Authored By Charlie Moss

Chris Dortch, founder of Mine En Scenesters and local film connoisseur, is becoming a regular fixture on ChattaPop. This week, I chatted with him on Facebook (ah, the wonders of technology) about his upcoming film screening Jan. 18, “Here Comes the Devil,” as well as the different portrayals of Satan in film because, you know, why not?

If you go What: “Here Comes the Devil” with Priests When: Saturday, Jan. 18, 8:30-11 p.m. Where: Barking Legs Theater, 1307 Dodds Ave. How much: $7 For tickets: Click here

The devil is pretty prominent in pop culture. What movie incarnation of the devil is your favorite?

Gosh, that’s a great question, and there are so many great film incarnations of Satan: Bill Cosby in “The Devil and Max Devlin,” George Burns in “Oh God, You Devil” and even Louis Cipher played by De Niro in “Angel Heart.” For me, personally, my favorite portrayal of the devil might just be either Robert Judd as Scratch in the ultra-underrated “Crossroads” or Viggo Mortensen in “The Prophecy.” His part isn’t big, but it’s super-fun and memorable.

That’s awesome. By the way, I love “Crossroads.” I mean, who doesn’t love Ralph Macchio?

It’s GOLD. It’s directed by Walter Hill, same director as “The Warriors” and “48 Hours.” The man is a treasure.

Do you think Satan really has a guitarist? If so, is it Steve Vai?

I think secretly that it’s probably someone we’re not expecting-definitely James Taylor. That guy’s too quiet.

What about movies like “The Exorcist” and “The Omen,” when the devil takes the form of children or the main plot has to do with exorcism? Those seem to be pretty popular. Any particular reason, you think?

I love those as well. “The Exorcist” set the bar high, and as for “The Omen,” I even like the sequels as, ahem, “nonconsistent” as they are. I’m also a big fan of the HYPER-underrated “Amityville 2: The Possession.” I think for a lot of parents there are few things more terrifying than not recognizing your own child. Even the original “Halloween” taps into that crazy primal fear a little. I even love the devil’s-not-quite-born-yet flicks: “Rosemary’s Baby,” “House of the Devil,” all super-fun.

Where does “Hellboy” fall on your list?

I love both the original and the sequel. I’m a big fan of both Mike Mignola and Guillermo del Toro.

How is “Here Comes the Devil” different from other movies about Satan you’ve watched?

“Here Comes the Devil” trailer

In the case of “Here Comes the Devil,” for genre fans it’s a real treat because it seems to simultaneously be aware of all the great, cool, eerie moments that make all the classic “devil/possession/creepy kid films” fun but also has enough of a brain in its head and a strong-enough visual palette to really feel fresh and fun and new. I’ve literally been trying to lock this particular title down for about a year now, so it’s a real honor to finally get to do it.

Can you talk about the band that will be playing? What kind of music should we expect?

Priests perform “New”

Just like I do with film, I try as often as possible to showcase bands that have never played the city before that I think local music fans will love as much as I do. We will also have a short standup comic and genre film aficionado, John Michael Bond, as well as an MES exclusive video intro to the film done by the director himself, Adrian Garcia Bogliano. Priests are also already getting a ton of love on Pitchfork, despite only having cassette-only releases out at the moment. Priests are really wonderful. Not only do they have the perfect band name to be paired up with a film about the devil, their music is truly exciting and reminds me of a lot of bands I love a lot. I feel like the DNA of Sonic Youth, The Pixies, The Feelies and, gosh, maybe even vintage B-52s and Butthole Surfers is in there somewhere (though I always feel strange when comparing bands to other bands). Also, they switch instruments often while playing, and singer Katie Alice Greer is in my hero.

With every MES event between here and the Chattanooga Film Festival, I’m trying to give folks a true experience for coming out to support indie film and music in Chattanooga. Just like P.T. Barnum, I want to give them a lot of bang for every buck they choose to spend with MES.

Charlie Moss writes about local history and popular culture, including music, movies and comics. You can contact him on Facebook, Twitter or by email. The opinions expressed in this column belong solely to the author, not Nooga.com or its employees.