Peculiarly, horror movies about the end of the world have enjoyed a new lease of life during the pandemic.
In waking life, a deadly virus has been spreading across the planet and forced millions to take shelter in indoors. Yet viewing figures for the likes of Steven Soderbergh’s Contagion and Wolfgang Petersen’s Outbreak have skyrocketed.
It might seem strange that people would choose to digest pandemic-themed media when a global emergency is happening right outside their window. But there’s actually some interesting psychology behind it.
Watching scary films about the end of the world is a coping mechanism; allowing us to imagine – and come to terms with – a potential worst-case scenario.
Whilst audience have been lapping up dystopian cinema – lockdown has proven to be a fertile breeding ground for horror flicks.
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And one of the most exciting, upcoming apocalyptic productions is being shot right here in Manchester: Day of the Clones.
Billed as a mishmash of Dawn of the Dead and The Thing (shot with the methodology of Werner Herzog) – Day of the Clones is a twisty sci-fi horror about a scientist hiding in an isolated farmhouse with a group of survivors after the clones he created take over the world.
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The movie is the brainchild of Manchester-born director and Hollywood screenwriter Eric Steele – who is steering the film for Vamoose Productions.
Elaborating on the plot, Eric explains: “It’s all about a small group of people confined in a very claustrophobic space who are forced to get on with each other, something I’m sure a lot of people can relate to at the moment!
“I always found the idea of clones quite creepy, and human cloning is downright terrifying. But when the pandemic hit, I thought this would be a good project because it is contained and claustrophobic – ideal for shooting with a few actors and the minimum of crew.”
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Eric has called Day of the Clones his most ambitious project to date – with the movie starring a mixture of local amateur actors and some familiar professionals seen in the likes of Shameless, Peaky Blinders and Hollyoaks.
But perhaps the most intriguing performer on set is a robot – played by a “specially-built mannequin.”
Day of the Clones is Eric’s second feature film, with the director shooting the self-funded Boy #5 – a Manchester-based vampire flick – in 2019, which is currently playing the festival circuit.
Originally starting out in the movie business as a screenwriter and selling his scripts over the internet, Eric saw one of his works, The Student, picked up by the company that made Stephen King’s Creepshow.
However, it wasn’t until he met his producing partner Barry Morton that he decided to give directing a try.
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Last year, the pair set up their own production company, Vamoose Productions Ltd, and are now hoping to make many more films set in Manchester under this banner.
Eric found himself drawing on all kinds of cinematic influences for Day of the Clones; including the likes of Danny Boyle’s 28 Day Later, Alex Garland’s Ex Machina, Ben Wheatley’s A Field In England, and the classic Hammer Horror films of the seventies.
But his biggest source of inspiration has been Manchester itself.
“[Manchester] is such an interesting city,” says Eric.
“Having lived here all my life, I know its good sides and bad sides. There’s tremendous wealth and poverty. There’s lots of crime but also a thriving art scene.
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“Turn a street corner in Manchester and you’ll never know what you’ll find, from a giant mural to a Brazilian-themed restaurant to an ancient derelict factory.”
With its gritty aesthetic and surviving remnants of the industrial revolution, Eric calls Manchester a “horror filmmaker’s dream”.
“I think it’s that humdrum, everyday despair of the Industrial North,” he says.
“There are remnants of the city’s great past everywhere. Sometimes it feels like you’re walking through a graveyard dedicated to the industrial revolution.
“Mixed in with those amazing old mills are brand new high rise complexes that look surreal and futuristic. It’s a great combination of ancient and modern.
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“For our vampire film “Boy #5” we shot outside a pub with a glowing non crucifix on the wall, outside the abandoned abattoir and in the middle of the busy city centre on a Friday night!”
Day of the Clones has so far been largely self-funded – and now Eric and his production team are looking for donations to help complete the movie.
People will receive perks in exchange for contributions, with all money raised going towards props, postproduction facilities, securing named actors for cameo roles, and visual effects.
It’s a terrific opportunity to support the local arts – and watch a thrilling, terrifying horror film play out in your backyard as a result.
Head over to the crowdfunding page here to learn more.
You can also read about Day of the Clones via the film’s official Facebook page.
Feature
We’ve found some of the best Chinese food in town – being served out of a snooker hall
Danny Jones
Yes, you heard us right: we’ve stumbled across one of our favourite new places for Chinese food just on the outskirts of Manchester city centre – it just so happens to be served out of a best-in-class snooker hall.
And that really is just the tip of the iceberg here.
Some of you may have heard about and/or seen it already, but we’ll admit we were a little late to the party when it comes to Club 200, a.k.a. the pool, snooker, darts, mahjong club and more, which has so many different things rolled into that it’s really more a Russian doll than a Chinese restaurant or sports venue.
The hook speaks for itself: a place where people spend just as much time practising with chopsticks as they do their cues, as it really isn’t a gimmick, as some pessimistic folk would have you think – the food is banging and so are the vibes in general.
Not only is this quite literally the best snooker club in Manchester – complete with everything from classic American billiards and Chinese 8-ball to king-size snooker tables that the Ronnie O’Sullivan has played and won on, to a special AI system you won’t find anywhere else – it is SO much more than that.
Whilst the backroom was packed with everyone from casuals to those looking to get their pro certification via the official Q Tour, and lads in the front were practising their arrows, as co-owner Simon admitted they get almost just as many darts regulars these days, a storm was cooking up in the kitchen.
It would be unfair to say this place doubles as a bar and restaurant, because we really couldn’t get over how well put together this menu was.
‘Café 200’s food offerings involve classics like fried rice and chow mein dishes, to the kind of sides you could expect from your local Chinese chippy, but it’s even more authentic exports that really impress.
For instance, the beef ho fun seemed to be a big hit with everyone; we loved the salty seafood udon as well (a great chew on those noodles), and we know plenty of people still searching for proper Hong Kong-style French toast – they might just find it here.
Speaking of the special administrative region, which has a twisting and turning but nevertheless rich culinary culture all of its own, that last dish had us hopping with joy.
You’re looking at baked Portuguese rice: a Macau speciality rooted in the region’s colonial history.
We’ve never quite had anything like it before, even in all of our years eating this kind of cuisine around the 10 boroughs, but we haven’t stopped thinking about it since.
And then there’s everything else they do, from karaoke and bingo nights to catering for birthdays and other functions, or even just serving as a cool, somewhat tucked-away spot to watch the footy and other live sport come the weekend.
You can tell this place has built up a real community over the last 18 months or so, and while the food speaks for itself, it’s the sheer abundance and variety going on that makes it especially charming to so many.
Speaking of jack-of-all-trade venues, we stumbled across a similar multi-talented one over in Salford not so long ago, too…
‘Manc the Biff’: the Co-op Live crowd made the Clyro boys welcome on debut
Danny Jones
It feels like we’ve been waiting a long time to welcome Biffy Clyro back to Manchester, and they really didn’t disappoint on their Co-op Live debut.
Here’s our review of what was a proper rock show.
After a strong lineup of support acts with The Armed and Soft Play (formerly Slaves) injecting plenty of early energy into the crowds, already knew two things: the Scots wouldn’t disappoint, and a Manc crowd NEVER lets you down.
We knew everyone was on top form from the moment the Kilmarnock icons stepped out on stage under a swathe of blankets to the opener from their latest album, Futique.
Once the curtain was eventually lifted during ‘A Little Love’, which has quickly become one of the most popular singles for some time, you could see the sea of fans below start bouncing.
Rolling into the likes of ‘Hunting Season’ and Only Revolutions classic, ‘The Captain’, those bounces quite quickly turned into a healthy-sized pit, and those up in the stands with us finally got on their feet.
That was maybe our only complaint: we love seeing a seated section pretending they’re in standing from their start, but we get it and each to their own, of course.
In fact, the same goes for the rest of the session players joining them on the road this year.
One thing we weren’t expecting was quite how cool the production levels were going to be. We’ve never been Biffy fans for their creativity when it comes to toying with stage design or lighting rigs, but they threw in some fun effects regardless.
Highlights from the night included ‘Tiny Indoor Fireworks’, ‘Bubbles’, and ‘Black Chandelier’, though we were sad not to hear ‘Victory Over The Sun’, and it was especially gutting that one of our favourite tracks from the new record, ‘True Believer’, didn’t end up on the setlist.
Again, you can’t have anything – we’re just glad we got to be there and see a truly great British rock band proving that they are well and truly an arena-level band.
Lastly, even after all the years and an X-Factor cover trying its hardest to take the credit away from them, ‘Many of Horror’ is still an unbelievable rock ballad, and d’ya know who is an unbelievable rock band? “Biffy. F***ing. Clyroooooo.”
The Manc -
4th December 2020 
