Review: WJHC AM

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2022
Images from the Internet

WJHC AM
Directed by Vinnie Vineyard and Luke Walker
Big N Funky Productions; Burning Bulb Publishing
107 minutes, 2022
www.funkmasterv.com/
www.BigNFunkyProductions.com

With that title, there can be little doubt this black and white micro-budget film is a comedy (wisely, they didn’t use WJFC). Taking place in Tennessee (but also shot in the appropriate states of Georgia, North Carolina, and Arkansas, as well as Tennessee), the cast took their lives in their hands (I’m guessing) to make a horror film in that region mixing religion, Y2K, the Rapture, and a bloody time.

After all, why shouldn’t the Rapture be a bloodfest, since the book it is based on (you know, that best seller known as The Bible) is one of the most gruesome tomes ever to be published, promoting genocide, incest, slavery, cannibalism, misogyny, homophobia, etc.? And ironically, the people who follow this want to ban “A Separate Peace” (if you’re going to censor it, do it because it’s boring, not for the implied homosexuality that the author denied). But enough with the soap box, for now.

Vinnie Vineyard

This is the second film in the Smoky Mountain Chronicles, with the first being The Hike (2021), which I have not seen as yet. For this tale, the story focuses on Cousin Vinnie Bradipo (director Vineyard), a talk radio disc jockey looking for work (any relation to Cousin Brucie?).

After a “holy” experience in the early 1990s in the prologue, Vinnie gets reluctantly hired at the titular radio station, immediately getting hit on by both sexes. What is amusing is that the people who work there have no idea how funny their station is, such as not getting that one of their shows is called “God Jammit.” Yeah, this does mock the MAGA uber religious types, and I’m totally fine with that. I’m sure some viewers scream “persecution” while they are talking about taking away women’s rights and murdering LGBQ+ folk; and I’ll bet it will be without even seeing the film, which is a social commentary on a prosperity-gospel-type Christian lifestyle. Oops, there’s that soap box again. Gonna be hard to stay off of it, I think.

As insane as some of the online preachers seem, and we get to watch a number of them, its far enough off to know it is parody, but close enough to recognize it. That is where the humor mostly lies. We also meet a seemingly stoner engineer, who seems to be modeled on The Dude (1988’s The Big Lebowski), Brother Arlo (co-director, co-writer, and scene stealer Luke Walker), the sarcastic, very pregnant chain smoking studio director, Sister Nancy (Tracy Yaste), a horny DJ Sister Christian (Amy Perkinson Hale), the equally horny and lurking station owner’s son, Jack (Travis Graves), sexpot with miles of cleavage and miniscule brain cells, Sister Stacks (busty model and professional wrestler Katie Gannon) and Vinnie’s cute girlfriend, Angela (Sheena Layne).

Tracy Yates

One fun part is when a visiting church (given air time for donations) uses the later, added parts of Mark with snake handling. What could possibly go wrong, right? Another bit, which really had me laughing, was a talking in tongues challenge that mirrored a rap battle. Cultural appropriation? I am sure these white, “All Lives Matter”-type folks will not see it that way.

Meanwhile, as we get to know the characters, the story starts five days before Y2K, and counts down the days as we get acquainted. There’s lots of music references, nearly all from the Cousin Vinnie side, such as wearing Public Enemy and Wu-Tang tees to work, and talking about the likes of gawdawful Stryper, and HUGS (a band I believe is supposed to represent KISS from the imagery). That’s for those of you who have no interest in modern gospel.

Throughout the film, strange things are happening off in the peripheral, but it isn’t until the third act when it’s near Y2K proper that the zombies hit the fan…I mean radio, though it’s well over an hour into the film. Some people turn into horned, demonic flesh-eaters (rather than classic zombies), some just disappear (the Rapture), and others need to fend for themselves in a battle to survive the Tribulation. Jeez, I am an atheist who has never been a Christian, so why do I know all this crap?

Herb Himes

The fight scenes are somewhat bloody, but there is no gore. However, there is more nudity than blood. I don’t see that as something bad. The only questionable thing is the length of the film. While there is quite the wait for the demonic zombie attack(s), it is worth noting that the film is a sharp commentary on religious abuses, as the title card at the end explains, and is entertaining throughout. That being said, it could have easily been trimmed by about 20 minutes and that footage put into the “Deletes Reel” on the eventual DVD/Blu-ray.

Whining aside, please understand that I enjoyed this film for what it was, the messages it was conveying, and the humor at the sake of televangelism. While the station had money problems, I’ll bet they were tax-exempt; yes, I know this channel is fictional, but in some ways so are the likes of Ken Copeland and Jim Bakker, who rely on bullying, trickery, deception, and fear.

The soundtrack is pretty good, actually, and I am so glad they added, during the credits, the song that is mentioned throughout the film, “Go Up Yonder on Yon Hill Over There” (sung by Walker). That was a revelation.

IMDB Listing HERE