Born Villain(Movie, 2011)

Born Villain is a surrealist horror short film directed by actor Shia LaBeouf in collaboration with singer Marilyn Manson. The film features a series of vignettes involving Manson's character cutting women's hair, a doctor inserting an eyeball into a woman's vagina, and characters reciting passages from William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Born Villain is sound-tracked by the Marilyn Manson song "Overneath the Path of Misery". A promotional trailer for the album of the same name (2012), Born Villain was conceived of after Manson and LaBeouf became friends at a concert by The Kills. In crafting the film, the duo drew inspiration from theology, Macbeth, and the films Un Chien Andalou (1929) and The Holy Mountain (1973). The short premiered at the L.A. Silent Theater on August 28, 2011; the screening could only be attended by people who had purchased copies of Campaign, a limited edition book by Manson, LaBeouf and Karolyn Pho. Upon release, the short received mixed reviews from critics. Some praised its power to disturb, while others found it dull. Born Villain has been made available for purchase on DVD. ()