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DVD Review: Closed Circuit Extreme

November 30, 2014, 8:45 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

Closed Circuit Extreme
Written and directed by Giorgio Amato
Jingai Films / Dania Films / Manetti Bros Films
98 minutes, 2012 / 2014
www.mvdvisual.com

At last, a new found footage film! Haven’t seen one of those in… okay, enough with the sarcasm.

Closed Circuit Extreme is an Italian film shot in English with thick accents (though I had no problem understanding the dialog). Its premise is simple, if not overly logical.

A man, David de Santis (Stefano Fregni) – as in “David of Satan” – is suspected by a college age couple of being a serial killer, and of doing in one of their friends. In order to trap this guy, they repeatedly break into his house and set up a series of five CCTV cameras throughout, and then daily downloading the footage (at his house…guess they don’t have Wi-Fi in Italy, ahem) while he’s at work.

This is a disagreeable couple. Daniele (Guglielmo Favilla) knows the danger they are in, and Claudia (Francesca Cuttica) randomly touches and moves stuff, looks through David’s drawers, all the while he’s yelling at her to stop. For once I agree with the man in the story. Usually it’s the women who are more even-headed. She seems pretty non-pulsed that they are in the house of someone they believe has killed their amica.

The entire film is edited from the CCTV images, which keep cutting in and out and filled with repeated and annoying static noise. This is, I am assuming, to remind the viewer that it is the CCTV they are watching, like anyone needs any hints.

For more than half the movie, we watch the possibly dangerous man as the eats in front on the television, naps on his couch, and goes to sleep in his bed. Truly the banality of evil, you might say.

Sporadically, he interviews possible nannies for a child you never see, for him and a wife you never see, and obviously neither exists. It’s well into the second half of the film when you see David of the Devil for who he really is. His brutality is shown in detail, with some nice physical effects thrown in, though nothing really comes as any surprise.

Part of the reason there is no bombshell is what the failing of the storyline is to me: this is “police evidence,” so as we meet the characters there is an on-screen blurb that tells you the name of the person, where they are from, and the date they die (or not). This takes away much of the suspense, leaving just the killings (etc.). Oh, this person dies. Oh, this one doesn’t die, we learn on the introduction of everyone. Sigh.

The scenes of brutality are few and far between, and the body count on screen is pretty low. There is little gore per se, though we see a lot of blood on clothes and body parts. In fact, this film could have been an hour and it would have been enough.

The extra is the trailer, but what I find confusing, is after the film between minutes of black nothing, we see some silent clips of the film we just saw. Che cosa?

The way in which the film is successful is that it really does show that evil is just moments. Okay, here is a bizarre analogy, so bear with me. When you get a year-end letter, where you read the exploits of someone you know, it seems like the year was filled will events (e.g., “We went on vacation!” “I got a promotion!”), when actually, most of the period was probably mundane and ordinary, when you fill in the gaps. This film attempts and succeeds in showing that kind of “between” moments, which makes the contrast of violence seem more shocking.

Where it doesn’t succeed is, as I said, in TMI by broadcasting outcomes upon introductions.
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DVD Reviews: Films based on HP Lovecraft's "The Thing on the Doorstep" and Rudyard Kipling's "Mark of the Beast"

December 5, 2014, 2:09 pm
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Text by Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

Discussed here are two films based on short stories from about a generation on either side the turn of the 20thCentury. The writers of these tales, HP Lovecraft and Rudyard Kipling, are known for their verbose language and tales of the wild side of life. Free PDFs of the original Lovecraft short story can be found HERE, and the Kipling one HERE. The adaptations are updated to the present, but retain their original pastiches, including first-person narrations.
 
The Thing on the Doorstep
Directed by Tom Gliserman
Handsome Spyder
Leomark Studios
89 minutes, 2014
www.leomarkstudios.com
www.mvdvisual.com

The 1933 H.P. Lovecraft short story, with the same name on which this film is based, although apparently considered one of his lesser literary works, has one of the great and memorable opening lines in 20th Century horror literature: “It is true that I have just sent six bullets through the head of my best friend, and yet I hope to show by this statement that I am not his murderer.”

Without giving away too much, Daniel (Rob Dalton), the rascally rich lifelong pal of the narrating character, Edward (David Bunce), falls for a mysterious woman named Asenath Waite (portrayed by the film’s writer, Mary Jane Hansen). Asenath has a dark reputation as a hypnotist at good moments, and a necromancer/witch at less forgiving times. Added into the mix is Daniel’s pregnant wife, Marion (Susan Cicarelli-Caputo). This is a major variance from the original story, as Marion is barely mentioned by H.P., but is thankfully given full personhood here.

As time goes on, it is pretty obvious that Edward and Asenath’s relationship is becoming increasingly mystical and toxic. I’m grateful I read the original (see the link in the blog’s opening paragraph) before seeing the film, for a few reasons. The most obvious is that I could compare the two. Also, there were a couple of gaps here and there in the film that were not major flaws, but the story helped fill in. For example, the first couple of pages explain the relationship between Daniel and Edward, whereas in the movie adaptation, which has been modernized to the present, they are friends, but the exposition is kind of iffy.

One of the aspects that interested me is that it is generally known that Asenath is one of the few strong female characters in Lovecraft’s literary camp, but the two points that stick in my craw is that (a) she keeps wishing she were a man because men have stronger brains, and (b) she may only be a woman in meat puppet form. I was wondering how the film would present this men’s vs. women’s argument, which it does, but writer Hansen balances it by having Asenath make the same argument only to be refuted by Marion. I believe bringing up this argument from the book and addressing it in this way was a brave – and somewhat necessary – thing for Hansen to do.

Hansen actually takes some other wise steps, like adding in a psychological aspect on top of the pure mysticism of the original. She does this without losing the power of the story, and considering this is her first screenplay, that’s quite impressive. Asenath’s session with psychoanalyst Marion gives the impression she is talking about Daniel, but there is more afoot that will come to light.

In the book, Asenath is attractive but weirdly bug-eyed (not in those words), but Hansen is quite fetching in a young Blythe Danner sort of way.  She is just one of a relatively strong albeit mostly unknown cast.

Shot in Saratoga Springs, in Upstate Eastern New York, Gliserman gives the film a dated, eerie feeling, making it almost claustrophobic with many close angles. Even an overhead shot of a car on the highway seems limited in space. This is achieved in part by muting the color tones into a sepia-filtered light, so it’s in color, but there are no bright hues. There is also some interesting shots and editing, giving it an arty feel without going into the obtuse. Gliserman did the cinematography, and job well done.

For me, the flaw of the film, as it were, is the title creature, which looked a bit like it needed the touch of someone with a more SFX experience. Otherwise, the creep factor stays high. Lovecraft is hard to adapt, given his language (for which the dialog here gratefully borrows plentiful) and the more than 80 years since its release. Sure, you could just totally revamp it, like Stuart Gordon’s infamous Re-Animator (1985) and From Beyond (1986), but it takes courage to keep it loyal even with the updating.

Extras are chapters and a trailer.

 

Rudyard Kipling’s Mark of the Beast
Directed by John Gorman and Thomas Edward Seymour
Bloodbath Pictures
72 minutes, 2012
www.bloodbathpictures.com
www.mvdvisual.com

Rudyard Kipling was more known for fantastical stories of India, where boys live in the jungle and converse with animals, or brave British/white men fight battles against raging local/Indian wild jungle men. But there is also a darker side to Kipling, who would occasionally write about the more mysterious, dangerous, and supernatural view of life.

Mark of the Beast, in the original 1890 story, also has its loci in the dark wilderness of India, but in this retelling, we are logically and micro-budgetedly moved to (possibly) rural America, where somehow natives (I am assuming they mean Native Americans, though it could just be a cult, it’s not explained well) still manage to worship a monkey god.

The basic premise of the story is that Fleete (genre writer and Film Threat editor Phil Hall) is a drunken lout, and manages to offend the monkey god worshipers by putting a cigar out on its alter. He is attacked by a leper (in the States, while extremely rare, can be apparently contracted from armadillos, I kid you not) or something more sinister for his misdeed, who is known as the Silver Man due to the way the light reflects off his…er…skin. Fleete starts quickly turning into a similar creature, gnarling and gnashing, eating raw meat and attacking others, but that is only the beginning of the story, and I won’t give away much more.

As with many of the fictions of the period, most were written by men about men. In the original short story, there is talk of a nurse, but all the main characters are male. Co-directors Gorman and Seymour not only take a turn at the gender, they have the lead and first-person narration personified by Debbie (in the original story, the narrator is unnamed) voiced over by B-Queen goddess Debbie Rochon, giving yet another top-notch-yet-underappreciated performance; I would arguably say she gives the most naturalistic performance of the lot. It’s kind of a shame that the person who receives top billing, who seems to be there mostly so the film has a name, is the diminutive Ellen Muth, the star of the spectacular Dead Like Me series. It is good to see her work as I certainly enjoyed the AMC show, and she is a superb actor, but she doesn’t really do much here more than be in the shots as a brought-along friend (lover?) of another character (Margaret Champagne) who was not in the Kipling story. Yeah, it’s great they’ve added women roles, as I said, but I would like it to be more substantial than just peripheral characters who are there to scream and panic, or be fodder for… nah, not giving it away.

One of the comments often made about the original story is that there is a bit of torture thrown in by two of the main characters, including Strickland (Dick Boland) who is a police officer trying to get information, and to help his obnoxious friend (acquaintance?), Fleete, recover. In the original, Kipling skips over this part and a couple of other gruesome moments as the narrator refusing to put it down to writing. But now, we live in a post-9/11, Homeland and 24 world. Many people in the West are having attitude changes towards getting information any way possible because of their fears, real or imagined. For example, the torture report about the CIA under the Bush Administration is released to a resounding “Is Miley pregnant?”attitude. Now, during the commentary the directors say they are against the practice, but there is a bit less of the shying away of Kipling’s to the technique. Here the camera lingers on the gruesome inflictions.

There are some nice additions and touches added here, such as uber-Christian Strickland trying – with Debbie’s help – in an exorcism. Strickland, once realizing that Christianity isn’t going to change anything, and that the monkey god may also have some power in the situation, decides he and Debbie need to take matters in their own hands, with cudgels in hand in a nicely blue tinted day-for-night chase. Going from God loving to torturer seems like a natural progression. And what does one gain if one loses their own soul, is the – er – soul of the story, both the original and this interpretation.

What I find amusing about adaptations like this, where they take a story from another time and culture zone and update it is how they leverage the older with the modern. Even though some of the language is the same, the addition of profanity seems to be a way to say, “Hello! This is now, people, not then!” I don’t believe it’s a good or bad thing, just a bemused observation.

The make-up effects look better than the budget implies, with the blisters and dusky, scaly skin of the leper working into the story. The bite marks left by Fleete look appropriately gory in an almost modern zombie touch, if shown – er – fleetingly. Much of the cast also doubles as crew, including producers and many other hats. That is a sign of dedication that I respect, being willing to work hard on both sides of the camera, and more than just as a cameo appearance (such as the opening party scene), which is always needed in a micro-budget indie.

Filmed around Voluntown, Connecticut, the woods look mysterious and deep, and isolated (the sign of decent camerawork). The footage is color graded to give impressions, such as the previously mentioned blue-hued night shots. Unless used garishly in extremes, such as in, say, Creepshow(1982), if used correctly as it is here, it can convey subtle moods and ambience, pushing those micro-dollars quite a bit further.

I think it’s important to note that the film has added a really nice touch to the ending of the story, beyond where Kipling tread, showing the futility of… well, I’m not going to say. This is definitely a film worth watching, but know that there are squeamish parts because of the humanity/inhumanity of it (unlike, say, torture porn) for those mainstream viewers. For the genre fan, this may actually seem a bit mild in the action, but in the larger picture, it points to the flaws in the way we may think or believe.

The “Making of The Beast” extra is 12 minutes of the first and last day of shooting, and keeps it interesting as we meet the make-up mavens, introductions to most of the cast, and general discussions thankfully on-set as opposed to talking head interviews, which can be fun but are less in-the-moment. Other extras are two of the film’s official trailers, and two winners of a college contest for best editing of a trailer and teaser. They take Sergei Eisenstein’s posit of editing = action seriously, and both are well done. However, the feature itself actually uses very lax editing, using longer than usual shots, which is noted with joy by me in this post music video/mainstream action film world.

Lastly, there is the Commentary Track with the two directors. They had previously directed the Bikini Bloodbath series, so it’s good to hear them talk about the film from various technical as well as personal aspects. They are obviously knowledgeable about cinema history, not just horror, so the pace keeps up. There is a bit less of goofiness between them here, and more actual film talk so I can say positive things about the track, as they take it seriously, but not dryly so. The biggest revelation to me was that they intended this to be vague as far as time and location, though considering the lack of melanin (with one exception in a b-roll cameo, who was also part of the crew) and tans of the cast, I can only say “USA.”

I’ve watched it twice now, and it has kept its integrity throughout, so I say go for it.
 
Thing on the Doorstep trailer: HERE
 
 
 
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DVD Review: Attack of the Morningside Monster

December 15, 2014, 3:48 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

Attack of the Morningside Monster
Directed by Chris Ethridge
Making Monster Productions / Blue Dusk Productions
Apprehensive Films
93 minutes, 2014
www.afcinema.com
www.mvdvisual.com

The fictional town of Morningside is in New Jersey, and the two top cops are a local (Tom Haulk, played by Robert Pralgo), and one from the Bronx (Klara Austin, embodied by the underrated Tiffany Shepis, who started out in the Troma camp). I really didn’t get a Jersey vibe from the film (it’s based on the more rural Wharton area; I drove through it on 80 more times that I remember) mostly due to the lack of Tri-State accents, but considering it was filmed in Lawrenceville, GA, that’s not surprising. All I’m sayin’ is it goes without sayin’, as I once overheard someone say.

Someone is gruesomely (of course!) killing off some local drug dealer scumbags while wearing a hooded robe and a cool ritual mask (see the DVD cover above). Using various devises such as power slicers and a kind of mace, victims are immobilized and have internal organs removed; sometimes this happens while they’re still alive.

There is nothing exotic or artsy about this film as far as form goes, but sometimes meat and potatoes is just what is needed. Skip the weird shadows, the strange angles, the symbolic lighting, and just get to the “meat” of the matter. Director Chris Ethridge, in his first full length release, cuts to the chase and gives the audience a taut and bloody drama without the bells and whistles, just gristle. Perhaps, over time, this will change, but that’s okay, too. I believe that many directors try too much on their first outing, and find out that it’s harder work than was necessary to advance the action. The fact that this release has won a bunch of awards in festivals shows that it’s definitely reaching where it is needed.

You know what’s a good sign? I didn’t figure out the killer for a while, which is rare. I made guesses, and was wrong on three of them. When I did figure it out, about 20 minutes before the end, I thought “really?”, sometimes the trickiest of all choices is in front of your face.

For a first full feature, Ethridge manages to find some real talent, with lots of credentials. The two leads, for example, are seasoned professionals, with Pralgo being in a bunch of high-level cable shows and major films, and Shepis has a long history in the genre. The big name here, though, belongs to Nicholas Brendon, who was Zander in the popular series Buffy, The Vampire Slayer. Okay, yeah, he’s a pretty one-note actor, but there is no doubt he is known.

For me, the fault that is in the film – and this is true of most genre releases both big and small – is the shallowness of exposition. Why is someone from the Bronx the Deputy Sheriff? What is her background? Who is the Sherriff’s girlfriend (Catherine Tabor)? The bad guy’s wife (more cameo than anything by the lovely April Bogenshultz)? There is, fortunately, some indication of why the Sherriff is so committed to his best bud’s wife (Amber Chaney, who played Avox in The Hunger Games)?

On the flip side, what is great about the writing is that it isn’t cut and dry in that the “monster” is not – er – unhuman (e.g., Jason, Michael). Mistakes are made, and people who should not be involved become victims by accident. I think this is a real bonus and one I’d like to see kept up in other films. Kudos. Also, there is a great red herring a bit over half-way through that is not only well played, but well placed.

Nudity is kept at a minimal, and the gore effects look really good. There isn’t an overabundance of visceral matter, but what is present is nice and messy. Most of it is post-attack, rather than the actual action.

The extras are a couple of trailers and an interesting commentary track with the director/co-producer, writer/co-producer Jayson Palmer, and co-producer Michael Harper discussing the production, actors, and all that. Though I don’t remember who is saying what (one of the problems with three or more people on a track), it’s kind of irrelevant because it’s the info that matters.

I like that the film doesn’t do the usual killer pseudo-teens + sex = death (though there is a bit of a nod to that), and that most who die deserve it, so when those who aren’t “worthy” bite it, it actually makes it more moving. It may be meat ‘n taters, but as I said, sometimes you can get more accomplished by going for why the audience is there in the first place.

 
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Review: Pizza Girl Massacre

January 25, 2015, 6:49 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

The Pizza Girl Massacre
Produced, written and directed by Jason Witter
78 minutes, 2014
twitter.com/PizzaGirlMovie 
www.facebook.com/pizzagirlmassacre

When I first read the title, my question was: “Okay, is it a massacre of pizza girls, or a pizza girl who does the massacring? Well…

But first… Here is the thing about clichés: they tend to get annoying, but when you employ enough of them together, sometimes it creates something else, or other. Take the case here, for example. There are lots of tropes here that would be familiar to any horror fan, be in indie or mainstream. To name just a few: lost footage; theater troupe; cabin; in the woods; masked moron; meta-film documentary… Then, throw in a little bit of Mother’s Day (1980) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) for some good measure.

Additionally, if one is going to make a horror comedy, using Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1596; sorry, my General Semantics timebinding training is ingrained) as the direction for the acting troupe, it sets a good tone. This is especially true since director Jason Witter seems determined to use much of the Bard’s work in his screenwriting, in one way or another. Actually, using Willie S. as a mode for a slasher works as well, since many of his plays are bloody and have exceedingly large body counts.

Of course, the biggest problem with the found footage subgenre is that basically you know, at the onset, as the Doors famously phrased it clumsily, “No one here gets out alive.” But is the journey worth the ride?

Set and filmed in Albuquerque, we meet the central characters who include the cast and crew of the hopeful Shakespearean stage production, plus the camera guys, led by an obnoxious and lascivious dolt (played with aplomb by director Witter, wearing James Howlett (1974; aka Wolverine) style mutton-chops. They take their chance and rent a desolate cabin (always a mistake when there is a camera pointing at you) to rehearse. The owner, Mama Debi, explains they have to use basement. As Scooby-Doo (1969) may have said, “Wuh-oh.”

Needless to say, things don’t turn out well, but they do end up kinda funny, which is good as this is a dark comedy. If you are a fan of this genre, the jokes are definitely humorous in both a ha-ha way, and in a knowing one. Most of the wit is quite subtle as it is often in a knowing glance, a quick reference, a throwaway line, or on the outer frame of the camera. While there are few guffaws, it is worth it to pay attention to the action, but watch peripherally as well.

The look of the film is a mixture of ‘80s-style slasher, with some bright colors and deep red blood, and the jumble of hand- and head-held cameras with and the occasional flash insertion editing (where some of the humor is inserted). It has a good look to it, with some nice gore effects that are wet, enjoyably gruesome, and a tad (and appropriately) cheesy; there is, however, almost no nudity.

For the most part with rare exceptions, the acting is quite good for a low-budgeter, including the leads, Rhiannon Fraser and Rachel Shapiro, and especially the interesting (and cute) titular pizza slicer, Amy Bourque. Speaking of which, an interesting choice of Witter’s is to have every character in the film named after the actor playing them (other than the Pizza Girl, who is only known as, well, the Pizza Girl).

There were only three things I noted about the film on the negative side, and again, in this genre this is miniscule and nit-picky: first, it obviously takes place in the present considering the cameras used, but no one has a cell phone? I could understand if they were far enough outside a tower area where they wouldn’t work, but not one of this young cast tries (did I miss something where they were told not to bring it? However, that doesn’t mean everyone would listen to that directive, even from the play director; I wouldn’t and I’m older). Second, why did it take so long for anyone to leave the basement, never mind the house? And lastly, even though the Pizza Girl is nutsoid, surely a room full of people could have taken her down. I mean, they were able to tie up the bigger and angry Witter, so why not Pizza Girl?

Witter takes a lot of chances on this film, especially with using so many tropes, as I mentioned earlier. Luckily, it works for him. And even more fortunately, it works for the viewer, especially if one is versed in the genre, though even if one is not.

I agree with the film’s slogan: Pizza Girl Massacre delivers. The rest is silence…
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Review: The Campground

February 3, 2015, 9:46 am
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© Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films
Images from the Internet
 
The Campground
Directed by Roman Jossart
Studio 605 / SydSo Media
54 minutes, 2013
www.thecampgroundfilm.com

Even though the “Kids go to wood à kids get dead” subgenre of slasher films is a pretty common opening gambit for new filmmakers, Roman Jossart (aka RoJo) takes some firm steps in the right direction.

He has stated that he has filtered the light more to the green than blue to set himself apart from the crowd, which is a good way of thinking in my book, but even without that, the film looks pretty good. The lighting, even for the night scenes, is nicely achieved. You can only see what the camera wants you to see, so the bleak and darkness that surround the characters is almost a driver in itself (plus it helps hide the real and used Indiana RV Camp where it was filmed). Also, the editing does not rely on the quick cuts to hide the action. I’m guessing RoJo used one camera (let me know if I’m wrong), so shots linger a bit, giving the viewer more of the feel of the scene and location. Thanks for that, alone.

Another good choice is that the set-up scene for the horrors to come is embedded in the film rather than at the head of it, though yes, there is a bloody prologue. Still, I actually prefer it this way than the standard “Michael kills his family, and now it is years later” kind of trope. Here’s the set-up is as a campfire ghost story, and though that’s been done before, it’s still different enough from most to be appreciated.

The cast of couples heading to camp out is large enough to make a decent size body count, although the downside of course is that the more people there are, the less exposition. What motivates these people?  For example, one finds his girlfriend dead, and races back to the rest of the group who basically take it like, Well, okay, I guess we should hang out and drink beer while you calmly walk to the car to get help. Me, I woulda been outta there faster than butter melts on the sun. This calmness in the face of death is, to me, one of the major flaws of the film. I mean, the main character (played by the director) is more concerned with the loss of his mask than about his dead or missing friends. My suspension of disbelief took a bit of a hit with that one.

Two other quick things in this regard: there’s a killer on the loose, so why would someone sneak off to use the camp’s bathroom rather than in the sightline of companions, never mind without letting anyone know, and if the killer calls someone on a cell phone, that means there is service, so why not call the coppers?  But, moving on…

The use of death by screwdriver is cool, especially since it’s the more painful (i.e., less sharp) Phillips Head rather than a Flathead, although the Canadian Robertson Squarehead would be even more disturbing, he said with a wicked smile.  While this isn’t the only means of dispatching, it is the most oft used, to satisfying effect.

RoJo is obviously a fan of the Friday the 13th series (see his ~30-minute fan film short HERE), and this film is an outcropping of that. Heck, there’s even a sequel coming (apparently, heroes can’t do simple math).

While the nudity is nonexistent and the blood is kept to a minimum, the effects that are employed keep the story moving, and even with the occasional holes in the story, such as those mentioned above, for a first go-at-it, and the minimal budget (IMDB lists it as $3,000, which means it’s probably less), RoJo does a commendable freshman job. If you’re a genre fan, I think you’ll get a kick out of it.
 
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Review: The Sins of Dracula

February 6, 2015, 3:04 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet



The Sins of Dracula
Directed and edited by Richard Griffin
Scorpio Films Releasing
80 minutes / 2014
The film can be obtained HERE.

When I was an undergrad in Brooklyn, I was invited to a screening of a film on campus that was marketed to us as modelled on The Exorcist, and being the horror fan, I said sure. It ended up being sponsored by the Jews for Jesus and the Newman House Catholic Club organizations, with a mallet-heavy message of accept Jesus or burn! For the college newspaper, as its reviewer, I not only panned it, I ridiculed the message and had both those organizations try to kick me off campus. And this was a year before I started hanging out in CBGB’s.

There is a whole subgenre of accept Jesus or burn!!! films out there, this seems to play mostly on campuses and Southern high schools, or to teenage church groups. While it’s becoming more popular in the mainstream, with the Kirk Cameron Left Behind series at the forefront, it is still worthy of ridicule It’s about time someone did a spoof of it. Sure, Saved! (2004) did a nice job on the mentality behind these beliefs, this is the first I know to actually be modelled on the genre, and apparently Richard Griffin is just the guy to do that. The Sins of Dracula takes this sub-standard subgenre and methodically breaks it down, wisely taking the less-than-subtle message and making it a less-than-subtle comedy, using the same tropes to say the opposite.

Sarah Nicklin
If you haven’t been following Griffin’s career, this New England filmmaker has made some of my favorite films over the past few years, such as Exhumed (2011), The Disco Exorcist (2011), and Murder University (2012), all of which you can find my reviews elsewhere on this blog site. Also wisely, he has chosen a talented cast he is mostly familiar with from these other releases (I will use the initials of the films in which they appear from this list after their names).

Seemingly taking place in the late 1980s, if I’m judging the photos on the walls correctly, Billy (Jamie Dufault; MU) is a “pure” and innocent lad who sings in his church choir, but is itching for more. His girlfriend, Shannon (the ever exquisite Sarah Nicklin; E, DE) is a bit more… in the real world, i.e., her tempter Eve to his innocent Adam, and convinces him to join her theatre troupe (aka the body count). The company is full of out there characters, including the New Wave guy (who is more pre-Goth than New Wave, in my opinion), the shy gay guy, the hallucinating druggie guy, the nerd gamer girl Traci (the also exquisite Samantha Acampora; MU)… well, you get the drift.

Jamie Dufault
As preachy as this subgenre tends to be, this film, written by Michael Varrati, uses the form to be mockingly sermonizing in another direction, with such great lines as, “Your whole world is based around a man getting nailed to wood, and Lance’s whole world is based around getting nailed bya man’s wood,” or “I promise you, you won’t live to regret it!” There’s also a part where the main character is praying and he says, “Dear, Lord, it’s me, Billy. No, the other one? From choir? I know it’s been about a half hour since we last talked…” So many others, but I don’t want to show too much of the hand before you see it.

The over-the-top-ego and dressed all in red director of this theater production is, of course, named Lou Perdition (Steven O’Broin).  If you don’t know, Perdition is your time in hell after you die, if you follow Christian dogma. His assistant, the sarcasm-dripping Kimberly (the also exquisite Elyssa Baldassarri; MU), is equally smug with obviously a secret to hide (that I will not give away).

Samantha Acampora
It makes sense that the framework for the film revolves around an indie theater group, since so much of the cast has its history in local theater, especially Michael Thurber (E, DE, MU), who plays the titular character of Dracula with finesse and grace (of course), who also the founder and artistic director of the Theater Company of Rhode Island. What makes it even more charming is that Thurber is a graduate of Oral Roberts University. He is, one may say, Griffin’s acting muse, and has appeared in nearly all of his films. Thurber has shown a level of elegance in Exhumed and in a campy way that is appropriate for this release, he continues on that role. I’m definitely a fan.

This is one damn enjoyable piece of work, but at exactly one hour in, it ramps up and it’s almost like the same film on adrenaline. The comedy is more pointed (it was already sharp, but it goes from ginsu to katana), the visuals are bloodier, and the comedic drama even more enthralling. Fuck, let’s just break it down and say it gets even more fun. The dialog between Billy and the Pastor (Carmine Capobianco who is often a regular in James Balsalmo’s films, e.g., I Spill Your Guts (2012) and Cool as Hell (2013), both also reviewed elsewhere in this blog) had me laughing so hard, I actually had to play it again to hear the parts I missed!

Michael Thurber
Billy and Pastor Johnson head off to bring down Dracula and his minions. They are joined by an exorcising (another well-played short set piece reminiscent of Richard Pryor’s Saturday Night Live spoof from 1975) Latino hardass soul brother Pastor Gibson (Jose Guns Alvez) that could have been a replacement for Shaft. This is where I am going to stop with any kind of story description, because you really need to see this.

Rigidly religious films are not the only model used here. There are a lot of Hammer Films influences, from Thurber’s take on Christopher Lee’s Dracula (who also did not talk much in the heady early Hammer days of the 1950s-‘60s) to the stark primary lighting of red and blue (and some green), which gives it an appropriate ‘80s feel, like something out of Creepshow (1982), or Dario Argento’s canon. Usually the sharper the color, the more intense the action, is how this works, y’see. If you didn’t know that, horror fans, y’need t’do some schoolin’.

Elyssa Baldassarri
On a sociological level, there are many aspects that one could note. For example, there is a lot of playing with sexuality (plenty of sensuality and sex acts here, but no nudity to note). For example, there is a mash-up of two separate couples, one straight and one gay, as if to say there is no difference. I like that one could interpret that as both are expressing love, or both are equally sinning (to paraphrase a bumpersticker I once saw, “Oh, Lord, protect me from your interpreters”). In another moment, someone comments on someone who is transgendered, though taking place in the ‘80s, so there is no “populous” word for it. That was a sly addition by Varrati that made my media theory mind perk up. There is actually a lot of justifying of actions through both positive and negative religious followings, which I believe is where this film’s tongue is firmly in cheek, as it were.

Thurber makes a strong-but-silent Dracula. He plays his character with his eyes and mouth a lot, as did Lee, and also subtly uses his hand movements to indicate menace, or acknowledgement (e.g., see the ring? Beeeeware!). One of the thoughts that went through my head is that the center of evil is actually the Theater’s artistic director, a role Thurber possesses in real life. I hope he got as much a kick out of that thought as did I.

My one regret about this film? It is that I saw it as a screener, so I don’t have access to the two commentary tracks and outtakes. That would have been a hoot.

 
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Review: Dead Kansas

February 11, 2015, 12:01 am
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

Dead Kansas
Directed by Aaron K. Carter
Rotten Productions
64 minutes, 2013
www.deadkansas.com
www.facebook.com/deadkansas

I guess it’s kind of obvious that there are going to be references to the Wizard of Oz, even if you’re dealing with a post-apocalyptic zombie flick. To give you just three quick examples from the first 15 minutes and then I’ll leave it alone, promise:

1.    It begins in B&W
2.    One of the main character’s name is Emma, or for short, Em (i.e., “Auntie Em!”)
3.    A tornado.

There, I got that out of my system, so let’s move on, shall we?

Emma I (Alexandria Lightford)
and her dad Glenn (Aaron Guerrero)
We are introduced into a dystopic Kansas that is a mixture of The Walking Dead and The Road Warrior (1981). The zombie catastrophe has come and a significant time has passed, enough for everything to “normalize.” Known simply as “Rottens” for obvious reasons, everyone is pretty calm about them, and are more concerned about how to survive food shortages, supplies, and apparently a lack of suitable – er – mates, i.e., someone to continue the human race. It’s a very Republican way of thinking in my mind: We barely have enough food for ourselves, so to hell with birth control, let’s procreate!

An interesting concept presented by Carter is that the viewer doesn’t get to see the Rottens, but rather we get to occasionally see through their eyes, in black and white.

As the film weans on, so does the desperation of the characters. One could see this as a kind of Christian parable, being the protagonists are solid believers in the big JC, while the bad guys follow the path of the unrighteous. Now I know this is was filmed before the rise of groups such as those in Africa or the Middle East, but there is a similarity between the gang mentalities of outlaw macho men seeing women as slaves to sell. This is obviously a coincidence on the film’s side, but on the other hand, it can also be seen as somewhat prescient to what has occurred since its release, sad to say.

Antagonist, guitarist and
Noddy Holder|look-alike Michael Camp 
Another “Biblical” indicator, knowingly or unconsciously by the writers, is that it is the women who first become infected as Rottens that starts the apocalypse, then turning on the men, is sort of the traditional Eve and Adam allegory.

The film is actually a five-part Web series that has been collected into a single set, which flows pretty evenly, coming across as chapters (indicated by title cards). Because it was filmed over time, part by part, that means some actors will be in some chapters, but not others. Hell, even the main character, Emma, does a Darrin (or Becky, if you will), in the first half played by Alexandria Lightford and Erin Miracle in the second. Actually, it felt a bit seamless, though in retrospect, definitely different in the cheekbones. Still, it works, and that’s what matters.

The two Emmas: Erin Miracle and
Alexandria Lightford
The ponytailed, wild-eye villain is played by musician Michael Camp, whose last name in this case is accurate. Let me be clear, much of the acting in this film is either over the top or wooden, but I really insist that it should not get in the way of either watching it or affect the quality of the viewing. In fact, it’s part of the fun in this case.

For example, the only other female in the cast (other than part of the background) is Juliette Danielle, who plays Emma’s mom in a flashback. She is known, especially in the Canadian Prairies, as the lead in what is commonly referred to as the worst film made in the 21 Century, The Room (2003), which has an enormous cult following (e.g., yearly screening get sold out in Saskatchewan). Juliette comes across fine here; in fact, she is one of the better actors of the troupe. My point is, it’s not just the acting, or the writing, or the cinematography, it’s the whole enchilada, and in this case, it’s worth the view.

I think it’s a smart idea to (mostly) not show the Rottens. It’s sort of like in General Semantics when they don’t use the “to be” verb. The crew needs to find different ways around the story that enhance it by demanding difference, which makes the film more of a psychological battle rather than just aim-and-shoot gore. Lots of gun (and pitchfork) action, as well as other action, but taken from a bit of a different perspective. It also saves on the make-up budget, as well, I assume. The addition of some comic moments also moves things along.

Movies are a mindset. The biggest mistake mainstream viewers make is to approach a micro-budget indie with the same standards as a multi-million dollar blockbuster. That’s like going to see Clerks(1994) and expecting it to be like Ocean’s Eleven (2001), to pick another genre; it’s just not realistic, and gets in the way.

Dead Kansas may be just over an hour, but it goes quickly and mostly enjoyably.
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Review: Future Justice

February 16, 2015, 3:08 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
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Future Justice
Directed and edited by Richard Griffin
Scorpio Films Releasing
83 minutes / 2014
www.facebook.com/futurejustice
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/futurejusticemovie 

Before the new Disneyfied Star Wars comes our way, I’m glad that trans-genre maven Richard Griffin is getting a chance to stretch his sci-fi director’s legs. Now, I believe this is his first time with footprints in this space-time continuum, but hey, there’s a whole universe to expand into, right?

Nathaniel Sylva
This film was written by its lead actor, Nathaniel Sylva, who plays criminal Python Diamond (really?), a cross between Kurt Russell’s Snake Plisskin (Escape from New York, 1981) and Vin Diesel’s Richard Riddick (Pitch Black, 2000). He’s a dangerous insurgent responsible for killing swathes of people, who is being sent back to Earth for trial after 5 years of being cryogenically frozen in a prison near Saturn.  While Sylva doesn't have the over-the-top adrenaline machismo of Russell or Diesel, he does a more than capable job in the role, especially supported by this fine cast.

Considering what happened in those other bad-boy films, you know this isn’t going to end well for most of the soldiers in this transport crew, some of whom have a history with Python… Okay, I need to call him Diamond; Python sounds too… you know. What I would like to know is why they would unfreeze him before the four month trip back to Earth, rather than when they actually got there, if he’s so dangerous (not to mention the taxing of food supplies, waste, air, etc.). Anyhoo…

Steven O'Broin
When they get to Earth, it seems World War III (or something similar) has happened, and the East Coast of the U.S. is toast. On the West, it’s more militia law (though they refer to themselves as “pirates”). The malevolent and sadistic (of course) guy is charge is the strong-jawed Gazeebo (Steven O’Broin playing evil well). It’s important to realize that some in this gang have strange, post-Apocalypse names, such as Gazeebo’s right (and left?) hands, Rag and Tag. See, even after all the carnage, people still have a sense of humor.

Our valiant crew manages to hit upon a group of less than a dozen scientists who are living in the basement of a business complex, to see what they can do about the entire world being literally infertile, thanks to the radiation. Also among the group in nearly an extended cameo is Michael Thurber, hysterically (both literally and figuratively) playing a Norma Desmond version of himself, much as Bill Murray did in Zombieland (2009), or James Van Der Beek in Don’t Trust the B- in Apartment 23 (2012-2013).

Set desgin
Army and scientists vs. the militia and rag tag gang. Okay, that’s not giving away too much, is it? Now, let’s get down to some nitty gritty:

The in-space sets look pretty exceptional for the budget most of the time, and the CGI is applause worthy, again, for what it is. The computer screens and images, especially, are impressive. Back on earth, well, it’s more meat and potatoes, as a deserted brick building (filmed in Pawtucket, RI) and debris filled yard works perfectly for the story, with no extra computer graphic mumbo-jumbo exteriors needed. The military’s guns look present day, so does that mean they’re antiques here? I mean, during the real life U.S. Gulf Wars, soldiers were complaining about how their equipment was decades old. There are also some guns that shoot lasers, but unless I’m mistaken, they are held by the bad guys. Speaking of which, despite the relatively modern technology, the most accurate weapon used seems to be Gazeebo’s dart gun with exploding arrows.


Elyssa Baldassarri and Aaron Andrade
Like the mainstream films, apparently everyone is a bad aim, even in the future. I mean, think of Arnie or Sly standing in the middle of a field shooting at the multitude of bad guys with them shooting back, and hardly anyone gets shot. Yeah, some die, but most shots seem to just… miss. Not being critical, just observant, because you don’t wanna kill off everyone too fast or yaz don’t have a film, am I right? But don’t think that all the battles are waffles; there are some really well played-out fire fights, especially as time goes on, and a body count is itching to get started.

Despite all the hoopla and anger spewed, there is also a very sharp sense of humor that underflows, if you know how to look for it. For example, Diamond’s bulletproof vest has, written on the back in marker, “Careful, contents under pressure.” Another great line is said by Gazeebo (who definitely has some of the best dialog): “Yeah, right. Pull the other one, it plays Chopin.”

Anna Rizzo
While I would have liked a bit more background to some of the characters, like why Gazeebo wears a Civil War Union hat – made even more bizarre that he has a somewhat Southern accent – there is some indications of motive, such as why the head soldier, Uxbridge (appropriately hot-headedly played by Aaron Andrade to the point of being a controlling asshole who can’t see past his own status) hates Diamond so much. However, I would like to know why other characters, such as one of the survivors, Wren (Rich Tretheway, who puts in one of the best and most subtle performances in the film) sees Diamond as “a rock star,” as questioned by one of the soldiers/medic, Glass (the always welcome and expressive Elyssa Baldassarri, who has one of the best moments towards the end).  It is understandable that in any film with as many roles as this one, a writer and/or director must focus on some key people or the story gets swamped. Perhaps I’ve read too much Leon Uris in my life; but I digress…

Rich Tretheway
True, there are some well-worn themes here, there are also moments of emotion brought to the front by the action, which I place firmly in the workings of the director, Griffin, who has not let me down yet.  For example, when a particular character is killed off, I felt an “aww!” twinge. That’s good directing.

Then when you add in the unexpected Toxic Avenger component, well, things just go from the pot to the fire, and I was smiiiiiiiiling.

Overall the film has more of an indie/low-budget Battle Beyond the Stars (1981) meets Creepozoids (1986) feel to it than, say, Star Wars (1977) meets *batteries not included (1987), it’s arguably the better for it. 
 
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Review: Indemnity: Rage of a Jealous Vampire

February 24, 2015, 5:30 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
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Indemnity: Rage of a Jealous Vampire
Written, edited and directed by David Dietz
z-Diet-3 Productions
World Wide Multi Media (WWMM)
60 minutes, 2010 / 2012
www.indemnitymovie.com
www.facebook.com/Indemnitymovie

Just a little bit of housecleaning first: the film is mostly known as simply Indemnity, as that was its original release title, but the DVD- issue title has been enhanced. This actually makes sense to me as there is no way to tell “Indemnity” is any more than a payback Noir or crime drama. Even we dim reviewers like a bit of a clue as to what we’re watching.

Films located in a Roadhouse are pretty common, especially after the 1936 Bette Davis classic, The Petrified Forest. Heck I’ve even reviewed one recently from Down Under on this blog called Savages Crossing (2011). But of course, this release has an added element of the supernatural, thankfully.

William (director David Dietz) is on the run from his beautiful and petite girlfriend. You can approximate why from the title. But there’s more than meets the eye going on here, fer sher. He finds himself in a C&W honky-tonk bar (filmed at Rinky Dinks Roadhouse in Amity, Pennsylvania!). There, Billyboy meets up with bullyboys Bubba and Zeke (now-retired professional wrestlers Seth James and CJ Sensation, respectively), a friendly and flirtatious waitress, Irlene (Megan Yost), and the willing ear / soundboard (i.e., the viewer gets to hear exposition) bartender Joe (Dan I. Radakovich). But you know she is coming.

While William is the protagonist, he also comes across as, well, a tool. I was kind of hoping he was going to get his by the time it was over. As for 5’3” Angela (musician / model / actor Crystalann Jones, who often goes by her first name alone), she kicks ass, and looks good doing it.


Crystalann Jones and David Dietz
Like many micro-budgeters, the crew is also much of the cast (especially Yost, it seems, who has her hands in nearly everything), and most of the filming is either at the bar or on a deserted road. No digital effects that I could tell, but none needed, really. There’s blood, but I wouldn’t call it a bloodbath, just enough to get your – er – mouth wet. I also enjoyed catching some of the shortcuts taken (the way Angela jumps up to – and down from – a table, for example).
The acting is mostly pretty respectable, and director David does manage to get some sympathy for a number of the characters, as well as the appropriate anger at others. Also, even though I could see the ending a mile away, it was handled in a way that was still well written and shot. What I could say I would change would be minor, such as the Bubba’s overuse of the word “boy” as a threat, and I there is one word in the new title that needs to be revised, but that’s picky stuff, really.

There are lots of extras on the DVD, including the trailer, slideshow, and an interesting albeit overlong behind the scenes where we get to see them shooting a key set piece. The two deleted scenes are meh, but the alternative two takes with a different actor than Crystalann as Angela is quite interesting.

The last extra is a 20 minute B&W short film (and trailer) from 2010 titled Shade’s Last Run, directed by Jason Bender, and also stars David Dietz. It’s an interesting piece of Noir with a nice twist to it, and actually quite a balanced companion to the main feature.

For a film that more novella than novel, Dietz does a lot with the story, brings in some refreshingly new ideas on an old troupe, and he even manages a bit of humor here and there. It’s a good showcase for him, as well as the rest of the cast.
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Blu-ray Review: The Deadly Spawn: Millennium Edition

May 15, 2014, 12:01 am
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

 
The Deadly Spawn: Millennium Edition
Directed by Douglas McKeown            
Elite Entertainment
81 minutes, 1983 / 2012
www.thedeadlyspawn.com
www.mvdvisual.com

When this direct-to-video film first came out, it was a divisive moment. The general public saw this as a piece of cheezy shit to be mocked and used as an example of bad cinema. For the fan, especially a newbie to the nascent VHS home market, it was a touchstone moment in indie cinema that was one of the leaders in the explosion in micro-budget horror, opening the door to what was to come. And y’know what, it’s a pretty damn fine film.

My issue with it was that the tape looked terrible: grainy and too color saturated that made the creature and gore look unclear, especially since many of the scenes take place in a dark basement. So much was viewed through my squinted eyes trying to figure out just what was going on.

In a scene that could have come straight out of the original The Blob (1958), two campers find a fresh meteorite that apparently has a stowaway in the form of a multi-headed creature with massive rows of teeth and a hunger for blood, which helps it grow and reproduce. After the subtextual homoerotic tenters become spawn fodder, the blind creature finds its way into a suburban basement, where, for a while, people seem to be constantly going down to the basement (where are the Ramones when you need ‘em?) and are chomped on in various, and graphic and enjoyable fashions.

Although obviously a puppet-like appliance that apparently takes four people to operate, the creature looks great, having rows and rows of sharp teeth, looking much better in this release taken from the original 16mm print than the faded and fuzzy VHS one. The use of primary colors, the gore, and the creature are all clearer for personal enjoyment. There has been some controversy over an earlier Synapse released DVD version that is reported to be even clearer than this Blu-ray, but as I never saw it, I’ll go with what I have seen.

The story itself is kind of slim, as we are introduced to quite an extended New Jersey family (the state where this was filmed). In the house are a husband and wife (supplying the only shot of a mild milf midriff though a lacy nightgown). Their high school age son, Pete (Tom DeFranco), is a science nerd, presented in a positive light. The younger son, Charles (Charles George Hildebrandt), who is around Bar Mitzvah age, is also highly bright and probably easily identifiable by the presumed target audience, a horror film and effects fanatic (and the lead role in the film). He has cool 1950s-‘60s indie film posters on his bedroom wall. Then there are the visiting aunt and creepy uncle (who gets the best kill in the picture). The New Agey vegetarian (i.e., mocked) grandmother lives a few blocks away, and we meet her and her biddies – er – I mean buddies for social (herbal) tea and non-meat goodies. Lastly, we are introduced to the older son’s possible love interest, Ellen (Jean Tafler) who is as bright as he is, their clueless friend Frankie (Richard Lee Porter, wearing overalls like he just stepped out of a hillbillies cosplay), and the friend’s possible love interest, Kathy (Karen Tighe, a Farrah Fawcett type you actually want to see in the see-through nighty). Of course, a large cast means a larger amount of victims, so it’s all good.

Just about all the effects, by John Dods, from faces being chewed off to small-but-toothsome slithering eel like offshoots (an idea borrowed in Cloverfield [2008], perhaps?) are done with practical appliances, rather than then-crude digital effects. This gives it an interesting appeal that’s the equivalent of seeing a thrashing punk band like the Heartbreakers (JT, not TP), and thinking, I could do that; let’s make a movie!

Like much of the films of the period that used unknown actors, and for many here this is their only IMDB credit (including the director), the acting is occasionally iffy, but the filmmaking itself is actually very well done. With an inexperienced cast, a creature needing many handlers, an often confined space, and a budget of spit and tape, they manage to make a turning point production that deserves the accolades it has received, especially as the years roll on. However, whoever designed the décor of the house, be it a real one or just a set, deserves to be put in a pillory for making us look at the world’s fugliest wallpaper throughout. One eyesore after another! Obviously not much of the cost of $25,000 (equivalent to $60,000 in 2014) went into this aspect.

Extras include a dopey opening with producer Ted A. Bohus (who, for some reason, is better known than the director), commentary track, gag reel, interesting backstage slide show, some pointless images of a Deadly Spawn comic book (the whole comic, that would have been nice), local television coverage from the ‘80s, and the casting tapes.

Despite the controversy, and whether you buy this or the previous DVD, the film itself holds up after all these years, and in fact is more enjoyable over time. As the person I watched this with said, “This is awesome; how did I not see this before now?”

                                             
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Review: Fetish Dolls Die Laughing

March 4, 2015, 3:03 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
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Fetish Dolls Die Laughing
Directed by David Silvio
z-Diet-3 Productions / Kiss of Death Productions
World Wide Multi Media (WWMM)
100 minutes, 2011 / 2012
www.facebook.com/Fetish-Dolls-Die-Laughing

The premise is simple: the creature your parents always invoked when you were a wee one as they tickled you (“It’s the tickle monster!!”; I’ve done this, myself, to my wee ones) is an actual demon that transports from body to body, much like the one in Fallen (1998). You can tell the possessed by the red eyeliner, pale skin and yellow teeth, not to mention the evil giggling of the host.

Now, as a confession, this is not a joyous thing for me as I am hyper-ticklish, much to the dismay of loved ones who I won’t let touch me that way. The last time I punched someone was in junior high, when the much larger kid behind me in line would not stop poking me in the ribs, which for most people is ticklish, but for me is painful. After asking him to stop a few times, I lost my temper, and punched him in the jaw. It was seen by my classmate’s mother who worked in the lunchroom (she, like her son, would later become a principal; RIP Mrs. Daub) and I did not get in trouble for it, but the other kid did.

Point is, most people will see this as a – er – laughing matter, but the terror that is being struck in the story is a bit more palpable to me. This actually made me happy because it added another layer to the onion, as it were.

And you may wonder, how does this deranged demon kill? Well, along with the tickling, he also rips out your innards, with lots of blood and some gore, or as the story goes on, methods of  disposal of  course ramp up. So, of course, the fiend tends to transfers into males, so we can get the great and curious title of the film.


Laura Romeo and Michael McGovern
The first half of the film is a bit convoluted with many different deaths and multiple directions involving not only our happy monster, but other deaths as well, such has by hatchet, leading to an extraordinarily higher than usual body count. This also gives us a chance to be introduced to some of the key players.  Of course, this is also a set up for the action to come in the third act, as we learn the lead cop, Greer English (well played by Laura Romeo) is sort of a Dirty Harriet (or pick-a-TV-cop) who tends to put her own life in danger by going rouge and solo, to nab a killer. You know that’s going to turn out badly, since this is a genre film, and “you don’t need a Weatherman to know which way the wind blows.”
A nice proposition is that the tickle monster (or is it Tickle Monster?) invades the body of someone who runs a fetish film company along the lines of W.A.V.E., for those who remember that New Jersey-based company (whose specialty included various fetishes, SM/BD, torture, and tentacles; no I don’t own any of their features) from back in the ‘90s, which introduced some amazing talent, such as the underrated Tina Krause). If you are into fetishes like feet, tickling, plastic wrap bondage, and a host of others, of course, there may be other reasons for watching this.

There is an extremely large cast (including many Italianos), topped by four characters. There is the lead cop, the aforementioned English, and her partner, the love-jealous and borderline sexual harasser Leland Tucker (Angelo Bruni, who looks a lot like a ‘80s Lenny Kaye, right down to the haircut), English’s love interest Adam Bishop (Aaron Bernard), and the possessed wacko fetishist killer, Billy Tagg (Michael McGovern). Now, all due respect meant, McGovern is a decent actor considering his lack of screen credits, but I do find it hard to believe the amount of women way out of his league who throw themselves at him (i.e., victims). Even his late wife, Tanith (Diana Silvio, the director’s spouse), who ran the fetish website which Bill takes over, is quite bosomy and fetching.

There is a lot of sexual tension, attractive women, short skirts, and displays of fetishism, but surprisingly no visual naughty bits. Yet Silvio makes the film kind of weirdly sensual and sexual without it. Again, tickling or feet aren’t my things, but watching other peoples’ out of control lust is fascinating, in the words of the late, great Mr. Spock. The gore is effective and not overdone, though it’s more blood than viscera. However, the ickiest moment to me is when a main character doesn’t wash hands after using bathroom.

Technically, this is a dark comedy, so there’s lots of self-references throughout, sometimes quite subtle as done in AnAmerican Werewolf In London (1981), such as someone on the phone saying “You don’t sound tickled to death to be there,” or we see a young couple in a loving tickle fight. One of my fave moments is a cigarette bit at a hospital early on that I won’t ruin.

Sure there is a lot of goofiness, and none of the fetishes are mine, as I said, and yet, despite some wooden acting, this film is actually successfully effective. Part of the reason for that is it’s not just tickling, not just toes (though a lot of that), but a string of manyscenarios that play out in a Hershell Gordon Lewis / The Wizard of Gore (1970) bloody kind of way. The body count is large, as I stated, which is all the better to balance out its moments of silliness (again, not meant as an insult in any way, because, well, this is a micro-budgeter with a huge cast, and is supposed to be a dark comedy), such as a smiley-face blanket on the torture table.

For me, the problems with the film are just logistical, which really shouldn’t be applied in cases like these, but it’s the way my analytical brain (or some other organ) works. For example, the torture chamber is set up a room in an apartment. Wouldn’t other tenants hear the screams? And there is at least one attempted escaper in a prone position who could have easily have raised a knee hard enough to cause some damage and escape, but of course, that would lower the count. Also, the echo in the Maniac (1980) inspired dream sequences are just a bit too reverbatory (yeah, I know it’s not a Scrabble-worthy word) to make it clear what is being said. But mostly, it could use a bit of trimming to keep it less than 90 minutes.

It’s obvious from the beginning they are setting up the go-on-her-own main character to fall victim to the tickler, so I’m not giving anything away there, but the question is, though, does she get out of it. Not gonna tell. But I will say that one of the aspects of the finale was not what I was expecting, which I admired.

The extras are a 9-minute deleted scenes collection that mostly doesn’t add much, a decent gag reel, a trailer, and two “Webinars,” which are actually two decent short films worth watching.

So, to sum up, despite the incredibly silly name of the film, it is actually a fun ride in part for the lack of single direction of the story, and by adding elements to the plot – such as a second murder storyline – it becomes more interesting than just goofy.

As a side note, this was a perfect time to see this release as another big budget fetish film you may have heard of called, oh what was that again… oh, yeah, Shades of Grey (2015), opened in theaters all over. Coincidence? That question tickles my fancy.

Trailer HERE 
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Blu-ray Review: Captain Z and the Terror of Leviathan

May 20, 2014, 12:01 am
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

 
Captain Z and the Terror of Leviathan
Directed by Steve Rudzinski  
Silver Spotlight Films                            
74 minutes, 2014          
www.captainz.com
www.sliverspotlightfilms.com

With a name like Captain Z & the Terror of Leviathan, there are things that are going to be assumed, the most obvious of which is that this is going to be a really terrible film, or a WTF hoot. Thankfully, this very generously falls into the latter.

For those who didn’t grow up in the Wheeling, WV, area, Captain Z is a commercial character that has been seen on local television for decades to promote a store that buys and sells jewelry (think about it, “Arg, matey, sell us your treasure”). It was started by co-writer and actor Zoltan Zilai’s dad (get it? Captain Z? There ya go), and is now played by him. Having worked with Pittsburgh-based writer/director Steve Rudzinski before on Everyone Must DIE! [reviewed HERE], http://indiehorrorfilms.blogspot.ca/2014/03/dvd-review-everyone-must-die.htmlit makes sense he tapped Rudzinski to complete an idea to use his Captain Z (aka Captain Zachariah Zicari) character in a more full-blown production. Rudzinski picked up the challenge.

Apparently, as the expository prologue provides, 300 years ago to the year (1714), in picturesque Wheeling, WV of all places, four humans possessed by demons – two of which are not overly bright – try to raise the dark god Leviathan to bring destruction on the puny mortals of earth. All they need is an amulet, a redheaded woman (I wonder, does it have to be a woman? What about a redheaded man? Oh, yeah, cleavage factor, right… okay, onward) and a sentence-long incantation, and Leviathan rises from…the Ohio River? Thanks to the quick actions of the good Cap Z and Rosa, his sidekick chicken (you heard me), the demons are vanquished into a void that also drags the good pirate along with ‘em.


Heather, Captain Z and the Professor
Some credits later, we are introduced to a motley crew of (mostly) slackers who work at a museum giving tours to celebrate the 300thanniversary of the saving of the town (“Captain Z Days”). Among them are the interesting looking but nowhere near intelligent Heather (played with charm by Madison Siple), the intelligent yet abrasive Samantha (Cerra Atkins), the enthusiastic Neal. (Josh Devett) who dresses like the Captain at the museum, and his dad, who is the monotone, slow-burn curator of the place, Sterling (cinematographer, editor, etc., Scott Lewis). Along comes a spi… I mean a professor of mysticism, played snarkily and humorously by Rudzinski (in a role similar to the Giles character in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, except with cool appeal), who arrives searching for the amulet that has been missing for 300 years.

Of course, the very day he shows up, it’s found by a family of rednecks who read the incantation on it and are instantly possessed. The leader of the quad is played by the buxom Aleen Isley, and among the rest is Seth Gontkovic, who nearly steals his scenes, as he did in EMD! as DJ Pink. He wears a bright and obvious copper-colored wig, for some reason, like he’s trying to look like an adult Opie Taylor. Like many of the others in this film, Seth is a regular in Rudzinski’s endeavors. I say when you find people who work out, keeping them close is a good thing. When the demons return, it also brings back the loveable Captain Z.

Aleen Isley as Vepar
The game is afoot to get back the amulet, and have the good Capt. get adjusted to the new-fangled contraptions (he really wants to drive/command a car) and cultural mores. He a somewhat good man in a strange situation; as he states to a pirate groupie (Lacy Brooks in a fun turn, who also does much of the great make-up effects) at a wild beer- and drug-fueled party, “I’ve done some bad things, but not evil things.” Honestly, his “arg” and “mateys” get a bit tiresome at times, especially how bad his accent is, but hell, this movie is a broad comedy so I’ll let it be and take it for what it is.

There is easily a Pirates of the Caribbean meets Demonsvibe going on here, but the jokes are sometimes really good. For example, Heather collects “deformed jelly beans,” and another cries out after being interrupted, “Dude, I’m trying to bang your sister!” There is also a very brief homage to Mel Brooks’ High Anxiety (1977) when someone comments in a throwaway line, “I got it; I don’t got it.”

Played over the top just enough to be broad without being cartoonish, the acting here is quite substantial for this kind of gig, and nods to one and all. The gore effects are not over the top, but are quite well done throughout, most accomplished with appliances rather than using digi (with a rare exception being a Dustin Mills’ CGI creature). As with other Rudzinski productions, the women are not model types but have real curves and the occasional chunky parts, which is appreciated. Besides, there is ample cleavage to keep the viewer happy, if that’s a thrill for ya.

The extras are two commentaries (which I didn’t get to hear), a long segmented interview short with the director and some of the actors (Lewis comes off as charmingly abrasive), some of the Captain Z Jewelry commercials through the years, a blooper reel, and lots of others.

There is obviously room left at the end for the next adventure of the professor and the pirate, apparently dealing with vampires. Is this film outlandish? Most certainly. Is it goofy? Hoooh yeah. Is it worth seeing? Most definitely. This isn’t necessarily something you’d watch as a companion of, say, Robert Wise’s The Haunting(1960), but would easily be seen with the likes of The Puppet Monster Massacre (2010) or The Disco Exorcist (2011). Actually, it would play well with The Pirates of the Caribbean series, though bang for the buck spent by the production, this might win.

 

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Review: Dark Mountain

February 27, 2015, 8:02 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet 

Dark Mountain
Written and directed by Tara Anaïse
Superstitious Films
81 minutes, 2013 / 2014
www.darkmountainmovie.com
www.mvdvisual.com

You know what drives me crazy about found footage films? It’s not the shaky camera, the grainy look, the too-dark scenes, the running with the camera on… okay, I guess that, too. My problem though, is that you already know everyone is going to die, because it says so right there on the box, so there’s no suspense in that part: X group goes to Y remote location where Z bad thing happened before, and were never found again. Then add that this is a “reconstruction of their last days.” Not even ”original” found footage, but speculation?

While I realize that it may sound like I am approaching this with a negative attitude, it’s actually the opposite. You see, I am hoping it is going to be better, by turning old clichés into something new.

I totally admit to the reader that I wrote that above before seeing the film, which I am placing into my players now. See you on the other side.

Aaaaaaaand, I’m back.

The plot is as follows: three filmmakers (why is it almost always three, just because The Blair Witch Project [1999] did it?) who go to investigate a mine in the Superstitious Mountains, a real place in the Arizona desert where supposedly the Dutchman buried some gold (this is an actual local legend there), and many people seem to have disappeared looking for it.

With cameras and lights that are used constantly and never seem to run out of juice, our very attractive twenty-something trio, a couple (Sage Howard and Andrew Simpson) and a friend (Shelby Stehlin), camp in the scrub and then run around a lot – and I mean most of the picture – in the dark (like the Blair Witch Project [BWP]), with only the camera lights or night-vision scope turned on.

The picture starts with the woman of the trio sobbing in her tent, afraid [BWP; though happily no dripping snot from the nose seen this time] before flashing back to some locals being interviewed on camera documentary-style [BWP] about the strange goings on and thereby helping with the exposition. These are non-actors, and come across as the everyday public that they are [BWP].

Getting back to our trio, they track through the desert on foot and camp out after doing the interviews, so we’re already at the half-hour mark. Some cool mysterious things happen with… no, I’m not going to tell you, but I liked it. Of course this leads to more running around in the dark among the desert shrubs.

There are a couple of scenes in the titular dark mountain, but most of the action actually occurs in the dark desert. Lots of mysterious things happen that are unexplainable, but by the time any consistent action, other than teasingly occasional flair-ups, there’s about 10 minutes left in the thing. And you’ll never guess: it happens at night. In the dark. With just the camera lights. Heck, maybe they should have planned it around a full moon?

This isn’t the greatest film in the world¸ and can only be considered adequate, even for the found footage genre. I am disappointed because I was rooting for the female East Indian-American director to succeed.

The filmmaking is full of genre clichés, right down to the being pulled backwards by the feet into the dark gag that’s been in too many films in the past few years (can we let that one go now, please?), as indicated by the cover art above, but most of the action is right out of the BWP playbook, a release I always thought was overrated film as it was.

But the biggest annoyance of the film was the way the vocals were turned down, and the music turned up. Even at top volume, I had trouble hearing what the trio were saying most of the time, but the occasional music was so loud I jumped from that suddenly coming on more than the action (or lack thereof) that was onscreen. At first I thought the sound problem was my computer, but during the extras (the only extras), which is extended interviews of a few of the locals, the sound was crisp and clear. All things considered, though, I thought the acting was top notch, and deserves to be noted.

This is a first and only full length release for directorAnaïse to date, but I hope she keeps filming, and comes up with some cinematic ideas of her own. Make me proud, and Namaste!
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Review: Collar

March 9, 2015, 12:01 am
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

Collar
Written and directed by Ryan Nicholson
Unearthed Films / Plotdigger Films
77 minutes, 2014
www.unearthedfilms.com
www.mvdvisual.com

Especially since Hershell Gordon Lewis, there has been gross-out flicks meant to shock as much as entertain. This is a bit different than transgressive cinema, which is both political and “art,” but what I’m talking about is merely meant to make most viewers uncomfortable for the gotcha factor. For this subgenre of brutality, the godfather would have to be Day of the Woman aka I Spit on Your Grave (1978), though the more recent turn of the screw game changers are Saw (2004), Hostel (2005), and especially A Serbian Film (2010; reviewed HERE), the latter arguably being the one to top.

Lots of directors are testing these waters, such as Bill Zebub (though he does it often with comedic elements, which almost seem oxymoronic, e.g., Jesus Christ, Serial Rapist [2004]) and Dustin Wayde Mills (with fare such as Her Name Was Torment [2014]). This is also Ryan Nicholson’s realm, with films like as Collar.

This piece of work has been blasted by a number of viewers and reviewers, but I’m going to take a different approach of this, because as I have said in previous blogs, one does not look at a film like this in the same way one may look at a larger budgeted SFX-driven mainstream release, like, say, The Cabin in the Woods (2012) or Final Destination (2000). It is not fair to use the same judging scale for Sharknado (2013) as one does for Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992).

The story-line actually is not as simplistic as these kinds of things usually are, and many elements play out, such as the villain, Massive (Nick Principe) and his back story, the cop Dana (Aiden Dee) and her backstory that also plays into this one, the hooker Maria (Mihola Terzic) and her family and relationships, two scummy hipsters (as they are referred to in the film) who get their jollies playing people against each other and filming it, and other various denizens of the hard street life.

One of the problems with this many divergent stories and the lack of either text editing or budget (or both), is that there are certainly many holes, such as: what happened to the police car? Didn’t the two cops report where they were going? That’s just two. Still, I would like to foster this larger storyline thinking than just someone tied up in a place and being tortured, and that’s essentially it.

Nick Principe
Except for the two main leads, a lot of the acting is a bit wooden, or goofy, and at other times it’s the best that can be gotten from the script; in a case like Momona Komagata (as Rachel, the mondo grosso gravida girlfriend of Dana), you just know in a different film there would be more serious acting and less hamming.

The best performances here are by the two principals. Principe’s Massive is effectively terrifying. With a backstory of childhood abuse by a priest, he takes his mostly silent role and makes him one scary sumbitch. I wonder if his having slightly Arabic looks adds to the subliminal fright. Shaving his head with a piece of glass, or switching moods between blank-faced assaulter (or, as that great philosopher Bugs Bunny might have said, “a ment’l case") to utterly terrified little boy while remembering his past, Principe manages to get all that across barely saying a word. And the fact that after all his brutalizing he still manages to occasionally get a feeling of pity from the viewer shows that the chops are there.

Aidan Dee
As Dana, Dee is not just all plush lips, deep blue eyes and eyebrows that won’t quit, she makes her character vulnerable in so many ways, including being brave with extreme nudity and ultraviolence. If you can make it through her brutal treatment in the first five minutes of the film, which reminded me of a scene from Irreversible (2002), you should be able to handle the rest.

The third character is Maria, a secondary role that transforms over the length of the film. German-born Terzic plays her a bit like she’s stoned much of the time, and that could be the role. But there is room for growth there, it seems to me.

One of the biggest controversies about this film is about the many detailed rape scenes. Sometimes they may be called for in a story, such as with Two Women (1960, for which Sophia Loren won the Academy Award), the revenging I Spit on Your Grave, or its practical remake Demented! (1980; with Harry Reams, RIP). Then there are the gratuitous ones, such as in the otherwise excellent Street Trash (1987), for which I am strongly opposed; I became embroiled in a somewhat heated dialoguewith its Associate Producer, Frank Farel, at a private screening over the scene). For this film, I can understand Nicholson is trying to make a point about Massive’s (and others’) brutality, but it goes beyond what is necessary, in my opinion.

I will say that what kind of annoyed me more was lingering shots over the bodies of the women’s victims as they are brutalized, focusing in on breasts while those parts did not have anything to do with the event happening. This is a bit too much real-life rape culture mentality. You want to focus on body parts during a gratuitous shower scene, fine, but during a violent act, it sends a different message. I also realize that the majority of the audience is teenage boys, but remember that teenage girls are starting to get interested in genre films, so why discourage/alienate a growing market?

One aspect I found strange was that the titular device is seen occasionally in the film, but isn’t used until at least the middle of the third act, but isn’t really a central part of the story and tends to be removed easily because no one’s hands are tied. It’s more symbolic than anything else.

Moving onward, I actually like the look of the film, and found that especially impressive. It felt as grimy as it looked, with nearly everyone looking realistically physically filthy, dark and dank. The editing is sharp and the lighting, albeit dark, is appropriate and gloomy. Let’s just say Vancouver is not going to be using this as a vacation marketing tool. I haven’t seen any of Nicholson’s films before, but was captivated by the possibilities that are showing through. I would like to see him have someone help with his scripting and text editing, and encourage him to forge ahead, perhaps with more men in sexual danger, to balance out the sheet.

The extras are a stills gallery, and just under 10 company trailers. I wish more would do this with trailers, as it seems to have fallen off the DVD creation board as more are moving to VoD, but that’s for another blog.
 
The trailer is HERE
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Review: Motivational Growth

March 17, 2015, 11:06 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

Motivational Growth
Written and directed by Don Thacker
Parade Deck Films / Imagos Films
104 minutes, 2013 / 2014
www.mvdvisual.com

When we meet Ian Folivor (Adrian DiGiovanni) – whose last name could possibly signify “folly” or “fall over,” regarding a scene early on – he hasn’t been outside his apartment in 16 months. He has no job, has no ambition, and has no life, really. The three strongest things in his existence are the literal and existential mess he’s living in, the Commodore Cabinet TV that he has named Kent and he considers his best / only friend, and his deep and dark depression. We meet him as he blankly flips through the channels of this imaginary October 1991, and then Kent finally goes kablooey. Enough is enough.

After some machinations that I won’t detail, he finds that there is a huge mold growing in his bathroom that not only has teeth and a mouth, but talks to him. The Mold (the voice of indie horror icon Jeffrey Combs) sounds like Robert Stack and talks in Noir detective story metaphors that would make Mickey Spillane either smirk or wince.

When things start to – er – normalize with Ian and The Mold, The Mold tries to snap Ian out of his stupor, to shave and clean house, and to make a play for the hottie next door, Leah (Danielle Doetsch) who appears to be almost as nutty as Ian. Actually every character in the film has a bit of a screw loose, from the landlord’s enforcer who asks questions and then yells “Shut Up!” before Ian can respond, to a television repairman who licks the big screen of the TV. But something even weirder and possibly sinister is up.

The dark comedy in this story may not be for everyone, but it sure worked for me. I can see elements from so many other films, but the off-kilter tone and over-the-top characters (and sometimes purposeful hamming strongly reminded me of a 1989 classic that I believe may not have ever been released on DVD called Dr. Caligari. 

One of the ways Motivational steps on convention is to have Ian talk directly into the camera, not only to explain what is going on in his head, but for exposition as well. At the oddest times, he will stop an action, or just take a step back and face the audience, and talk about his life, both before and during the present moment. At first this is a bit surprising, but that passes quickly as the viewer gets into the rhythm of the action. I mean, there’s a talking fungus, so it’s not like there is any kind of suspension of disbelief needed, thankfully.

The most obvious comparison, story-wise, is probably going to be the MTV film from 1996, Joe’s Apartment,where a lonely guy is desperate for the girl next door and is aided and abetted by thousands of singing and dancing waterbugs (aka, American cockroaches; the small ones are German Cockroaches, FYI). But I say, unlike what’s going on in the music industry, the stories may have similar themes, but very different approaches. Here, the humour is less over-the-top (and musical), and more cynical and cinematically blasphemous, which gets a gold star in my book.

The Mold kind of reminds me of Audrey, the plant from Little Shop of Horrors(either 1986 or even the original 1960 one), as the puppet monster seems benign but it’s pretty obvious we just have to wait it out to find out the real purpose of its presence, but of course you know it isn’t everything it claims to be, and a whole bunch more of something else.

The whole pathetic guy adoring the girl next door and creature who may be for or against it are elements is also reflected in a film that came out about the same time as this one by director Dustin Mills called Night of the Tentacles (2013). But what this film reminds me of the most is a story from 1891 (you read that right) by Ambrose Bierce called “The Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge,” one of the great and dark early Modern Era short fiction. I’m also sure some reviewer is also going to bring up Jacob’s Ladder(1990) and a few others with similar themes.

Despite all the references, there is quite a bit of exciting elements here, and I want to make sure to note that. Along with the breakdown of the wall between the main character and the viewer (yes, I know you can bring up The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show [1950]), the intermingling with Ian and the television programs, and occasionally turning the entire film into an 8-bit video game, it’s actually the combination of all of the above that, along with the acting talent and sharp writing, that make this a fun way to spend a weekend or evening.

While there is some gore, it hardly tops just how disgusting the living room is, never mind the bathroom. Then there is the multitude of green and syrupy vomiting from our less-than-intrepid Ian. DiGiovanni does a superb job producing different shades of Ian’s moods, from nearly catatonic to excited like a puppy, to shock and disgust, and anger. His conversations with The Mold are exceptionally funny and full of clues. For example, The Mold will only call Ian “Jack,” but insists on being called TheMold (and always refers to itself in third person). The shows the power dynamic between the two. However, it’s Jeffrey Comb’s reading of The Mold’s script that keeps the film on the edge of possible rewinds with “What did he just say?!” Actually nearly all the characters give verbal hints throughout, and rewatching makes an “Oh, there it is again” head nod for clues you may have missed the first time around. As the object of desire, Doetsch easily holds her own, with Leah just being quirky enough to be adorable, but not creepy. And they are merely the tip of an extremely large cast for an indie, all of whom manage to make their characters unique.

There is, of course, a whole metaphysical element that I could go into with analysis, but won’t because it would contain too many spoilers, but let’s just say that I figured out what was going on pretty early on, but it did not matter. I still sat through this joyride twice, and enjoyed it both time. Why? Because The Gary knows, indie fan, The Gary knows.

The extras are two trailers, a photo gallery, English subtitles (thank you ) and an excellent commentary track with the director, DiGiovanni, and Combs, who tends to talk over the other two.
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Review: Normal

March 30, 2015, 5:04 pm
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Text by Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films
Images from the Internet

Normal
Directed by Richard Griffin
Scorpio Films Releasing
89 Minutes, 2013
www.scorpiofilmsreleasing.com
https://www.facebook.com/NORMALTHEMOVIE

And it is no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
2 Corinthians 11:14

Many directors it seems, especially ones known for releases generally having some level of humor, at some point want to make a “serious” movie. Most, such as Woody Allen with Interiors (1978), are arguably not successful (it was a beautiful film that critics loved, but it bored audiences). Director Richard Griffin had tried this before with much more success with his bleak, black and white noir thriller Exhumed (2011), which I rated as the best indie film I had seen that year.


Sarah Nicklin and Michael Reed
Taking a step into even darker material – albeit this time in color – Griffin once again joins forces with his Exhumed leads Sarah Nicklin and Michael Reed, only this time with Reed as the focal point rather than Nicklin. But as with most films that pair them, they are some form of a couple, such as in The Disco Exorcist (2011).
Let me say, as a straight Ally, Reed is one handsome fella. Luckily, he does not really need to rely merely on that as he is also one damn fine actor. He plays Jim, who owns a run-down apartment building in Boston (he even drives past the Citgo sign, giving me fond memories of The Rat[skeller] club, but I digress…), apparently co-owned with his brother, Tom (Nathaniel Sylva giving a solid and emotional performance). Jim is also the not so handy superintendent, unsuccessfully able to fix fluttering hallway lights or thermostats, thematically matching his mind and moods, perhaps. Now, his brother is pressuring him to sign away the building to be sold for his own – yet understandable – reasons we come to learn. So, poor Tom is feeling quite some pressure in his life.


Elyssa Baldassarri and Michael Reed
Along with his brother, there is also strain from a number of the tenants who desperately seem to want something of – not just from – him through some form of affection and attention, including both genders (yes I know gender is more than binary, but let’s move on). Through flashbacks and verbal hints, the viewer learns some of the key secrets of the story at the end of the first act, but that certainly should not have you give up, but rather put a little additional jam on the toast, if you will, because the ride is just getting more interesting.
The tenants and a couple of visitors are part of what makes this film so… disturbingly curious. For example, there’s Reed’s companion who often comes and goes named Shelley, played by the amazing… Sarah Nicklin. That pause is because I was going to call her a Scream Queen, but honestly, you can tell she can play beyond the genre. Let me further say, as a straight Ally, Nicklin is an attractive woman. I’ve seen a few of her films, and when she and Reed have scenes together, there is definite magic as they play off each other so well.

The mysterious Michael Thurber
There is also a married couple (Monica Saviolakis and Rich Tretheway, who just keeps getting better in every film I see him in), two women who almost remind me of the twins from The Shining (1980), amusingly named April and June (Samantha Acampora  and Shannon Hartman, respectively), the older man who has a crush on Jim (David Erin Wilson), and a woman constantly on the verge of a nervous breakdown (Elyssa Baldassarri, also giving an extremely strong performance somewhere between pathos and scarred; I’m looking forward to seeing her first lead role in Griffin’s latest, Accidental Incest: The Musical, which was just released, and soon to be reviewed here). Then, of course, there is the mysterious stranger, sharply portrayed by Griffin regular, Michael Thurber. Thurber can sometimes be over the top when he should be, in comedies like Future Justice(2014), Dr. Frankenstein’s Wax Museum of the Hungry Dead (2013) or The Sins of Dracula(2014), but when he hunkers down to serious roles like here and Exhumed, man, is he a force to reckon with.

Samantha Acampora
Griffin’s sense of the scene, placement of the camera, lighting, and mood are impeccable. There’s one shot of Tom leaving a bar with the soon to be full frontal Patrick Keefe, which is so well done, I actually backed it up to watch three or four times, with each viewing I noticing something different. From the dull, yellowish lighting to one that is bright and glaringly stark white to show, again, state of mind, the direction is nearly a character in itself.

While the symbolism runs higher than usual, unlike with, say, Interiors, it never gets in the way of the story, a fault that tends to run in those trying to make “art” instead of a good film. There is a reason why so many quality actors flock to and then stick around for other Griffin films, because (a) it really looks like they are supported by the director, (b) the roles are juicy as get-out, and (c) he makes quality films. There is no other director I know who is this prolific (18 full features and a few shorts in 11 years) and retains the high level of quality.

Helping along of course is the writer, Lenny Schwartz, who has penned a couple of Griffin’s other films, including the above mentioned Accidental Incest. Schwartz has a very sharp sense of humor, a touch of the deranged, and knows how to tell a story. I mean, if he can give away key plot points a third of the way through and still not have it be anti-climactic, that really is saying tons.

One would be hard pressed to call this a splatterfest, and blood is kept to a minimum, but its presence is more meaningful than your average killer film, but that’s because Normal delves us ore into what makes one do terrible things, and yet manages to keep us in suspense, as a thriller should.
As usual, Schwartz and Griffin play with cultural gender roles, with no character necessarily being 100% anything other than themselves,  and giving the audience enough credit to accept that. As it should be. Just playing with the theme of what is normal and what is “not” can be taken on many levels here. Sure, there is the mental question, but where does that line fall, and more importantly, who is to say what is “normal?” Greenwich Village? Indiana? Fangoria? Me?  


There are a bunch of points I would love to discuss about the ending here, but won’t for obvious reasons. Let’s have some tea, and we can talk.
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DVD Review: The Killer 4 Pack: The Day of the Dead; Jezebeth; Carnage: the Legend of Quiltface; Hellweek: Grindhouse Edition

April 4, 2015, 12:01 am
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2014
Images from the Internet

The Killer 4 Pack
SGL Entertainment
358 minutes, 2014
www.SGLentertainment.com
www.mvdvisual.com

SGL Entertainment is a relatively new releasing company that has purchased a few dozen films, and is now releasing them. They also are starting their own franchise called Jezebeth, the first of which is included in this collection.

The Day of the Dead
[aka El dia los muertos]
Directed by Ricardo Islas
Alpha Studios
106 minutes, 2007
www.thedayofthedeadmovie.com
Not to be confused with the George Romero …of the Dead franchise, the title here refers to the November 2ndLatino holiday, where the dead walk the earth. This is certainly a good film to start off this collection. It has a professional look, it has depth, and it has a message. Actually, a number of them.

Venezuelan-born director Ricardo Islas shot the film in Chicago and Joliet (about 45 miles apart), focusing in on a gang of five (three males, two females) who get their kicks by brutally killing homeless women. This isn’t a “wilding” kind of thing where people are picked randomly, they are methodical, smart, and “take their time,” as a coroner says. Also, most of them are white.

Their newest sights are on an illegal Mexican woman, Ana (Rosa Isela Frausto), who is desperate for work as a domestic, to get money to go home as she does not like the big city. When they focus in on her, well, you know it will end badly.

Islas takes his time with the story. We get to meet the characters, to get some degree of history of Ana, so when things go wrong, we feel a degree of loss, unlike most slashers where everyone is there merely to meet their end, and their deaths are only considered collateral damage. Here, even as the death metal blares and the perpetrators are reveling in their bloodlust, some pity is felt for Ana. We also feel for the lead detective in the case who is going solo lobo, the lovely Carla (Christina De Leon); she gets in a bit over her head.

The film has a gritty urban feel, reminiscent of majors like The French Connection (1971) or Death Wish (1974). Streets are dirty, alleys have stagnant water, and buildings are brick blockhouses, giving us a Taxi Driver (1976) tour. It feels like the ‘70s all over again. And each of the three acts is almost their own genre. For example, the first is a bit like a slasher film, the middle a detective story, and the final, well, let’s just say it’s a revenge story. Each has elements that overlap the others, so the feel is organic (unlike, say, Kill Bill: Vol. 1 [2003] and Kill Bill: Vol. 2 [2004], which are completely different genre styles).

The one fault I could pick on is that someone breaks a pair of handcuffs on a piece of stone. Not just the chain, the whole thing falls off at once. That would not work with tungsten steel, the material ‘cuffs are made of these days. But hey, if that’s it, we’re in good shape, y’knowhadimsayin’?

Not just a crime drama, and not just a horror film, not just a revenge tale, Islas also has some social commentary mixed in on both a blatant and subtle level. Filmed during the incompetent GW Bush years, there is discussion of illegal immigration and the effect on those immigrants (Bush’s “reuniting families” speech is shown for the farce it is), white power and privilege, how uncommonly high the assault and rape statistics for women are in the Latino community, and the lack of city, state and federal funding to help through community centers. But he doesn’t just go the easy and too common road of Evil = Whites, as two of the murderous group are women of color (one is a bi-asthmatic), even though the three males are white and racist (yet the white leader is in a relationship with the Asian woman).

One would think with so much going on, both blatant and subtle, from violence to social messages, this would be a mess or at least too preachy. In the hands of other directors, this could be a strong possibility, but here, Islas handles it with a level of mastery, despite the low-albeit-not-micro budget.

Jezebeth
Directed by Damien Dante
The Phoenix Group / Satania 666 Films
SGL Entertainment / R-Squared Films
80 minutes, 2008-2011
www.jezebeth.com
It’s an interesting premise from the start: a young woman from a questionable past worships the devil, invokes a demon possibly with the same name as her (though a male voice is used), and becomes a Goth, death metal guitar wiz, sadist vampire.

This film is the centerfold of this collection, as it is not only directed by the owner of SGL Entertainment, but there is also a sequel with two more in the works after that, a comic book, a record deal, etc. That’s some pretty big plans.

Quite beautiful to look at, with a mix of black & white and color, intense editing, weird angles, and loud music, in fact, much of it feels like a series of death metal music videos, with some story in between. Song by bands like Slam Bang, Grigori 3 and Supermercado feature heavily, along with others. There are also some musicians playing themselves, such as drummer Gregg Potter – who tours with the Buddy Rich Band even though he looks like he’s in the Chesterfield Kings – and Wolf McKinney. Pin-up model Baby D. Frost makes an appearance as herself as well.

Okay, I’m digressing, so let’s get back to the film: Jezebeth lives in a house with a group of women, most of who hate her and want her out, and one who is her S&M slave. They all dress in black, have dark hair, and pale skin. Jezebeth, played by the toothsome and attractive Bree Michaels, often wears full-face white make-up and black lipstick. Did I mention Goth before? What holds these women to this place is unclear, and how they make a living is unmentioned. It’s hinted that they grew up together, but only a suggestion. It’s a mystery left as such. It certainly can’t be a religious affiliation, though one is indicated as being a devout Christian, because they curse like a motherfucker (yes, including the Christian).

This truly is Goth heaven (pun intended), touching on many of the principles of the subculture, some mentioned above in the first paragraph of this review. There’s lots of lace, black matt clothing, cemeteries, blood, death, demons, and vampires. But suddenly, and gratuitously, there’s a long scene in a Chicago strip club for absolutely no reason, as we watch five dancers do their thing with a pole. Hunh? Is stripping Goth? That’s a new one for me.

As for said vampires, there are two, and apparently they are unbothered by the sunlight, not even needing sunglasses. Sure, this isn’t the first film to use that premise, but I thought Goth was kind of 19th Century based (hence the “Gothic”), when vampire fiction became popular. Musing aside, it’s an observation, not a criticism.

As films go, as a whole it’s a pretty picture. Sure the black and white is blue tinted and probably should have been more effective as sepia, but it’s still has a flair to it. As far as story and acting goes, it’s a mess. There is no coherency, no character development (including Jezebeth), and no need for half of the visuals (e.g., the lengthy clips of people standing around as music plays).

Sure, one may think, oh, maybe it will be explained in the next film, since this is a pre-planned franchise. Well, considering Jezebeth is played by a different actress in all three films listed, and the second one is a Mexican-Western-Motorcycle glom called Jezebeth 2: Hour of the Gun (scheduled to be released this year; trailer HERE), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENIdXB05D_g I’m going to doubt clarity is the focus as much as marketing.

I’m going to guess that I’ll probably never receive another SGL release after this.

Carnage: The Legend of Quiltface
[aka Carnage Road]
Story, produced and directed by Massimiliano Cerchi
Rounds Entertainment
70 minutes, 2000
www.roundsent.com
Starting with the standard genre set-up to introduce us to our killer, a guy in a mask and onesie with a machete, we meet a couple out in the desert near Las Vegas which is obvious since the woman is wearing a t-shirt that says as much. She’s a tough woman with tats, and while he plays horny, he also comes across as a bit, well, fey. Nevertheless, as is par, they get it on (to porn-type music), so they die in a nicely done scene, though the camera is purposefully albeit unnecessarily shaky.

Shot on video (pre-HD), this is honest in not trying to look like film; perhaps at the time the technology had not caught up to that, or was not yet affordable as it is now with MacPro. It does have a nice, clear look, though, and I’ll happily give it that.

All the classic kids-in-the-elements (woods, caves, or in this case, dessert) tropes are here. The comic relief who gives the back story, the old guy (who can sometimes also be the back story teller), the tall (albeit very thin in this case) masked killer with the big knife who seems to be able to not be seen by the protagonists when standing up in a clear field, usually with the shoulders back, feet spread apart a bit, and the hand with the knife held out at a 40 degree angle. And where does it say that is it necessary for women to trip when running away? Of course, my big question is, if you get the better of a killer for a moment, why not pick up a rock and smash the fuckin’ guy’s head in, rather than run away?

In this version, rather than campers, we have four not-too-bright college students who are out in the desert taking photos (film camera) for an extra credit class assignment. All the shots they take, essentially, are of themselves smiling and posing next to each other, like every other damn shot you see. If I was their prof, I would fail them, whether they survive or not. Not even landscape or close-ups of desert foliage – I mean, the desert is a beautiful place, and lord knows this film could have been about 10 minutes shorter if some of the walking / running through the dirt roads was trimmed – instead of them just standing together and smiling. I was waiting for the modern, ever-present “v” sign.

How smart is this group? They are to spend the day in the desert – dropped off in the morning to be picked up in the evening – without taking any water, any sunscreen (the women are in shorts), or any food. All they have is one camera bag and the camera. Period. Shit, they deserve to die just to project the human race from them reproducing.

So, there is the lead, very pretty, super-blonde couple, Robert and Linda (Dean Paul and Molanee Dawn). When she’s not whining, she seems nice. Cute, anyway. Dean Paul, who has an assumption that he’s the “leader” of the group, is a sniveling, domineering bully, and yes, whiny. Along for the ride are two classmates. One is the whiny and kvetchingly spoiled Amy (Melissa Brown) who is vain and thick, and would rather look in the mirror and whine than be there. And last is super-nerd Mike (Sean Wing, who has gone on to have quite the relatively successful career since this), who is presented more like Rainman than merely geek (i.e., the pre-Big Bang Theorystereotype).

Now that I’m through being whiny myself, there are actually positive things to say about this film. For one thing, it has some really good humor it in. No, I mean purposeful laughs. For example, the character of The Driver, as played by Mack Hail, is a hysterical scene-stealer from the moment he comes on to the screen to the time he leaves. There are also quite a few throwaway lines that I had to back up to make sure I heard right because they were so humorous.

For a film that’s made with a single camera, it’s put together quite well. Yeah, there’s the occasional sound galumphs here and there, but it also causes a change in the theme of the action. Ever since Sergei Eisenstein, who during the silent era said that editing = motion, there have been quick cuts; but with one camera, it takes a bit more work to keep up some kind of pace with long, static shots. Cerchi makes it work, thanks to the efforts of the editor, Ed Polonia, of the infamous Polonia Brothers.

Quitface’s mask appears a bit more like rubber than human leather, but it still looks great when you finally get to see it close, made up of stitched faces. There is minimal nudity and some blood, but emotions are actually a bit more realistic than in most films. At the end, Paul, who sounds like a screeching weasel through nearly the entire third act, is believably scared. When he’s hit on the head, even though there is hardly any blood when the head actually bleeds like a motherfucker in real life, he acts woozy, stumbles along, and looks exhausted, rather than unrealistically shaking it off and carrying on. Kudos for that.

Cerchi (and the Polonius Brothers, for that matter) make micro-budget films, and even if the stories can be a bit cliché, they retain a level of fun that still make it worthwhile to sit on the couch with some buds and Buds, and have a hoot. But make sure you listen to those throwaway jokes. They’re worth the attention.

Hellweek: Grindhouse Edition
Directed by Eddie Lengyel
Fright Teck Pictures
102 minutes, 2009
Don’t let this film get confused with the 1981 Linda Blair classic of bad cinema, Hell Night, even though the premises are pretty similar: Pledge night at a frat, but rather than going to a haunted house to roam around in the dark for most of the film, here it’s a frat party that goes to a supposedly haunted abandoned warehouse (probably for clothing, because there is a sign leaning against the wall for Perry Ellis). Evil things wearing masks, as we learn early on, are afoot there.

The central character, who from early on you hope is going to die a slow and glorious death, is JJ (overacted by Rob Jaeger), president of the frat which I believe is never named. Throughout the movie people repeatedly call him an asshole, and he is. Thing is, if he isn’t in the scene, people are talking about him. I mean, he’s blond, he calls people “nigga” and “faggot,” and he cheats on his girlfriend Cara (the very comely Karen Fox) while she’s in the same house. Wadda douche.

Despite a couple of really nice, digital deaths early on, this film takes a really – no, I mean really long time to get its gore groove on after the initial metal-on-flesh. Some of the women go to a psychic who warms them of cheating (yep, JJ) and peril. Then there’s a stretched out party scene where we get to know a little about some of the characters that are fodder-to-be, and yet we still are given no reason to care about them.

One thing this filmmaker does that I genuinely find amusing is that he sometimes addresses odd things people in the audience might say, such as one character stating, “We just went down the stairs and now we’re going up?!”

While no subsequent kill is as good as the first batch, our supernatural villains do not want to be disturbed, and of course, nothing annoys supernatural villains more than frat shenanigans. Actually, considering some of this batch, I don’t blame ‘em.

The film itself has an interesting look, with pockmarks and discoloration like it was shot on film and left underwater for a few days. Sometimes it looks great, sometimes it’s a hindrance, but either way it’s a nice touch. Also there are scenes that are kind of dark, or happen too fast (flash of seeing a disembodied head, for example), but there is also come nicely done creative editing otherwise.

If the film had lost the entire 20 minute frat party scene at the end of the first act, it would have not been any loss. If the bickering between Cara and Hayley (the equally cute Michelene Pancoe) was not such a repeated focal point, that would have been okay, too. Cara had enough trouble dealing with JJ, so who needs the extra angst?

In total, it’s not a great film, but it definitely has its glorious moments.

Day of Dead

 
Jezebeth

Quiltface

Hellweek
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Review: Accidental Incest

April 9, 2015, 6:10 am
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

Accidental Incest
Directed by Richard Griffin
Scorpio Film Releasing
102 minutes, 2014 / 2015
 
Richard Griffin is a trans director. No, no, what I mean is that he readily and easily moves among various genres and sub-genres. And although he has remained somewhat auteur, he rarely keeps his feet on solid cinematic ground. For that, we, the viewers, are lucky. That I'm reviewing two of his films in two separate blogs in a row rather than combining them says something.
 
For the most recent, Accidental Incest, Griffin and writer / collaborator Lenny Schwartz (an award winning playwright!) delve into the broad bedroom sex farce. It’s quite extreme, but probably no more risqué than, say the absurdist budoir comedies of Tudor-period France, or Chaucer’s the “The Wife of Bath” in its Medieval days. That is to say, this is fuckin’ risqué, Jack!
 
When we first meet our two self-proclaimed douchebaganti-hero protagonists, they are performing acts of narcissistic revelry, for which they must pay in some form or another. They are unhappy with their life situations, but not necessarily with their lifestyle choices, which would fit in well in any sex(y)-addict group. After each survives a near-death experience and meet some cool and attractive guardian angels, and then their marriages finally dissolve with a bang not a whimper, they find each other in a seedy hotel hallway. It is lust and love at first sight. But there is a problem they eventually learn, which the title makes obvious.
 
On the relatively masculine side of the equation, there is Milton (a nice, Jewish boy we learn), played with wide aplomb by Johnny Sederquist. He makes the Sean character from the television show Psych look like a mellow dude. Whatever the gender, whatever the drug, whatever the experience, he is there, and ready-willing-and-able. You can just tell Sederquist is having a blast in this role, and embraces his character wholeheartedly. He sort of reminded me of a living emoticon, with all emotions in the extreme, eyes always fiery happy, excitedly surprised, or even when sad.
 
The Yin to his Yang is Kendra, with Elyssa Baldassarri embodying her wild and crazy ways with abandon. Comfortable in her birthday suit (as was much of the cast), her zaftig form looks lovely on the screen (again, as was much of the cast). Baldassarri, who is playing her first leading feature-length role, is an attention grabber (in a good way), wearing Kendra’s thoughts and emotions on her face, looking seamless and organic, which tends to be troublesome for some when playing comedy this broadly.
 
One of the aspects of this film that I found refreshing in so many ways is there are a number of twists and turns that I just did not see coming, bringing huge smiles to my face. In other words there are a number of WTF moments, but it still works in this case because, like having all those clothes on Gilligan’s Island, you learn to accept the unexpected as it comes, even as it surprises you outta your skivvies.
 
As always, and to no surprise, however, is Griffin’s way with the look of the film. While giving a nod to photographer Jill Poisson (also for her work on many other Griffin’s releases), the pace of the film never lets up, and that is due in part to Griffin’s editing. It really is a joy ride (in this case be it roller coaster or Tilt-a-Whirl) that never lets up.
 
While the two leads are both interesting and fetching, there is a very large cast that is very generous with their talents and bodies throughout. For example, Jose Guns Alves, who tends to play tough characters from ghetto-style exorcising priests to soldiers, acts against form as “The Anxious Man” (as the credits list him), showing a humorous and non-threatening side, despite the murderous actions of his character. Also against type is the usually loveable Jamie Dufault, who is perhaps a bit too comfortable looking being a sociopathic …well, I won’t give it away. And the lovely Tonya Free was spot on as a conflicted love interest for one of the menagerie of crazies we get to meet.
 
Filmed guerilla-style through Rhode Island, home of Scorpio Releasing, there is still lots of set pieces where there are little, imaginative touches, such as the use of framed album sleeve covers on the walls. I noted Frank Zappa, Roxy Music (Country Life), Tom Robinson Band (Power in the Darkness); Josie Cotton (rare 12” single of “Johnny Are You Queer”; I have this one), and Soft Cell. Also the choice of using both black and white and color is a strong choice for a purposefully powerful albeit comedic film.
 
In James Clavell’s Shogun (the novel from 1975, not the Richard Chamberlain tele-film), the reader is introduced to Japanese society, showing local lords to be powerful with control of life and death of the peasants, and yet by the time we get deep into the story, we realize that the lower lords are nothing compared to those above them. Why bring this up? Well, when we meet Milton and Kendra in their solo openings, we are presented (among others) M/F anal sex, adultery and affairs with druggies in Mexican prisons, and it’s shocking. But as the story progresses, much like Clavell’s book, we find these two to possibly be arguably the sanest people in the story. Power-crazy Christians, people locked up and treated like dogs, an obsession with a strange choice in a film star, and soooo much more are just part of an ever increasing insanity level.
 
The original name of this film was Accidental Incest: The Musical (a wonderful extension). While not a full-fledged musical in this version (perhaps a future Anniversaryre-release?), in three different occasions, a character bursts into song, including a hysterical rap by God (Aaron Andrade, in a cool, polar opposite role from his turn as a hyper-soldier in 2014’s Future Justice). And Jesse Dufault, who was spectacular as NuWave in 2014’s Sins of Dracula, has already proven he has a decent voice.
 
Two quick notes: be sure to catch director Griffin doing a silent Hitchcockian cameo as a bar patron about an hour in, and there is a throwaway joke at Adam Sandler’s expense that almost made me want to say, “Oh, snap!” (but I didn’t; I’m not cool like that). Oh, and did I mention that there is a lot of nudity from various genders including full frontals and full – er – backals?
 
If you were to chart Griffin’s films on an X-Y axis, with his slasher-comedy Murder University (2012) being the median, this film would be as far to the side of outrageous comedy as the dead serious and excellent Normal (2013) would be on the opposite spectrum. I’m not sure that makes sense, but it works for me.
 
While mostly true for the male characters, there is nothing stopping the swapping of genders as a point of desire. Even with the occasional Seth Rogan-esk slur, such as “fudgepacker,” it’s generally acknowledged that people are sexual beings. However, I believe there does need to be some equal line-crossing on the female side; I’m not one of those who get off on watching lesbianism, but it’s only fair to make it even, doncha think?
 
And with that last paragraph in mind, I have a fantasy that this film would play in every single screen in Indiana, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana and Texas (at least), with mandatory viewing from the locals. Then I’d like to see Bobby Jindal, Mike Pence and Ted Cruz have to act out some of its scenes (I’m thinking the one’s with Kevin Killavey as Tool). That would be as much exquisite fun as this film.
 

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"Street Trash" producer Frank Farel interviewed 1987

April 13, 2015, 4:22 pm
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Text by Richard Gary, 2015
Image from Videowave, 1987

Street Trash is a semi-classic low budget indie horror film from the 1980s. The plot revolved around people drinking a cheap booze reminiscent of Thunderbird called Viper that was found sealed inside the wall of a liquor store. Problem is, when people drank it, it affected them badly, from melting to blowing up real good.

I was present for the shooting of this interview on a Cable Access show called Videowave. As the shows get digitized, they are generously making clips available for the public. So, from March 1987, here is Farel discussing is yet-to-be-released film. The trailer for the film is beneath the clip, followed by a free link to the whole film.

 
 
 
 
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Two Reviews: End Game; Dark Wake

April 19, 2015, 5:30 pm
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Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2015
Images from the Internet

The reason I placed these reviews together is that these crime genre dramas are the first two features directed by Bruce Koehler, who works out of Romero-town, aka Pittsburgh. There is also a strong overlap of supporting crew. Note that I reviewed them in the opposite order they were released.


 End Game
Produced, shot, edited and directed by Bruce Koehler
North Shore Pictures / z-Diet-3 Productions
93 minutes, 2009
www.northshore-pictures.com

Wow. While I don’t usually do this, I happened to read the “reviews” by IMDB visitors, and I have rarely seen such a scathing series of comments as for this film. It got my hopes up. I’ve always said I’d rather see a film that has 0 stars than 4, because they tend to be more interesting. I joyfully hit Ø.

I have to say, in all honesty, those people do have some valid points. The acting is pretty bad, for example, but for this crime / police and serial killer cat and mouse genre, even more than horror, this is pretty par for the course, which means I have seen a lot worse (e.g., Rise of the Black Bat [2012]; reviewed HERE).  The viewer needs to jump in feet first, meaning that you have to know that it’s not going to be A-level, but even looking at it like that, when it comes to crime even good actors tend to chew the scenery in major films (for example, look at Brad Pitt in Burn after Reading [2008] or any Batman film prior to [and arguably including] Christian Bale). This is especially true in many Noir, like anything written by Mickey Spillane. So despite the over-reaction acting from this cast with little film experience – even though some would go on to some major credits later – it’s better than average.

Another complaint stated is that the camera work tends to be stilted and stiff. Again, common in this genre more than horror, especially the indies that tend to use a single camera. Honestly, I thought Koehler did some nice work here and there, such as the opening shot that swings up the side of the cheap hotel from the sign to the villain silhouetted in a window. My big issue is with the tendency towards terrible continuity. For example, a crime scene photographer is seen holding a camera up, it cuts to a wider shot and the camera is by his side, and then a third angle he’s holding it at chest level. And don’t even get me started on his using an old twin-lens Leica with a replaceable flashbulb. What is this, 1940?

For me, the big cliché is the lighting, which tends to be very stark splashes of primary colors that look like it could be from the original “Batman” television series (1966) or Creepshow (1982). In this case I found it a bit distracting.

That all being said, the film was somewhat better than what those reviewers said, even though they were right on points. I mean, this is the Ramones, not ELP; it’s down and dirty, inexpensive and stark, and considering the very large cast, it is meat and ‘taters. Again, if you’re looking for Se7en [1995] or The Usual Suspects [1995], you’re looking at the wrong financing and demographics.

Professional wrestler Kurt Angle plays Brad Mayfield, a narcissistic, charmingly sociopathic serial killer who likes to strangle his female partners as he has sex with them, but proves that he will also do it after. A master of disguise, despite his enormous bulk (I laughed when one character referred to him as “that fat guy”), he manages to elude police often while even being in their presence. For example, he pretends to be a police officer to get any information a recently off’d girlfriend might have mentioned in a diary or scrapbook, to put off the police. That being said, he never uses gloved and he certainly left enough DNA on/in the corpse for him not to worry about that. I’m glad the cops figure that out pretty fast, and so it’s a search to find him, rather than a “who-done-it.” Angle, in one of his first acting roles playing someone other than himself, seems to really be having fun here, with flashing blue eyes and a somewhat handsome face that, well, also looks a bit like it is right out of a Dick Tracy cartoon strip thanks in part to his jutting jaw. Oh, and did I mention he goes shirtless to show off his muscles almost as much as he is dressed?

On his trail is a copper, Det. Burke, played with furred brow by the also muscular Eric Wright. He always seems to be in the middle of an Edgar Kennedy-worthy slow burn while he ignores his family (a Noir standard) and can only think about the case. That is when he’s not emotionally cheating on his shrill wife (Asbury Lake, who sometimes goes by the name Lake Asbury, I kid you not) with the female lead in this film, that I will be getting to shortly. Though he has lots of screen time, Burke doesn’t really seem to have much of a personality, other than consternation, but that’s okay, he’s frustrated by how Mayfield is owning him.

As the lead female, “Survivor” survivor (the youngest to date) and reality television star Jenna Morasca plays stripper-who-wants-to-go-legitCarol Peterlake. Morasca swings from being decent as an actress to wooden, seemingly depending on the inflection needed. The whinier the tone, the worse it gets. And Carol is a complainer. The question here, of course, is will her character – er – survive this film?

This leads me to a point that actually does get under my skin: all the women are bitchy. Ann, the detective’s wife, comes across as nasty – surely to justify Burke’s affection for Carol – but if one has their “ears on,” she’s actually just unsatisfied with the life that she’s been dealt specifically by Burke. I mean, he comes in at 1 AM stinkin’ of booze, he’s gone for more hours than not to leave her to raise their daughter and take care of everything domestic (this isn’t the ‘50s, y’know). In her shoes, bored and lonely, I would be bitchy, too. But Burke’s new locus of interest, Carol, really isn’t much better. It seems all she does is rail: “I thought you were going to have a detective on my door!” or “Stripping pays my rent. If I don’t strip I can’t pay it!” One character calls her “materialistic” (even though he later asks her to become the lead dancer in his troupe), but she really does need to the pay rent. It’s the whiney tone, as I mentioned before, that is the fingernails on the blackboard to me. Just would like to add that while there is no nudity in the film, even in the stripping routines, there is some very nice and ample cleavage shown off by Morasca in a scene towards the end.

There are some really nice and subtle touches here, such as you see a character duck out in the background in a flash during a distraction that you may not notice unless you’re paying attention, or with a bed in the background, you may note that someone has moved, setting up the next set of events. These are some really nice flourishes that showed some thought went into it.

As for the ending, well, I only had it partially right, so that’s good. The only extra, however, is the trailer.

So was it as terrible as those reviews? Not by a long shot. Was it a great film? No, but it was fun in its oeuvre. It’s gritty, it’s appropriate for its genre, and it didn’t bore me, so we’re good.

 
Dark Wake
Directed, photographed and edited by Bruce Koehler
North Shore Pictures / z-Diet-3 Productions
88 minutes, 2008
www.northshore-pictures.com

What we learn from being introduced to Pittsburgh police detective Jake Dalton (Gary Horner), after a brief 1959 prologue, is that he’s a hard drinkin’, electric blues lovin’ (soundtrack by the Blues Junkies), hard-nosed, heavily armed, tired of life, single guy (the gun and switchblade unprotected on the nightstand is the clue).

He’s called onto a series of mysterious murders of people bound and thrown in the river(s) that run through the city. Jake is partnered with Max Ross (Irish actor Brendan McCormack, aka Vardis Egen in Game of Thrones, though here he looks very different than in Thrones, and he has an Aussie accent; perhaps it’s easier for him to do that than a Pittsburgh one?), who is also hard-hitting, boozing, etc., but he’s a bit more tender, a minor-bit of the humorous hue, and the butt of the jokes by Jake and his ex-cop dad.

While a bit convoluted, the winding story of these killings that somehow having a common thread of an elderly nun, Sister Mary (Ina Block), spins out through the large cast of victims and possible suspects, including some quite close to home for our burnished policeman.

The mostly male cast is strong and the acting is either good for the leads, or quite amusingly bad for some of the secondary ones, but it all works together. The film also has a bit of a ‘70s feel being just post Noir, and yet not quite ‘80s-unpurposefully goofy. The city is practically a character in itself, with beautiful river views and waterfronts, and slummy back alleys and bars.

Yes, the acting is not top notch, but that’s nothing unexpected for fans of low-budget genre films. What I find to be a thorn in the paw here that the script needs some serious trimming, and be edited down to an hour to make this a more-than-decent release. There are too many scenes of people sitting around and talking that have nothing to do with anything, including character development.

There are a few interesting action scenes, and the visuals are shot pretty well if starkly, but all the sitting around and drinking mucho cans of Iron City Beer (was ICB a sponsor, or was it just a nod to a local brew?) with angst tones isn’t really exposition, it’s a commercial.

After a couple of decent red herrings, the story of revenge comes across as a conservative leaning against late-term abortions (not legal in 1959 and not legal now), and can be arguably be considered a pro-life document of sorts, with a possible anti-Catholic feel; sort of an anti-Call the Midwife, I guess. It doesn’t come across as preachy, but it absolutely if subtly makes a statement.

For a first film, in this specific genre (i.e., crime sans Noir), Koehler makes some steps in the right direction, but needs better support in the production. As a note, he now has six features under his belt listed on IMDB.

 

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