By Sarah Sluis
I groaned when I heard that Epic Pictures group has a film in the works called 11.11.11, set to release the same day. It seems like an idea pulled out of a hat. After all the buzz this year about 10.10.10, a fortuitous date that many people picked for their wedding celebrations, going through all this number 
But this isn't the first time a horror movie was pitched on title alone. One of the great RKO horror producers of the 1940s, Val Lewton, who would create his movies to match titles assigned by the studio based on moviegoer surveys, yielding such sensationalistic titles as I Walked with a Zombie, Cat People, and The Seventh Victim. Who wouldn't want to see one of those movies? Martin Scorsese in particular has been influenced by his work, and his documentary on Val Lewton showed up amidst last week's onslaught of horror movies on Turner Classic movies.
Of course, Val Lewton's films had a charm to them--psychological, filled with tension, and with a 1940s style and costuming that brings to mind snappy films like His Girl Friday. I can't say I feel the same way about the prospects for 11.11.11. The movie will be directed by Saw veteran Darren Lynn Bousman. As for the "scariness" of the number 11, apparently in this film universe the digits' appearance signifies the presence of angels or spirits. Spooky....
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