Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films,
2019
Images from the Internet
RPG Entertainment / Shempstone Studios / RazorsEdge Films
103 minutes, 2019
For
our tale here, we meet our pitiful (to start) hero Deckard (Tom Paxinos), a
survivor of being in the armed services in the Middle East (Afghanistan?).
Since returning home, his wife left him, his teaching job is gone, his daughter
died, and his son is in a wheelchair. It’s no surprise that he is deep into his
own cups, i.e., he’s an alcoholic, and dealing with depression with a feeling
of no where left to go. He’s even lost his faith (more on that later). But then
something happens, which is where the story takes off into a blood and gore soaked
extravaganza.
There
are some parts of the story that are predictable, such as the arrival of the
bad crew who come as no surprise, mixing Knock
Knock (2015) and the opening of Blade
(1998), but even within those tropes, the story takes some incredibly
interesting turns that you just don’t see coming.
There
is an undercurrent of Christianity and faith that runs through the film both in
literal and symbolic ways. I am not a Christian and by God never will be,
but even though it permeates the entire film in both subtle and explicit ways,
it also never deflects from the story, so I didn’t feel like I was being hit
over the head with it (unlike the Left
Behind franchise).
The
only real complaint I have is the film’s length, at over 100 minutes. I’m a
firm believer that to keep the keenest attention, unless you’re someone like
Kubrick or Scorsese, a film should top out at most 90 minutes. It’s not this
film I’m whining about per se, as it kept my interest, though there were a few
of lag moments (again, this is true of nearly all releases), horror is best
when it’s in and out like a quick stab of a stake.
I
really hope that (a) this film makes a big splash on the Festival circuit
because it is better than a lot of the films I’ve seen of late, especially on
the big screen, and (b) Styles and Llewellyn will collaborate again, as they have
shown that they work well together to produce a top-notice release. They
certainly left the story in a way that it can continue, which leaves me encouraged.
Images from the Internet
The Blood Hunter
Written and directed by Trevor
Styles and Chas Llewellyn RPG Entertainment / Shempstone Studios / RazorsEdge Films
103 minutes, 2019
Vampire
films are a dime a dozen, and yet even with a low budget, sometimes you get to
find one that is not only a decent story, but stretches the boundaries in new
ways that add to the legend rather than taking away from it.
Tom Baxinos |
He
manages to join a small group of vampire slayers called, yep, the Blood Hunters,
who seem to shoot up a bunch of vampires but have trouble killing them, or at
least this particularly robust, young-looking trio of blood suckers who are
dicks, reminiscent of The Lost Boys
(1987). The Blood Hunters pull the teeth of the vamps, and sell them to the
highest bidder for their powers which are achieved if the teeth are ground up and ingested. You
see, the older the vampire, the more power they have. Okay, that’s as much as
story as I’m giving, but there is a lot to unpack, which is great.
Amy Traux |
On the
good side you have Deckard, the elder Vinnie (Timothy Patrick Quill) and his
two sons Mack (Aaron Malek) and the oddly cowboy dressed and named Poker (Robert
Bradley), the bodacious and flexible Moxie (Amy Truaux), and in the supportive/supplier Q role is Dick (Dan Hicks). For the bad
lot there’s leader Caleb (Chas Llewellyn, who is also co-writer and co-director of this film), Eli (Gary Busby),
and Amber (Cortney Llewellyn, giving off a strong Gwyneth Paltrow vibe), who
run amok searching for a bottle of powerful elders’ blood.
What
I especially liked about the film – well, there was a lot to enjoy; one case
was the take-no-prisoners approach in that you really never know who is going
to die in many cases, both good and bad guys, old and young. Also while there
is no nudity (but nice cleavage), the gore is way plentiful and most of it looked
great, even with the blood being a bit too brownish (much of the film seems to be shot with a yellow or brownish filter).
Timothy Patrick Quinn |
The
acting is pretty solid. While I don’t buy all of the relationships, and that Deckard never shakes his alcohol addiction (which I believe should have
been better addressed within the storyline), it still holds together
cohesively, with all the double crosses, playing with the viewers’ emotions,
and a new take on vampires that, as I said, adds to rather than takes away from
the story.
Cortney Llewellyn |
What
I also want to point out is that the film is shot beautifully. The area around Billings,
MT, is used with nice brushstrokes, especially those around farms. The pacing
of the editing is well done, with the action scenes a bit quicker, but not to
the music video speed where you can’t make out what the hell just happened. It’s
actually used the way many Westerns are, with long, lingering scenes that let
the viewer absorb not only the action, but the surroundings, which I always
enjoy. Sunlight and shadows, dusk and dawn, all are played out in tones that
are warm and lush, without being overly romantic. Just enjoyable handiwork.
Robert Bradley and Dan Hicks |
Trailer
is HERE
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