Review: Evil Dead Trap

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Evil Dead Trap (aka Shiryô no wana)
Directed by Toshiharu Ikeda
Joy Pack Film; Unearthed Classics; MVD Entertainment
102 minutes, 1988 / 2021
www.Unearthedfilms.com/carronamovie/
www.mvdb2b.com

Japanese extreme cinema has thematically come a long way since this was originally released in 1988. There are still some tropes that are often repeated, such as women abused while wearing schoolgirl uniforms usually by middle aged men, adult stars, and especially torture porn. A good example of this is the infamous gore-spectacle Guinea Pig series, starting by predating this film by half a decade. In fact, a couple of the then-top Japanese adult actors were used in the filming of this movie (much as Marilyn Chambers appeared in 1977’s Rabid and Harry Reems in 1980's Demented).

It is pretty obvious where they lifted the title of this film back in the day, but it is arguable whether there is anything supernatural going on here. An insomnia-plagued late-night talk show host, Nami (Miyuki Ono), receives a VHS snuff tape in the mail, that we get to see in loving, grainy detail. Does she call the cops? Of course not, but rather goes out to investigate. You know how in 1980s films you can spot all the stupid decisions and actions that characters make (e.g., going upstairs instead of out the door)? This one sticks out like a knife in the eye. Oh, yeah, the snuff film…

Miyuki Ono

Nami takes off with the future body count: three other women who are her production team, and a goofy, sexist male assistant director, who calls his superiors “girls.” Gotta love the ‘80s. A slight sidebar here: it may sound like I am talking this movie down, but I am not; part of the fun of this period’s genre films is the sometimes sheer ridiculousness of some of the cultural and cinematic motifs, but it is said by me in a full-smile way. This hindsight really is part of the joy of these gruesome releases. If I have a real problem with something, I will certainly let you know, so in the meanwhile, please know the basis of the snark.

The video tape leads our intrepid-but-not-so-wise group to an abandoned military base (filmed at Camp Drake, a deserted since the 1970s US Army/Air Force quarters, in Saitama, Japan) from 1956 says a sign, which is not on the map (of course). And what’s our group to do once they get there? Why lift and separate into two groups of two, with Nami off on her own. They seem to repeatedly rejoin and cleave into individuals roaming around the expansive space, down long corridors or into booby-trapped rooms.

Yuji Honma

The base setting is actually superb, if you are fascinated by abandoned buildings as I am. It is incredibly atmospheric and creepy as hell with dusky rooms, boarded windows, old furniture and equipment. You can just feel the destitution practically reeking off the screen, and the anticipation for the violence to come. And come it does. A perfect setting for a torture abattoir. Dark shades mixed with flashes of color make it a labyrinth of decay and death.

While the kills are violent, I would not categorize it as torture porn. Most of the butchery is pretty quick (albeit explicit) and not lingering.

While all hell breaks loose in malevolent ways, there are also some interesting characters floating around the base that show up at unexpected times. such as a relatively stoic man, Daisuke (Yuji Honma), who is in search of his younger brother, a man who is being systematically tormented and ordered to kill to be free, and the mysterious masked and hooded parka-wearing killer himself.

This all sets up for a third act of mano e majer, or I guess, otoko tai on’na. Throughout the film, Nami shows an interest – if not attraction – to the mindset of the mentality that would cause such a wave of nasty behavior. This helps set up the final extended showdown that is both psychological and physical, and by far the most interesting part, even though it is pretty obvious early on who is the killer and certain aspects of his behavior. That is not to say this is the only segment that will keep the viewer riveted, but the build-up is worth the nail-biting wait.

Booby-traps abound, and one might wonder if this was possibly an inspiration for the Saw franchise, especially the first one, but as with most proto-films, the ideas are there, just not as detailed in their execution, though bloody enough. And by the end, you could easily sing, “I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain.”

Of course, I won’t give away the ending, but while I had a close approximation of where the story was going, it certainly took a left turn that could have been influenced by the likes of David Cronenberg or Frank Hennenlotter that I did not expect, I am happy to say.

I cannot emphasize how beautiful this film is shot by cinematographer Masaki Tamura and edited by Akimasa Kawashima. The visuals are stunning, with artistic (yet not heavy handed) elan, close-ups, and the occasional (and sped up) blue-filtered monochrome. It seems a bit ahead of its time, and is jaw-droppingly framed. The gore is plentiful, of course, and looks amazing, unsurprisingly, handled by Shin’ichi Wakasa (who has also done special effects for Godzilla and Mothra films since the 1990s). This is overlaid by a repetitive and eventually annoying electronic soundtrack that reminds me of the Italian giallo films of the period.

Extras on the 4K Blu-ray include three full-length commentaries. The first is by director Toshiharu Ikeda (d. 2010) and SPFX Manager Shinichi Wakasa (badly dubbed into English) from the mid-2000s, which is somewhat sparsely discussed, mostly innocuous anecdotes about the filming, rather than deep meanings. I jumped around a bit on this one after about 30 minutes. Next is by filmmaker Kurando Mitsutake, director of films like Gun Woman (2014). It is contemporary and in English, and much more in-depth and interesting than the previous one.  The last is with James Mudge (English), of the Website easternkicks.com. Mudge not only tells anecdotes about the film, but also places it in the context of Asian Cinema – especially Japanese – writ large.

There is also a contemporary featurette, “Trappings of the Dead: Reflecting on a Japanese Cult Classics” (19 min.; English), focusing on cinema academic and author Calum Waddell. He shows both the influences of other films that led to this one, and how Evil Dead Trap has influenced others that followed, dropping dozens of names and others such as some of the ones I mentioned above, and the likes of Dario Argento and Oliver Stone. Also, he puts the film in context of Japan’s relatively modern history, from its role in World War II and the post-atomic period. Then there is the Storyboards, Behind the Scene Stills, Promotional Artwork, and a few Unearthed Trailers, including for this film.

In 1992, there was a sequel of sorts to this release, Evil Dead Trap 2 (aka Shiryô no wana 2: Hideki) that perhaps will be a future Unearthed Films release. I would definitely watch it, though it was directed by Izô Hashimoto, rather than Ikeda.

 

Review: Dante’s Shadow of Sin

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Dante’s Shadow of Sin
Directed by Dakota Ray
R.A. Productions
75 minutes, 2021
https://dakotarayfilmmaker.wordpress.com/
www.facebook.com/Dantes-Shadow-of-Sin-A-Film-By-Dakota-Ray-113284927789069

And if you go chasing rabbits
And you know you’re going to fall…
When logic and proportion
Have fallen sloppy dead
“White Rabbit,” Jefferson Airplane

I ask you: in the time of Covid, what’s a man supposed to do? Easy, just down a glass of absinthe, get a new and sharper lens for your camera, and direct your eighth film of nihilistic behavior, as has done Denver-based director/writer/cinematographer/editor Dakota Ray.

Usually I would hold off on this kind of comment until near the end of a review, but let me point out right from the start that even with Ray’s characteristic use of monochrome-colored filters, in this case one that is a rich, dark blue hue, the new lens really is incredible at showing details, which can only help spotlight the sheer insanity; the film highlights this clarity as you can practically count every hair on a close-up of a severed head.

As is his wont and right, the title character is played by the director and his insanely deep voice, who in the first line, explains the nihilism that clouds his very soul: “My name is Dante, and I serve no man but myself.” He is remorseless, unhinged from reality, and a complete narcissist (perhaps he can become president like the last joker!). We meet him staring at himself in a mirror. Yeah, this guy is not someone you are going to want to mess with in any circumstances.

Filmed in Ray’s house, in part, it was fun seeing the VHS stack with the likes of The Thing, An American Werewolf in London, and I believe Dark Shadows. There is a lot of fine editing by Ray, which improves with every film, between characters, objects (many look like they were bought at a Halloween store, and rightfully so), Satanic symbols, and insects in various states of health. These, their use as subliminal commentary on the action, all become characters in their own right in a way, rather than just be filler (more on that later). The soundtrack during the credits is emblazoned with “blackened doom” (the band’s wording) metal by the Italian trio Naga.

Two years after committing a horrific murder, Dante is contacted by an acquaintance, Mahoganny (gravel-voiced Fred Epstein, a heavy-emoting Ray regular) who has inherited the Boleskin House (referencing the Boleskine House in Scotland, owned by renowned Satanist Aleister Crowley and Jimmy Page, the once great guitarist of the Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin). Mahoganny suggests they get together and go to the house. My question to Mahoganny is, “do you know where you’re going to, do you like the things that life is showin’ you?” (sorry…). In this case, the name Mahoganny is more symbolic for the hardness and darkness of his heart rather than skin color.

After picking up Mahoganny, whose beard and hair is long in classic (and ironic) Jeebus mode, they both head to the house to debauch. How debauched? Let’s just say I had to turn my head when Mahoganny dipped a slice of pizza into salad dressing (I am assuming Ranch). What’s next? Pineapple!?! Also, I wonder about a focused bit without explanation of Dante taking an antacid pill of Calcium Carbonate (designated by the serial number G171); perhaps it is in reference to Mohaganny’s fixation on laxatives? But I digress…

Throughout the film, we hear the thoughts of the two central characters more than words are spoken, which makes sense since so much of the planning of these two are secretive, so we become cognizant of just what the hell is going on. We also hear the drug-induced disembodied voices of objects such as dolls, a white rabbit and a goat head who represent the Satanic elements. Two other mute players are Mahoganny’s senile and silent 92-year-old grandmother (Maddison M.), and his bound and gagged, drug induced “slave” (Sholeh Behesht) in the bathtub. This also makes me wonder about using the name “Mahoganny” as a slaver…

Dante, though not redeemable, kills for a purpose, even if it is self-gratification. With Mahoganny, however, slow and painful control and sadism is more his speed. These two both know that the time in the vacation house will not end well, and each has a motive to be the only one out, but the build-up to the confrontation is a large part of what is going on through the story, listening to their thoughts about destruction in different forms, but with the same end result.

Although there are four characters in this, truth be told it is a two-person story, loco mano e mas loco mano. With hexes, drugs, alcohol and just sheer deviance of a multitude of natures, these guys have a deep hatred that Ray manages to convey quite strongly. Where did they go wrong as friends or acquaintances? Immaterial, because at this time, it a steadily intensifying to-the-death duel, both mentally and physically. The lightening in the sky is a foretelling of the bad actions to come.

It is also interesting to me that both of these dudes are into Satanism and curses, but they are individuals, not part of a Satanic cult, which is where it seems most films dealing with this topic tend to lay down. Again, while the leads are both similar in their desires for death and destruction, they are very distinct in their personalities and the means to achieve their comparable end-goals. Though, honestly, I am not sure how they manage to get their goals accomplished with the sheer amount of imbibing – including mushrooms – that gets consumed. Mind you, I’m a straight-edged punk rock nerd, so it is a different world than where I come from.

The film is broken into a number of chapters via long title cards, such as “Dante’s Switchblade Romance: Caressing her ghost and other demons from the past.” This is also common among Ray’s films. However, story-wise, this is the most cohesive of the eight, being rather threadbare in its plot. Rather than mixing a number of different stories into one, here he focuses on the two main characters, and yes, you could say that it still two tales into one, but its focus is more exact, with less opaque moments.

As much as I have enjoyed all of Ray’s releases, I think this one could be a turning point as far as a pathway. As much as I like the past ones, I look forward to the swing in this direction.

 

Review: Lady Usher

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Lady Usher
Directed by George Adams
Filminginc; Indican Pictures
80 minutes, 2021
www.filminginc.com/
www.indicanpictures.com

There is no denying that Edgar Allen Poe’s infamous 1839, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” is one of his better-known gothic short stories. There have been numerous films based upon it, from the surrealistic The Fall of the House of Usher in 1928, to the Vincent Price-starring classic House of Usher (screenplay by the late, great Richard Matheson) in 1960, and arguably the base material for The Terror in 1963, the latter two both directed by Roger Corman.

For this latest incarnation, director and writer George Adams has reimagined the story, setting it in the present and switching gender roles in some cases. That is an interesting premise.

In the opening, which takes place in the here and now, we meet Texas college lovebirds Roderick Usher (tall and lanky John Tupy) and his girlfriend, Morgan (Billie D. Merritt) filling in for the unnamed (male) narrator of the original story, during the credits montage.

Therese Santiago

Wisely, Adams has adapted the story rather than maintaining the well-worn tropes, while still retaining the feel and some of the motifs. For example, instead of being the twin brother of the titular Lady Usher, Roderick is her son. She is also married to Roderick’s much-older father, who does not appear in the Poe version.

The father (John Furguson) is ill, so Roderick has returned home as the story starts in earnest. Being the dutiful girlfriend and since classes have ended, Morgan shows up at the Oklahoma Usher manse despite Roderick’s reluctance over the phone, and she crosses the threshold into, well, a totally different world.

Here is where the film starts getting a bit playful and fun. Life and time inside the mansion seems to have stopped in a non-literal way, with the inhabitants, including cheeky manservant Vincent (Michael Gibbons, who gets to say the first “The House of Usher” line), dress and act like it is the 1830s, with ruffles and ankle-length dress-jackets.

Rife with 19 Century manner codes and decorum, Lady Usher (Therese Santiago) greets Morgan in a startling custom of stiffness mixed with false invitation that is bound to go south pretty fast. She is an odd sort of a passive-aggressive mix of Lady Usher and Lady Macbeth. One might almost be expecting a Ready or Not (2019) vibe, but again, cleverly, Adams takes his own route, making this more psychological than physical.

Billie D. Merritt

Rounding out the party, both missing from the source, is Mr. Usher’s caretaker, the obvious alcoholic Dr. Philips (Kim Titus), and Roderick’s older and mysterious, nearly mute brother who dresses like the Elephant Man with cloth hood, Gordon (Peter Anthony Seay).

As in the original, the physical house is also a character, with its furniture style from two-centuries ago (I would love to see the kitchen) and a morbid (i.e., Gothic) darkness with windows covered in plush, velvety curtains that let in little light. Even electricity is seen in extremely rare glimpses, mostly just out of camera range.

An extended end of the first act is set around a dinner table where we get to learn more about the attitudes within the family unit and their guests. It goes from terse to tense, to worse. Prodding matriarchical questioning and reluctance of responses make the viewer as uncomfortable as its participants (psychological, remember?).

Like the short story, the underlying theme of the plot is death. In the original, if focuses on Roderick’s sister Madeline, but here it is the patriarch (again, employing those gender mash-ups), though in both, the afflicted has a “morbid acuteness of the senses.” While not the focus, it is the undercurrent that this boat floats upon. There is also an air of privilege that hangs over everything, as Morgan comes from a working-class background. One sign of the Usher snootiness is when Lady Usher asked Vincent to “pass the asparagus” which is less than a foot away from her, as he slides the plate about four inches (and I was amused, assuming this was a continuity error, when she asks Morgan to pass the salt, and she gets the pepper without change of expression; yes, I pay attention to movies I review, so sue me).

It is wonderful that the two main characters are strong women, with the men being the weaker, only pawns in game of life. As for the big reveal at the end, even those unfamiliar with some of the read-between-the-lines suggestions of the Poe tale, should not have to struggle too hard to figure out the family structure by the halfway point.

In my opinion, to paraphrase the words of the television series “Monk,” the blessing and the curse of the film is the costuming. It wildly jumps around over the past two centuries from modern heels to the cinematic antebellum south. Roderick, whose wardrobe is the most egregious, jumps from European dandy to Elvis-period snake-skin designed jacket. And don’t get me started on what he wears during the dinner scene. That being said, it’s also incredibly imaginative and I happily was in anticipation to see what they would wear next, even though it was a bit of a distraction and took away from the events onscreen.

John Tupy and Merritt

Though somewhat predictable, the film easily lives up to its gothic tone and I wonder if it would have been served better in black and white or at least monotone. Or not. Just a musing.

The cast is nicely diverse, and the acting is a bit stiff here and there, but mostly effective for the tone of the film. It is a strong tale with some possible trigger warnings for some, especially those with monsters-in-law of their own. The film does a decent job of weaving the source material, such as characters reading poems and from books (though, again, through role reversals), but stretching it enough to have enough originality to keep the interest up.

Stick around during the credits and enjoy a music video of sorts of the excellent song “Wrecked,” by Rachel Lynch and the Daydrinkers.

The film is now on disc, and available on platforms such as Apple TV, DirecTV, Google Play, Prime Video, and FandangoNOW.

 

Review: Wrath of Souls

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Wrath of Souls (aka Aiyai: Wrathful Souls; Aiyai: A Wrathful Soul)
Directed by Ilanthirayan Alan Arumugam
GVKM Elephant Pictures; Aiyai; YSA Screen Media
83 minutes, 2020 / 2021
www.aiyaifeaturefilm.com/
https://phoenixworldent.com/films/wrath-of-souls-featured/
www.facebook.com/aiyaifeaturefilm

It seems in the last decade, Australia – in this case, Brisbane, Queensland – has been bursting with genre releases, I am happy to say. Like their European counterparts, they tend to go for the pure silliness of the likes of SheBorg (2016) to the dark and moody Rage (2020). This spookfest is closer to the latter, with artistic hauntings and a tone of dread.

For those interested, the term Aiyai is a Tamil word for a woman, or any variety of birds, especially pigeons (thank you Google), both of which come into play here.

Kabir Singh

Like Dellemorte Dellamore/Cemetery Man (1994), we are introduced to Kiran (Kabir Singh) briefly in a prologue after something mysterious has occurred, and then the film is in flashback bode until the storyline catches up. He has just obtained a position at an old graveyard/chapel/funeral parlor, where it is his job to maintain and clean, including the crematorium. Joyful start, right? His co-worker and office manager, Darren (William Wensley) is a total Aussie cliché; I half expected his floppy hat to have corks hanging from it. Also, there is something off about him, naturally, as well as the parlor director Albert Fischer (Richard Huggett). There is also burly and extremely sour landscape maintenance man, Michael (Craig Ingram, who grumpily steals every scene in which he appears and is underused).

Through a series of flashbacks, Kiran worked in an East Indian restaurant. He has some violent confrontations with a pimp (ex-AFL-er and ranked barefoot water skier Ozzie Devrish) and his lackey (Marco Sinigaglia) when Kiran helped the pimp’s abused drug dealer, Sarah (Pennyanne Lace) whom the pimp is demanding to bring more money. These clashes lead to the cemetery position. Lots of quick edits project the dire situations and the violent turns of events. Of course, this is all background to what is yet to come in the following acts.

Pennyanne Lace

In fact, once all the background information is presented and we have an idea of the troublesome spirit that is Kiran, the second act starts in spooky earnest when he begins his mortuary job. Shadows swirl, gray ash and messes mysteriously materialize, and the dissonant background soundtrack begins. And this viewer’s attention is grabbed.

This isn’t your run of the mill poltergeist that merely moves chairs flinging across the floor and slamming some small cabinets; rather, this one is hell-bent on flinging and fighting, death and destruction. You know, the fun kind. We see some quick glimpses of the beastie. It also has a hold on Kiran, possessing him and turning him into a nearly werewolf-ish creature. This is not the usual Catholic-based possession, I’m happy to say (hasn’t that been done to – er – death?). That is part of what makes this so interesting. As it is not European-based, again Catholic, there are better chances of being caught by surprise due to it being a step away from the familiar. This reminds me more of The Changing of Ben Moore (2015), than, say, The Exorcist (1973).

Tahlia Jade Holt

While wilding Kiran settles up with old adversaries, he’s being cared for by his overly protective student girlfriend, Sara (Tahlia Jade Holt) and muscle-strapped roommate Felix (Vinod Mohana Sundaram), and is wanted for questioning for murders by a police duo, led by Detective Blake (Vicky Loughrey).

The interesting question for me for part of this is as follows: is the wraith out to avenge Kiran’s trials and tribulations, or is it seeking revenge of some kind of its own? With all the stories tying up by the third act, the answer is quite clear and not all that expected, despite clues given throughout the story.

I am not going to lie: the ending actually pissed me off a little bit, but despite that, for a debut feature, Arumugam shows he knows his way around a story, and how to shoot it. That the film has won over a dozen festival awards attests to that. The cinematography is superb, with changing angles, a sense of both metaphorical and physical darkness, and the camera is used in both even-handed and occasionally jarring ways. Plus, there is some nice use of the increasingly ever-present drone shots.

William Wensley and Singh

The effects are effective. There isn’t a huge body count as it is not a slasher kind of story, but much more personal. Not a ton of blood and almost no gore per se, but enjoyable deaths nonetheless.

Despite this being a directorial introduction, Arumugam has assembled an accomplished and dedicated cast that holds up to scrutiny. There is not a weak spot to be seen, which is rare for both this budget and the director’s industry influence.

The film was reportedly shot for US$3 million and employs the use of purposefully jerky edits that work, along with the occasional jump scares. But mostly it is the feeling of dread that runs through that makes this beyond just an ordinary ghost story. Arumugam has two films in the works, and I am looking forward to them.

The film has recently been released in North America on Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, InDemand (Comcast and Cox), Microsoft Store, Vudu, YouTube Rentals and Hoopla.

 

Horror Shorts Reviews: October 2021

Horror Shorts Reviews for October 2021

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Filmmakers, please note: usually, I do not review films (unless requested) that appear on sites like Alter and Screamfest, because they have a known platform, which is great, while I would rather focus on films with no sponsored online affiliations.

 

Answer Your Phone
Directed by Benji Wragg
Crazy Moo Films; Taymaynari Productions
5:47 minutes, 2021
In this Australian short, a stressed young man (Oliver Midson) is on his way home with his phone getting messages from his abusive partner, Nancy (Rhiannon Newman; were her parents fans of Fleetwood Mac?), repeatedly asking where he is. However, he’s lost his car keys and rushes home the best he can. The tension is palpable, and when the payoff hits at the end, one understands the whys, if not the hows. I would like to have seen this stretched out a bit more, to get additional background to the story, but even as it is, it is effective. There is very little dialogue, and most of that is text messages. Lots of shorts seem to focus on the cell phone as a cinematic device to deliver the goods. Technology is both a life changing and yet also a trending object.
Full film HERE 

Beggar’s Night
Directed by Henrique Couto
Weekly Spooky
6:13 minutes, 2021
Alphonse (John French) is an angry farmer who sounds like he is from below the Mason-Dixon who has some issues. He needs to eat “heart friendly” (pizza without cheese? Personally, in this regard I agree with him), and he does not believe in that Satanic worshiping holiday at the end of October. You are not going to get any candy from this dude, even if he scarfs it down himself. Beggar’s Night is a regional Ohio term for going Trick or Treatin’ the nights before the 31st. But just because he does not follow local tradition, what about the spirits that do just that? Lessons to be learned and a night of scares is in store, under the monochrome blue light of night. This is shot quite lovingly with some wonderful editing skills. For such a short piece, the SFX make-up and creature designs look amazing. The timing of this release is perfectly – er – timed. Get yer Beggar’s Night/Halloween jollies on with this one.
Full film HERE  

Dead Frequency
Directed by Cindy Stenberg
Swedish Ghost Lovers
3:28 minutes, 2021
A man (John Hägglund) is living in a run-down small house that is under renovations in the middle of the woods in Sweden (where this originates). While chillaxin’, he hears a disjointed woman’s voice on a small walkie-talkie (I have a pair of those). The words coming out are full of static. They could be in Swedish, but it’s so garbled anyway, it really does not matter. This leads to some nice jump scares and a cool ending that I won’t give away. The director, Stenberg, who also appears in the film, manages to make a lot with a little time. The angles and shadows kick this up to another level. Enjoyable; just long enough to get the viewer engaged, but short enough to blast it away.
Full film HERE 

 

Parking
Directed by Abhishek Sachidanandan
3:19 minutes, 2021
There is a reason why so many films that want the viewer to feel uncomfortable, from horror to action genres, take place in lonely tiered indoor public parking garages. The light is gloomy, there is a feeling of dread, and who knows who or what is hiding behind a column or a vehicle. Mixing the place with technology, a man (Aloysius Shadi) gets into his car and starts to back up to pull out, when his car’s rear sensor beeps at him that there is something behind him, but nothing shows in the rearview mirror. The tension builds in this non-verbal scenario with the car doing all the “talking” through its sensors. Sometimes all you need is a simple idea and imagination to make an effective short story, and this one works for both.
Full film HERE 

 

Stall
Directed by Ryan Shovey
Creepy/Cool Pictures
6:59 minutes, 2018
My mother once actually said to me that the scariest thing was having to badly use the washroom when none was available. So, even though the entire film actually takes place in a public bathroom, the spirit of my mom’s comment is a focal point. A woman (Ariel Monica Putman) is in dire need of a loo, and there are two stalls: one is for handicapped, one not. The not one is occupied by an unseen and mysterious woman who apparently uses crutches. Irony? This puts our heroine in a dire situation of whether to hold it in (not a good option) or use the handicapped stall (personally, if the regular one was in use, I would enter the handicapped one in an otherwise empty bathroom without a second thought because desperate times/desperate measures…but she’s more socially conscious than I am). In this tale, however, there is a supernatural element, natch, and lights flicker, weird sounds abound, objects move on their own, and locker doors swing open. This is a nice, spooky tale and it is very well shot (without being claustrophobic considering the space) and acted. Putman uses body language quite well. While there are some really spooky moments, for me the cringiest thing was Putman kneeling on her bare knees on a public bathroom floor to peek under the stall door.
Full film HERE 

 

Unwelcome Guest
Directed by Andrew Johnson
11:50 minutes, 2020
A young man (the director and writer, Johnson) who is a photographer rents a house in the woods once owned by a State-executed serial killer. It’s a lovely, idyllic place surrounded by trees and has a lake close by, but of course that is not all that is attached. It’s a genre film, after all, right? The imposing ghost of the Lake Gillian Killer (Andrew’s dad, Eric) keeps popping up through the night doing evil things like rolling out the toilet paper. There is an almost subtle comic element to this film more than a frightful one that actually makes it a bit of fun. Johnson’s over-the-top emoting helps in that. The film comes off as a lark, meaning it looks like it was a lot of fun to shoot, and that gets expressed to the viewer. There is no dialogue but facial expressions and body language say a lot here. For me, the scariest thing about the film is just how much the central character is immersed in technology. For a country getaway, every move he makes involves some sort of electronic equipment, be it an HD TV, listening to his playlist as he sleeps, the camera plugged into a computer, and so on. For me, this was more invasive into the life of the “guy in the blue striped shirt” (as he is credited on IMDB) than the ghostie. A good, safe watch for othse who are easily scared.
Full film HERE 

 

The Visitor
Directed by Mark and Lindsey Palgy
Enjoy Cult-Classics; De4th Race Productions
6:40 minutes, 2021
An author with a writing block leaves his wife behind to take a solo weekend in the country to inspire him. You can see the affection between them. But what happens when you meet yourself in an Us (2019) kind of situation? The question presented is, simply, what is a natural response to that? And will your hairbun eat his beard? (Sorry, that’s a What’s Up Tiger Lily? reference from 1966). And what is the larger picture and meaning of it all? These are all questions that are answered in the film. It’s a nice little gimmick that works well. The ending was a pleasant surprise, as well. It is also well shot, with snippets of objects and close-ups, mostly, when needed. An interesting cinematic motif used is that the soundtrack is music, and when people talk, it is silent and we get subtitles; are people in Kentucky hard to understand? Could be the vocal track did not work well, or something else happened, and this was a smart way around it. Well, these Kentuckians know their stuff.
Full film HERE

Review: Star Vehicle

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

Star Vehicle (aka Bleading Lady)
Directed by Ryan Nicholson
Plotdigger Films; New Image Entertainment; Unearthed Films; MVD Visual
76 minutes, 2010 / 2021
www.plotdigger.com/movies/hanger-2009/
www.unearthedfilms.com
www.MVDVisual.com

Apparently, Unearthed Films – one of my fave labels at the moment for both its original content and reissues – has purchased the hardcore gore films of the late Vancouver director, Ryan Nicholson (d. 2019, way too young of natural causes). Nicholson’s love of the ‘80s slashers is evident here right from the start, be it the tone of the film, and even the synth score over the credits.

Dan Ellis

As with the recently released Hanger (reviewed HERE), this film also stars Dan Ellis, as Donald Q. Cardini, who stole every scene he was in during Hanger, and not just because of the prosthetic nose. One of the things the opening prologue scene made me think of is the multitude of videos available on YouTube about abusive Lyft and Uber passengers. For this film, Don is a driver for a movie company, shuttling cast and crew from accommodation to location, and back. His take on these privileged back seaters is certainly a fantasy of drivers, on occasion, I’m sure.

As grumpy as Donnie is, he is smitten by Reversa Red (Sindy Faraguna), “the Scream Queen,” who has an unknown stalker lurking about. He knows all about her life and career, and is super protective of her, even smashing a friend and fellow driver’s (Mike Li) face into a fence for suggesting he’d like to…well, you know. Don is egocentric and a buttinsky, needing to make his presence known, even if it means lipping off Luke (Nathan Durec), the newbie indie director of the film within the film (meta-film). I was wondering if she is a metaphorical or ideological stand-in for Debbie Rochon, the star of Ryan’s previous release.

Sindy Faraguna

He spends a lot of time on set, as we watch the director shooting his low-budget horror flick. This leads to some very dry humor that can be appreciated by the viewer, if they have been on a similar set, or not. The meta-film shooting of the horror epic are some of my favorite parts. Thing is, you can guess this is actually what it is really like on some sets, with some bad acting and minimal accommodations, including food.

There are some good action scenes (i.e., kills) throughout the first two acts as Don gets more and more deranged, reminding me of other nutty overly enthusiastic fanboy films, like The Fan (1981), The Fan (1996), or The King of Comedy (1982). Being an aspiring filmmaker with no direction or means, who is watching shoddy work, along with the presence of his idol, Don snaps, which affects Reversa, her co-star Sienna (cute Erindera Farga), the make-up person Jenny (Paige Farbacher), and Luke. Assisting Don on camera to film the debacle is the “Lodge Boy” (Nick Windebank). The latter becomes a willing accomplice to the mayhem.

Of course, things get increasingly erratic and especially bloody as these filmmakers get caught up in the vision of a maniac. I will not, of course, go into detail, and ruin the joy for the new viewer. Let’s just say, as this is a Ryan Nicholson release, that things are not all smooth sailing.

The thing is, most of the characters, with some exceptions (such as Luke), are actually likeable, and even with little to no backstory on any of them, it is easy to feel some sympathy for them, which of course makes the kills all that more engaging. There are a lot of prosthetic goodies from the meta-film, but the actions of Don feel more visceral, even if they too, in reality are compositions, like in Hanger, created magnificently by Michele Grady.

It is pretty easy to figure out who the stalker is, though, which is a nice ribbon-and-bow tied on the story that made a really nice soup with all the bits coming together. There are still plenty of surprises that pop up and can make the viewer go, “oh, I was not expecting that!” or admire how even some well-worn tropes are used (stalker) to an advantage.

Though I do not have the disk, some of the extras will include an archival full-length commentary with the director and lead actor Dan Ellis, “On the Set of Star Vehicle” presented by Left Coast TV, “Behind the Wheel of Bleading Lady,” a “Making Of” featurette, “Make-up Students + Acting Students,” Deleted Scenes and Alternative Opening, opening at Splatterfest at the Plaza Theatre, a photo gallery, and the trailer. The discs are available on Blu-Ray and DVD from Unearthed Films and MVD Entertainment at the links near the top. 

While I do not believe this is one of Nicholson’s strongest works that I have seen to date, it’s still heads over many others from either that period or even some that are being released now. I am sad that Nicholson died so early because he could have easily outshone some majors like Eli Roth, and many of his films have done just that; they just haven’t been recognized as such yet because of his passing. Unearthed re-releasing his catalog will hopefully shed more light on his fine work. Think of the early releases by Cronenberg and Peter Jackson; you know how some say, “His early works were amazing even though they were cheesy at times, but you could see the brilliance there”? Nicholson never got past that beginning point, so we will never know what kind of The Fly or Lord of the Rings opus he might have eventually given us. For now, thanks to Unearthed, we have the opportunity to enjoy what we have.