And that’s what New Zealand-made film The Weed Eaters dished up to moviegoers in Gore last week.
An advanced screening of the R13 film took place at the St James Theatre, followed by a Q&A with some of the engine-room of the film, hosted by Gore Mayor Ben Bell.
Director and producer Callum Devlin opened proceedings with a pun.
‘‘Are you ready to get gore-y?,” he asked the crowd.
The theatre in Irk St was the southernmost location the film would play in, he said.
Set in the 1980s, the film tracks four characters who made a farm shed a venue for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Things go awry when they get hold of a jar containing a potent purple drug — the sort that turns a cheese and cracker snack into a brain-scoffing extravaganza.
Those who fronted up for questions included the scriptwriter, producer and actor who played the character Brian, Finnius Teppett, and director of photography and the actor who played Campbell, Samuel Austin.
Annabel Kean, who played Jules, and Alice May Connolly, who played Charlie, both producers of the film, were in the hot seat too.
Mr Devlin, who was also part of the Q&A, said the idea for the film was based on real-life experience.
‘‘I had a bad habit of going to specifically horror films too stoned. And about 15 minutes in, we'd [Mr Devlin and his partner Ms Kean] have panic attacks and have to leave.”
On a similar chord, the film showed that losing control when under the influence was scary, Mr Teppett said.
“[Fear] was a really powerful realisation, it's so deep... we'd [the cast] forgotten that the film was fun. We were just trying to be as honest as possible to our own experiences and to the characters and to the story.”
The project, which took three months to film, was full of blood and guts, but that did not taint the experience for Mr Teppett.
“That was really fun among all of the carnage.”
This cannibalistic comedy viewing is part of a 21-stop screening tour around the country this month.
The film goes on general release tomorrow.
