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 I hate horror movies. To me, horror movies rely on jump out and scare you antics. They're about preying on unsuspecting and undeserving victims and destroying them for no good reason beyond their decision to go to the wrong camp or live on the wrong street. It's sad horror movies have become pigeonholed that way.
At least … that's often the general public's perception of horror.
I've learned that horror is a genre that can be as diverse as the “western genre” or “animated films.” To use such a broad term as horror can be a disservice to great suspense-gore-drama-comedy style of moviemaking.
But alas! Suspense-gore-drama-comedy is not as easy to combine like rom-com or dramedy. Perhaps that is why the series Masters of Horror, originally aired on Showtime, was made to show the different styles of horror out there. From this it is easy to get an appreciation of horror as stylistically pleasing film. After all, at any film's core is a strong story, told by a great director/screenwriter as presented by actors.
Cigarette Burns is John Carpenter's contribution to this series. In the hour-long show Kirby Sweetman, played by Norman Reedus, accepts the task of finding a movie known to cause murderous actions to audiences upon viewing. The closer he gets to finding Le Fin Absolue Le Monde or The Absolute End of the World, the more he's sucked into hallucinations from his own psyche. At the heart of the movie lies an ambitious, desperate, debt-ridden man in search of redemption for the guilt he feels from his girlfriend's suicide.
 That's exactly what this movie preys on: self-anxiety. John Carpenter knows that the scariest thing to anyone is his or her own self. Somehow Absolue forces the audience to do this. Why, it is unclear - even John Carpenter in one of the extras was uncertain how a movie could do this. The best guess is that eerie music over simple lines of dialogue, flashes of a girl covered in blood screaming and the destruction of something innocent causes this to happen. Luckily 'cigarette burns,' the dark circles at the top of a frame to let the projectionist know to add on the next reel, alert us that something is about to change.
The short 60-minute movie attempts to dive into Kirby's remorse. Reedus does a good job of showing a conflicted soul who is keen on knowing the visions he's having are just hallucinations. His focus reminds the audience what we must control our anxiety. The themes here were pretty strong, strong enough that the short running time works against the film. The movie could have done a lot more if given enough time. Kirby is not given enough time to develop, nor is Mr. Ballenger, the rich movie collector who Kirby is working for. The film is full of half hearted attempts to clear up why things are happening. The fact that they are never fully explained only adds to the tension of Cigarette Burns and reminds the audience that it's just a movie.
 The final act is where the horror-comedy really starts to play. Absolue really does have adverse affects on the audience. This is shown by Mr. Ballenger's butler's reaction, comedic at best with a slight sense of gore, and by Mr. Ballenger's reaction. Both actions are done excellently with the use of make-up. It's sad that Kirby's reaction to the movie isn't as strong as Ballenger and the butler. The entire movie is about his fight against the effects of the potential of seeing the movie. When he finally gets the chance, his reaction is bit of a let down, but only by comparison.
Disc Presentation
Shot in a 16:9 enhanced film ratio, the movie was originally shown in High-Def. The DVD echoes this, and challenges the effects artists to make the blood and gore that much more realistic. I think most people have an expectation of what blood looks like on screen; Cigarette Burns achieves this realism.
 Disc Extras
Wow, a one-disc set that is actually concerned with extras. Masters of Horror certainly has a plethora of quality extras. Any movie fan would enjoy the look behind the scenes.
The first extra, Celluloid Apocalypse: An Interview with John Carpenter, gives an honest view of the movie. John Carpenter laughs at the title of “Master of Horror” and reminds us of the other non-horror movies he's made. In addition, he scoffs at making Vancouver look like anything but Vancouver. With the limited shoot time of 10 days, he didn't have the option of going to Paris, Los Angeles or anywhere else. Luckily he did an adequate job by relying on interior shots.
Working with a Master: John Carpenter is a collection of interviews by people who have shot other movies with Carpenter. Since the series is concerned with highlighting horror directors' work it is fitting to have it on this DVD.
On Set: An Interview with Norman Reedus is a fluff piece feature with the star of Cigarette Burns during which he recounts the movie. This is the type of feature you'd customarily see on most DVDs, so its inclusion is expected.
The last feature, Behind the Scenes: The Making of Cigarette Burns, is a fly on the wall montage of the director directing. It is interesting to see his style and his interest in the various aspects of moviemaking.
 Also included is a trailer for all of the Masters of Horror shows produced to date, a behind the scenes stills gallery, an extra long John Carpenter Bio, a DVD-ROM .pdf Screenplay and a screen saver for Windows and Mac computers. In addition there are two separate audio commentaries. The first is with John Carpenter who pokes fun at some of the “cheese-ball” aspects of the movie and provides a play-by-play narration of the movie. The second is with the writers, Drew McWeeny & Scott Swan. Finally there is an Easter egg that directs you to a secret place on the Masters of Horror Website.
The Bottom Line
If you're a fan of horror, then I'm certain you're already going to want to see these. With a limited run time Carpenter pulls off an anxious, suspenseful movie. If horror's not your cup of tea but you want to branch out, I'd recommend checking this out. Just be certain to watch out for the scare-for-scare's-sake moments.
Of course, it does have its faults. It is tough to condense a movie into one hour, contributing to the lack of character development. In addition, many of the events are left unexplained. However, as a non-horror fan I'm beginning to be swayed.
Unfortunately, whenever I want to see gore, I just need to turn on the news and be appalled.
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