The Darkside of Society (2023) Review
When SOCIETY first hit screens in 1989, its surreal and grotesque portrayal of elite depravity stunned audiences and secured its place as a horror essential. But while the film’s infamous “shunting” scene left an indelible mark on genre fans, its writer — then known as Woody Keith — was enduring a very real psychological unravelling behind the scenes.
Today, he is Zeph E. Daniel, and for the first time, he shares his chilling truth. Far from a nostalgic celebration, The Darkside of Society explores Daniel’s revelation that the film’s twisted plot was more autobiographical than he ever intended — a subconscious manifestation of repressed childhood trauma.
Directed by Larry Wade Carrell — Daniel’s producing partner at Crazed House — the documentary is a raw, unfiltered examination of art, memory, and the dark corners of the creative process. Carrell and Daniel previously collaborated on the award-winning thriller GIRL NEXT and the recently released THE QUANTUM DEVIL, instalments of their ongoing “QUANTUM QUARTET” film series.
THE DARKSIDE OF SOCIETY had its world premiere at the prestigious Sitges – Catalonian International Film Festival in 2023 and went on to screen at FrightFest, captivating festival audiences with its raw, deeply personal exploration of horror history. THE DARKSIDE OF SOCIETY features never-before-heard accounts from Daniel, rare behind-the-scenes insights, and a haunting new perspective on a film that shocked the world.
Narrated by the late Julian Sands documentary THE DARKSIDE OF SOCIETY starts off promisingly by factoring in the likes of film critic and FrightFest founder Alan Jones and director Richard Stanley detailing how the film SOCIETY was a welcome break upon its release from the glut of sequels that had a chokehold on the genre in the Eighties. It also details how the film’s climatic ‘shunting’ was inspired by the art of Salvador Dali and was a conscious effort to appease the censors by excluding gore.
Zeph E. Daniel then takes centre stage recounting in detail the personal events that led to him producing a flick that includes incest, copious amounts of paranoia and has the rich literally feeding off the poor. He recounts how the abuse he experienced and how his family participated in the abuse saying that what appears onscreen, aside from the ‘shunting,’ is based on fact. We only have his word for it though as the documentary fails to substantiate this. Instead, there’s a section that covers the Satanic occults, that were big tabloid news Stateside in the Eighties, which were later debunked and therefore are insufficient as evidence.
Zeph E. Daniel recounts too how he was ‘brainwashed 100%’ to forget everything that happened to him which curiously does not impede his ability to describe what he was meant to have forgotten it in detail. Also, many of the people named and shamed in his telling of his abuse happen to be dead and can therefore not be called upon to either validate or debunk his claims which is a shame as it essentially leaves a big question mark over what he is saying happened.
In summary fans of the film SOCIETY will find some tasty nuggets scattered throughout this short documentary – such as how it was held up for four years released Stateside before it received its release, due to the prudish American attitude towards sex onscreen – but otherwise there’s an abuse story that the makers have failed to validate or substantiate effectively.
Uncork’d will release The Darkside of Society on digital and on demand platforms starting May 13, 2025.