The Legend of Boggy Creek
I was seven years old when I first heard it scream. It
scared me then, and it scares me now.
Foulke is a right place to live…until the sun goes down.
Foulke, Arkansas. Nestled in an area between Shreveport, LA, and Texarkana, local farmers, hunters, and hick folk (I’m a hick, so I have a fondness for these types) living in the woods and lands near Boggy Creek have stories to tell of how they came in contact with—or had a direct effect from—a legendary Bigfoot that seemed, for a while, to not be so afraid to pop up or show itself to homosapiens. The creatures that inhabit Boggy Creek, however, also know exactly what the Bigfoot is and when to flee at its recognizable roar. We watch a fictional document, foretold to us by a narrator who lived on the land and understood the reputation, seeing first-hand its effects and fear left on the citizens of Foulke, Arkansas.
One of my favorite scenes (or eyewitness accounts, if you
will…) has a boy hunter taking after the sound of his hunting dog in the woods
near his house, encountering the creature, actually shooting it in terror,
high-tailing it once able to unlock himself from the grips of his own fear.
There’s also a scene where a hunting party decides to hunt for the creature,
only for their dogs to chicken out, leaving the men embarrassed and
disappointed. Like many documented accounts, this film also establishes that
the creature appears unexpected and much to surprise to eyewitnesses.
I know that many will (...or already do) consider the narrative device an annoyance, a nagging nuisance that is constant, but I like the idea that we have a storyteller who actually came from the area, knew the people/inhabitants that live(d) there, because the in-his-own-words document of the creature is more personal, intimate, authentic.
What I think will be considered rather cheesy by some viewers is the way director Pierce makes folk heroes out of the likes of Travis Crabtree (The Crabtree family tree has plenty of characters peppered throughout the film; they must have been director Pierce’s friends), even devoting a song to his wilderness/creek/fishing exploits, living off the land, using a rather unflattering boat to paddle across the water to places to camp, cooking eggs, enjoying the freedom absent the rushing activities of life away from the woods of Foulke, Arkansas. Pierce makes this look damn near romantic.
Creeks. He always travels the creeks.
I would say that perhaps the most humorous moment in the film (that is unless you consider Southern characters living in simple, non-glamorous means funny) has a guest, at the house of two couples, getting nearly assaulted by the Bigfoot while using the john. When he flees with his pants yet pulled up, tripping and falling, I couldn’t stop laughing. It is further proof that living in rural Arkansas can be hazardous, even while taking a dump.
…and the Fords and the Turners moved away. They never plan on coming back.
The affection for the characters and locale is evident in
every frame. I think, for the most part, there’s affection for the creature. In
the narration, we hear that if the creature maybe had not been shot by the kid
or had his abode “intruded upon” by others, maybe it would never have caused
such mayhem. Even in the narrative later, there’s a curiosity in why the
creature seems interested in homosapiens, if maybe the reason behind needing to
roam upon the homesteads, on the properties, and move about the land of humans
is out of loneliness and because it doesn’t have a mate. How could such a
creature communicate this? It does destroy livestock and pets along the way but
this is after man has been abusive towards it, including armed hunters looking
to shoot it.
The film does present the creature as a possible threat to life but also as a curious creature that prowls about maybe just because it has an intrigue in humans. When Bobby is trying to spot light the creature, so he can help his buddies, Mr. Turner, and Mr. Ford, and is attacked accordingly, the film further illustrates that the creature, once riled, can be a menace. I guess the film does point out that Foulke is as much a property to the creature as it is to the humans who live in such environs. Numerous sightings have continued to fascinate and compel people/investigators all over the world, even until this very day with documentaries, including a show called Finding Bigfoot. The Legend of Boggy Creek will probably be considered by many as a piece of vintage documentary cheese, but I must admit that I thoroughly find the characters and storytelling techniques (recreated stories, emphasis on locals who populated Foulke, or continue to, the introspective, reasoning voice of the narrator, songs about characters and Boggy Creek) enchanting and endearing. Being from Mississippi, I’ve met my share of farmers, hunters, and townfolk along life’s way, so maybe I’m just partial/biased towards rural tales, spun with whimsy and love for a particular area and people.
A man holding his rifle while listening for the sound of the deer potentially in his vicinity while resting comfortably on a fallen tree, a young man drinking hot coffee from a tin cup after a mess of fried eggs cooked in a skillet over a log fire, a hermit fixing a cigarette from paper and *tobaccer* while not far from his little shack has milk jugs hanging from a tree (used to collect fish from the creek that flows by his embankment): these are all photographed and interviewed (with a score that idolizes and cherishes them), some aren’t even associated with the creature as far as seeing it (Herb Jones, who has lived in the woods his whole life, claims there is no creature; he flat affirms that he’s never heard tell of such a beast or come in contact with it). Again, this is as much about the place as it is the creature. That’s why I feel The Legend of Boggy Creek will alienate some while ingratiating itself to others who identify with, or know characters like, those involved in the film.
The film does present the creature as a possible threat to life but also as a curious creature that prowls about maybe just because it has an intrigue in humans. When Bobby is trying to spot light the creature, so he can help his buddies, Mr. Turner, and Mr. Ford, and is attacked accordingly, the film further illustrates that the creature, once riled, can be a menace. I guess the film does point out that Foulke is as much a property to the creature as it is to the humans who live in such environs. Numerous sightings have continued to fascinate and compel people/investigators all over the world, even until this very day with documentaries, including a show called Finding Bigfoot. The Legend of Boggy Creek will probably be considered by many as a piece of vintage documentary cheese, but I must admit that I thoroughly find the characters and storytelling techniques (recreated stories, emphasis on locals who populated Foulke, or continue to, the introspective, reasoning voice of the narrator, songs about characters and Boggy Creek) enchanting and endearing. Being from Mississippi, I’ve met my share of farmers, hunters, and townfolk along life’s way, so maybe I’m just partial/biased towards rural tales, spun with whimsy and love for a particular area and people.
A man holding his rifle while listening for the sound of the deer potentially in his vicinity while resting comfortably on a fallen tree, a young man drinking hot coffee from a tin cup after a mess of fried eggs cooked in a skillet over a log fire, a hermit fixing a cigarette from paper and *tobaccer* while not far from his little shack has milk jugs hanging from a tree (used to collect fish from the creek that flows by his embankment): these are all photographed and interviewed (with a score that idolizes and cherishes them), some aren’t even associated with the creature as far as seeing it (Herb Jones, who has lived in the woods his whole life, claims there is no creature; he flat affirms that he’s never heard tell of such a beast or come in contact with it). Again, this is as much about the place as it is the creature. That’s why I feel The Legend of Boggy Creek will alienate some while ingratiating itself to others who identify with, or know characters like, those involved in the film.
Pierce, to me, has ways of shooting action and people--quick edits and dependency of overdubbed dialogue quite in abundance--that is in vogue in the independent film of today. His camera doesn't hold still on a shot for very long and he doesn't necessarily shoot what is happening central-focus, in long take form. Quite inexpensive and true-to-his-roots, Pierce's film appeals to me because his Legend of Boggy Creek is as Southern and lo-fi while maintaining a cult following. He made another film, pressured to do so, that has been considered inferior and worthy of endurable mockery, but I have only watched the Mystery Science 3000 version so an extensive review of that one might be in the future.
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