A new trailer has been released for Color Out of Space, an adaptation of an H.P. Lovecraft novella of the same name, starring Nicolas Cage and Tommy Chong. Cage, an Oscar-winning actor, is equally at home in big-budget blockbuster movies and low-budget indie movies. In fact, he's developed a reputation for his very unpredictable choice of roles, which recently included the voice of Spider-Man Noir in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Because of his diverse filmography, he has a devoted fan base and is a regular presence in memes. His latest project was directed by cult filmmaker Richard Stanley. Cage recently starred in the indie-horror revenge movie Mandy, for which he received rave reviews. Both Color Out of Space and Mandy were produced by SpectreVision, a genre production company created by Elijah Wood and the directors Daniel Noah and Josh C. Waller. Color Out of Space received positive reviews from critics after screening at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is based on Lovecraft's 1927 novella, but Lovecraft fans can see it in theaters in January 2020.
The trailer for Color Out of Space shows stars Nicolas Cage and Tommy Chong reacting to an evil alien presence that takes the form of light. After a meteorite crash, Cage's family begins to experience bizarre events and unexplainable phenomena. Like Mandy before it, the trailer has a decidedly psychedelic bent, with colorful bursts of light dominating the rural scenery. The trailer combines science-fiction imagery, body-horror, and classic horror movie scares.
With the latest trailer for Color Out of Space, SpectreVision is earning a reputation for unique indie horror. Director Stanley stepped behind the camera for the first time since the 1996 movie The Island of Dr. Moreau, based on the famous H. G. Wells novel of the same name. Returning to adapt another classic horror story is a bold move for Stanley, especially considering that he was famously fired from that science-fiction horror movie. When a Hollywood director gets fired or directs a particularly disastrous movie, they often find it difficult to find work, a phenomenon known informally as "director jail." In Stanley's case, it took over 20 years and a production company comfortable with taking risks to land another feature film.
Lovecraft is a towering figure in the horror world, and he has influenced the genre in so many ways. Color Out of Space looks like a promising adaptation of one of his most famous novellas. Published in 1927, the tale of an alien menace helped create the alien-invasion genre responsible for so many movies, novels, and comic books since then. Lovecraft was even cited as an influence for Aquaman. With a prolific actor like Cage at its helm, Color Out of Space could be one of the year's most unique science fiction movies.
