some fans have called out Behind the Mask for moving slowly at the onset, most seem to appreciate the gradual build because it gives us the chance to get to know both the film crew behind the documentary and Vernon, the subject of the project. The idea that Vernon is actually a nice guy (save for his murderous designs) makes this slasher stand out from the pack. It’s an odd juxtaposition that subverts expectations and keeps the audience on their toes.
This flick shows an undying love and appreciation for the slasher genre. Even when Glosserman and his co-writer David J. Stieve seem to be calling out slasher tropes, they do it with the kind of love and admiration that proves they enjoy the genre as much as the rest of us.
All things considered, Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon is peak 2000s horror. It’s an underrated film just waiting to be re-discovered by the right audience. If you’re hip to connect with this under-seen offering, make your way over to Hoopla to see if your local library offers access to the platform.
Have you seen this underrated slasher picture? If so, we’d love to hear your take. Hit us up with your thoughts in the comments section below.
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