Actor Bill Sage muses on his role in high-octane slasher flick FENDER BENDER.
Premiering on Chiller on June 3rd is writer/director Mark Pavia’s FENDER BENDER, a muscular, lean and no-nonsense slasher potboiler, the first original film developed and produced by beloved home video imprint Shout! Factory, and one sporting a rather neat twist.
Set in New Mexico, FENDER BENDER follows a sweet-faced teen (Mackenzie Vega) who gets rear-ended in the titular accident by a smooth talking but totally malevolent sociopath. Once they exchange insurance information, the girl goes home, her parents leave for vacation and then…the killer comes to call.
Dressed in head-to-toe black leather and armed with extremely sharp instruments, FENDER BENDER’s road-tripping human monster is played by veteran actor Bill Sage, so memorable in Jim Mickle’s masterful WE ARE WHAT WE ARE and a myriad films and TV series (Sage has appeared in everything from AMERICAN PSYCHO to BOARDWALK EMPIRE and can currently be seen in Mickle’s Sundance show HAP AND LEONARD). Sage is always a magnetic presence and here, channeling measured evil, he’s the black soul of the film.
SHOCK talked to Sage about the role and the challenges of performing while poured into the evil version of Elvis’ ’68 Comeback Special costume.
SHOCK: FENDER BENDER is a slasher film, but the twist, that the killer finds his victims by staging auto accidents, is interesting. Was that one of the main reasons you took the role?
SAGE: Yeah, when I got to that part of the script, I was in. Producer Carl Lucas brought this to me and said, “just stick with it till the end” and I did. Without giving anything away, let’s just say that by the end, when we see more of him, I didn’t know if it would work or not. I think it does, though. I hope it does.
SHOCK: As you say, towards that last reel, the movie takes a strange narrative detour, shifting the focus from Mackenzie’s character to you. As an actor, did you personally find humanity in this reptile of a man?
SAGE: I did. That was the whole reason to do it, that’s what I was looking for. It’s very minimal from an actors point of view, especially when he’s in the costume, there’s a lot to do, you don’t see the killer’s face. But I wanted to root the character in what I thought was, from a human point of view, the idea that he was almost a savant. Like he has a form of autism. He’s traumatized on some level. Something has occurred in his life that tripped him into becoming a shark. A machine. I thought it was really clear and Mark and I felt this, we felt that his costume, the white tennis shoes, the “dad” attire he wears in the daytime, is really the mask. But who he is, really, is the guy in the leather. That’s who he is. He’s become his car…
SHOCK: That’s interesting. The killer becomes an extension of his vehicle. Aesthetically, the killer reminded me of David Carradine in DEATH RACE 2000 so that makes sense…
SAGE: Yeah. I thought of DEATH RACE 2000 when we were making it too…
SHOCK: So was that you in the costume? Or was there a stunt guy in there?
SAGE: No, that was always me. Well, except when I was lit on fire. But yeah, I did all the driving too. If you look closely, that’s me. No stunt double.
SHOCK: You’re always good as a heavy. I think of you in WE ARE WHAT WE ARE and how steely you are in that. How menacing, with only minimal facial movement. But wrapped in that costume, the performance becomes less subtle and more physical. Was that difficult?
SAGE: Well, with WE ARE WHAT ARE, I always had this internal monologue going. I had that here too. But with this guy, one of the things that helped the performance is that you lose a lot of your peripheral vision with the mask, so there’s that obstacle that forces you to act with your body more. I wanted him to be relaxed, decisive. So I was super relaxed in the costume. I took a kind of zen approach because, y’know, he’s good at his work. He’s confident. He’s calm.
SHOCK: The movie almost feels like a prologue. Has there been talk to franchise FENDER BENDER?
SAGE: I don’t know but yes, it feels like a prologue to me too. I’d be interested in exploring the character. As long as they make it interesting and not gratuitous. I think you could do a lot with him. We’ll see what people think of it. If people like the movie…
SHOCK: Mark Pavia’s only other genre feature is THE NIGHT FLIER, an eccentric movie that has since become a cult film. Did you watch that movie before taking the role?
SAGE: No, I didn’t have a chance to. But I watched it while we were filming. You know, Mark directs through his enthusiasm and I couldn’t believe, after I saw it, that he hadn’t had the opportunity to direct another film since then. I mean, I know this business is hard, but I couldn’t believe it. He’s talented and so likeable. But, I guess hes kinda…well, he’s odd. I wonder if that was a factor. He’s like a fast talking 14 year old. But man, I’m in this for odd. I’m an actor because I like odd!
SHOCK: The greatest filmmakers are odd. Woody Allen, Tarantino…
SAGE: Yeah, right! Listen, I was delighted to work with him. He’s sensitive and kind and a bit shy. The biggest thing here is that I just want to see him keep directing. This guy should just be able to keep going from one thing to the next to the next…
SHOCK: Well, in keeping with the theme of the film, maybe he just needs to turn his motor over, then he’s off to the races…
SAGE: (laughs) Well he certainly has had an oil change with this picture.
FENDER BENDER premieres on Chiller on June 3rd.
For more on the movie go HERE.
